A day out in the hills

I was feeling glum and sooky today, so my friend Julian whisked me away to the Dandenongs for some fresh air, exercise and lunch. Isn't he ace?

It's so pretty up there - almost like stepping into a fairytale - especially at this time of year with autumn colours on display. We bought some lollies at the lolly shop in Sassafrass and then ate lunch at Pie in the Sky before heading to the top of Mt Dandenong to enjoy the (rainy) view. It was bloody cold up there! I remembered to bring my fat puffy parka with me - and was looking forward to wearing it - but I foolishly thought I'd be OK without it when I got out of the car. Wrong! It was below 10 degrees C. Very wintry indeed.

My lime spider

We warmed our hands on a hot chocolate, had a look at the very well sign-posted Secret Garden and then drove to Silvan Reservoir as the late afternoon sun slanted through the trees and lit up the greenery with a golden glow. But when we got to the dam, it wasn't open. Dang. We did contemplate clambering over the gates, but the possibility of getting caught stopped us.

We consoled ourselves with a walk in the damp, drippy forest. It was nice - dark red soil, glistening leaves, fungus sprouting in the undergrowth, mossy rocks and lichen covered tree trunks, and a quite pleasant earthy smell.

Demented koalas at the Skyhigh giftshop

Tonight Julian and I met Anna at Hu Tong in Prahran for a feed of dumplings. Yum.

When I got home I had a present in the mail from one of my blog readers, Margaret. A cute little Kimmidoll canvas pouch for me to take on my trip. How lovely is that? I've 'met' so many wonderful, kind and caring people on the interwebs. It makes me warm and fuzzy inside.

Tuesday night I got a message from my former osteo on Facebook that made me happy but teary (not hard at the moment). I'm glad we've stayed in touch.

PS 8 days until I leave for NYC!