Australian Animals

Phillip Island Penguin Parade

I am so f***ing blessed. I am sitting in the Langham Club with a glass of wine and some snacks and thinking about my trip so far. Holy Wow.

Yesterday, I slept in and had a late lunch at Caterina Cucina & Bar. It’s known for its excellent lunches and it did not disappoint. I started with beef carpaccio, and had the pasta special, which was a duck and spinach ragu along with a glass of vino Nobile de Montepulciano. Desert was a glass of lemon infused grappa, a gift from the owner who came over to chat when she heard I was from NYC - she had just returned from visiting her daughter there. Unreal. I wondered whether the scale near the entry way was a way to remind the patrons they needed to control themselves.

I’d arranged this meal knowing I had a long adventure that afternoon that would take me away until after midnight. The excursion was to Phillip Island, about 2 hours south of Melbourne. The main attraction was the famous ‘penguin parade’, where little penguins emerge from the ocean to go to sleep in their burrows among the dunes and cliffs of the beach. To avoid predators, they wait until just after the sunset when the raptors have retired for the evening, and travel in groups across the massive beach. It was a sight. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed because the lights of cameras disorient the little guys. I did manage to find one before it got dark, but the other photos are borrowed with permission from the conservancy.

We made two stops before the penguins. Just down the road, we spent some time at the “nobbies”, a part of the coast also inhabited by these penguins. The shoreline was breathtaking, and we were able to spot some burrows among the dunes. I could have watched the waves break all day.

And our first stop was at the Koala Conservation Preserve, also on Phillip Island. We were able to get quite close to the koala using the boardwalks which snaked through the eucalyptus forest. Such a wonderful aroma, and cuteness overload!

Again, holy wow.

I am so grateful for this opportunity, for the life of fulfilling work that allowed me to get here, and for my family and friends who are taking care of things back home, keeping me company virtually, and cheering me on!

I leave you with a silly picture I took in a Photo Booth at the penguin visitor center…not my best look, but it was cold, windy, and misting light rain throughout the evening so I suppose it could have been worse 🤣

Now on to 5 days of Aussie Open tennis! Can’t wait!