# Australian Adventure Ideas?



## Brian R. VanCise (Apr 27, 2015)

Okay so I am heading to Australia this summer to teach and train. 

See here: Instinctive Response Training Australian Intensive At Outer Eastern Martial Arts on July 11th 12th MartialTalk.Com - Friendly Martial Arts Forum Community


While I have limited time this trip I do plan on sight seeing in and around Melbourne and Sydney areas.  K-man has given me some great ideas but since we have quite a few Australians on the board I thought I would ask for some feedback on what some of your favorite sights to see and particularly places to eat?  I absolutely love great food so where are some fantastic places to eat in and around Melbourne and Sydney?


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## drop bear (Apr 27, 2015)

The espy in st kilda. Go see bad boys batucada.


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## drop bear (Apr 27, 2015)

And then have cake on acland st.


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## jezr74 (Apr 27, 2015)

For Melbourne (no one likes Sydney).. how long are you there and are you only able to get to CBD areas? Few things below that are more local..

If your using public transport to get around make sure you get yourself a Myki Card, is the only thing you can use to get around on the Trams and Trains. Trams in Melbourne City will take you out to St.Kilda and Brunswick for Drinks and Food, if you happy to step out of the CBD a little (20 mins away). Otherwise, cabs or hire cars.

*Food \ Drink, outside of the CBD*
Lygon Street, mainly Italian food and great coffee.
St.Kilda Esplanade and Acland St. like Dropbear said. Lots of pubs and restraints.
Crown Casino and Waterfront, heaps of eating, drinks and shopping.

*Site Seeing, things to do around Melbourne City.*
Our Old Gaol, The Old Melbourne Gaol Old Melbourne Gaol
Melbourne Star, Official Melbourne Star Observation Wheel Website
Tall Ship, Polly Woodside Tall ship
ACMI

Few things to get you started...


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## drop bear (Apr 27, 2015)

If you went to cardinia dam at narre warren dawn or dusk. You may see kangaroos.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Apr 27, 2015)

*Some great ideas to get me started guy's!*  Thanks and if you think of anything else feel free to post it here!

Looking forward to training, sightseeing, fun and great food!


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## jezr74 (Apr 27, 2015)

Brian R. VanCise said:


> *Some great ideas to get me started guy's!*  Thanks and if you think of anything else feel free to post it here!
> 
> Looking forward to training, sightseeing, fun and great food!



Depending on how much free time you have in Melbourne? Other things are heading down the Great Ocean Road to Lorne (3ish hours), or down the Mornington Peninsular (about an hour drive). But they are more along the lines of day trips or over nighters. You have Bells beach too if your a surfer only an hour or so drive etc.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Apr 28, 2015)

We might go see the Twelve Apostles at the Port Campbell National Park.  Have to see if we can fit that in.


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## PhotonGuy (Apr 29, 2015)

Have fun in Australia. I've never been there but I do plan to visit sometime. I've got a friend from Australia and according to her there's some big cities but a lot of open space in between. Maybe you might see a Kuala bears although technically not a bear, have a great time.


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## Zero (May 13, 2015)

Brian

Hands-down the best thing you can do for sight seeing when you get to Australia is get straight on a plane and go to NZ.  You won't regret it. They know how to play (real) sport there too!!   ; )

Lots of love!!


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## Zero (May 13, 2015)

Brian R. VanCise said:


> We might go see the Twelve Apostles at the Port Campbell National Park.  Have to see if we can fit that in.


It's great there, well worth the drive. 

Melbourne is also awesome as a city itself, other than what Jezr has listed there is so much culture if you are into that kind of thing, a heap of theatre and art to take in.


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## Brian R. VanCise (May 13, 2015)

Hey Zero we are really looking forward to seeing Melbourne and surrounding areas.  Plus a stop in Sydney as well!


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## jezr74 (May 13, 2015)

Zero said:


> Brian
> 
> Hands-down the best thing you can do for sight seeing when you get to Australia is get straight on a plane and go to NZ.  You won't regret it. They know how to play (real) sport there too!!   ; )
> 
> Lots of love!!



Hmm.. AFL is way too complex for NZ'ders. 

But if you can adjust your flights to go via NZ while your down there, you won't regret it. Has amazing landscapes. And the jet boats would be fun.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jun 15, 2015)

Hey jezr74,

New Zealand is out of the question this trip.  However, I have someone in NZ who wants to bring me there in the future so we may get there sooner rather than later.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jun 15, 2015)

jezr74 said:


> Depending on how much free time you have in Melbourne? Other things are heading down the Great Ocean Road to Lorne (3ish hours), or down the Mornington Peninsular (about an hour drive). But they are more along the lines of day trips or over nighters. You have Bells beach too if your a surfer only an hour or so drive etc.



Bondi beach, Bells beach would be neat to see.   Is Lorne a picturesque place to be?


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## jezr74 (Jun 15, 2015)

Brian R. VanCise said:


> Bondi beach, Bells beach would be neat to see.   Is Lorne a picturesque place to be?



Bondi is in Sydney, well worth visiting. Lorne is beautiful, but keep in mind the travel time as it can take up your day.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 17, 2015)

We had an amazing trip!

Melbourne is a gorgeous city with beautiful city lines.  On the outskirts in the Dandenong mountain range which is simply gorgeous and close to where I stayed.  The Twelve Apostles certainly did not let down as it was an incredibly beautiful scenic place and Sydney was beautiful as well and everyone should take their harbor tour and see the Opera House. 

All in all a fantastic trip with great hosts and wonderful people.  Australian's are simply some of the friendliest and warmest people I have met!

Here are a few pictures at my blog:

The Instinctive Edge


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 17, 2015)

jezr74 said:


> Depending on how much free time you have in Melbourne? Other things are heading down the Great Ocean Road to Lorne (3ish hours), or down the Mornington Peninsular (about an hour drive). But they are more along the lines of day trips or over nighters. You have Bells beach too if your a surfer only an hour or so drive etc.



Hey jezr74 heading down the Great Ocean road was wonderful.  Really glad we did that as well as visiting Lorne, Port Campbell and the Twelve Apostles!  Simply a beautiful adventure!


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## Tony Dismukes (Jul 17, 2015)

Brian R. VanCise said:


> We had an amazing trip!
> 
> Melbourne is a gorgeous city with beautiful city lines.  On the outskirts in the Dandenong mountain range which is simply gorgeous and close to where I stayed.  The Twelve Apostles certainly did not let down as it was an incredibly beautiful scenic place and Sydney was beautiful as well and everyone should take their harbor tour and see the Opera House.
> 
> ...


Very cool! I'm jealous.

Did you have a chance to meet many MartialTalk members while you were down there?


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## jezr74 (Jul 18, 2015)

Good to hear you had a great time Brian, I saw some faces I recognise in your blog post. 

Also excellent to see the MT broader community getting together, especially from different sides of the world.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 18, 2015)

Tony Dismukes said:


> Very cool! I'm jealous.
> 
> Did you have a chance to meet many MartialTalk members while you were down there?



Hey Tony,  I met and trained with K-man as he hosted the seminar!  You should see the beautiful Training Hall that K-man and Mal McRae have.  Simply gorgeous and large!  I also met Doug Tucker who came to chat from Martial Arts Planet.  Really a good guy to talk with about Filipino Martial Arts!




jezr74 said:


> Good to hear you had a great time Brian, I saw some faces I recognise in your blog post.
> 
> Also excellent to see the MT broader community getting together, especially from different sides of the world.



Hey jezr74 it was a great time.  Lots of fun and a great group of people to train with!


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## Chris Parker (Jul 21, 2015)

And, for the record Tony, there was one other that Brian met… was a fun couple of days!


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 21, 2015)

Yes, Chris was my partner for a lot of the seminar.  Big thanks to Chris for helping me out!


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## Chris Parker (Jul 21, 2015)

Anytime. By the way, my friends want to know how you got so many photos of me… ha!


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## Xue Sheng (Jul 21, 2015)

I'm reading the posts and looking at the pictures and it looks like a lot of fun. I also find I am starting to wonder if I can physically handle that anymore, but I sure would have liked to give it a try....and meeting the faces behind the names on MT would be great too... and I too am jealous


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## K-man (Jul 21, 2015)

Xue Sheng said:


> I'm reading the posts and looking at the pictures and it looks like a lot of fun. I also find I am starting to wonder if I can physically handle that anymore, but I sure would have liked to give it a try....and meeting the faces behind the names on MT would be great too... and I too am jealous


Hey, you're welcome at any time too. It *was* good fun and we had a bbq after training one night and a group with partners out for dinner the next. It's always good when martial artists get together socially. You see a different side.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 21, 2015)

Hey Chris,

Video camcorder.  Just take the photo right off the video feed.


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## Tony Dismukes (Jul 21, 2015)

Now you just need to tag the photos so we know who's who.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 21, 2015)

Will do Tony!


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## Geo (Jul 28, 2015)

jezr74 said:


> For Melbourne (no one likes Sydney).. how long are you there and are you only able to get to CBD areas? Few things below that are more local..
> 
> If your using public transport to get around make sure you get yourself a Myki Card, is the only thing you can use to get around on the Trams and Trains. Trams in Melbourne City will take you out to St.Kilda and Brunswick for Drinks and Food, if you happy to step out of the CBD a little (20 mins away). Otherwise, cabs or hire cars.
> 
> ...


It sad that Melburnian insecurity was displayed here. Instead of welcoming a brother to our country you have to put  your small town mentality on display shameful. Yes I am from Sydney.

To the brother coming to Australia G'Day Mate.  Sydney and Melbourne offer very varied interests.  Some of the  Australian icons are within the Sydney CBD like the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge (do the bridge climb its one for the bucket list), Bondi Beach ( its winter here though), The Rocks, Luna Park and Darling Harbour. 

Melbourne has different offerings its like chasing a nip of 40 year old whiskey with beer. 

Please enjoy your stay.


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## Brian R. VanCise (Jul 28, 2015)

Hey Geo,

I am back now but Melbourne and Sydney were both wonderful places!

Australia is simply beautiful.  Love your country and can't wait to come back!


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## Geo (Aug 2, 2015)

Brian R. VanCise said:


> Hey Geo,
> 
> I am back now but Melbourne and Sydney were both wonderful places!
> 
> Australia is simply beautiful.  Love your country and can't wait to come back!


Hey Brian,

Glad you enjoyed!  Next time you're back try Cairns and Darwin they have smashing sites there as well. 

Cheers Mate!

Sent from my GT-P5210 using Tapatalk


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## Tez3 (Aug 2, 2015)

Geo said:


> It sad that Melburnian insecurity was displayed here. Instead of welcoming a brother to our country you have to put  your small town mentality on display shameful. Yes I am from Sydney.
> 
> To the brother coming to Australia G'Day Mate.  Sydney and Melbourne offer very varied interests.  Some of the  Australian icons are within the Sydney CBD like the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge (do the bridge climb its one for the bucket list), Bondi Beach ( its winter here though), The Rocks, Luna Park and Darling Harbour.
> 
> ...




According to the Aussie soaps Sydney is the place they go to and never come back from, it seems to be a euphemism for not having your contract renewed.

On the other hand I don't suppose you could pop down to Bondi and give Kerrbox a hug from me, I always think he needs one ( for others see Bondi Beach Lifeguards, needs to be watched for the most unflappable, laid back understating rescuing going)


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## Geo (Aug 2, 2015)

Tez3 said:


> According to the Aussie soaps Sydney is the place they go to and never come back from, it seems to be a euphemism for not having your contract renewed.
> 
> On the other hand I don't suppose you could pop down to Bondi and give Kerrbox a hug from me, I always think he needs one ( for others see Bondi Beach Lifeguards, needs to be watched for the most unflappable, laid back understating rescuing going)


Hi Tez3 how are you?

Many consider Melbourne as the Aussie tinseltown although Fox has sound stages here in Sydney.  However most of local TV shows and movies are produced in the state of Victoria but not necessarily shot entirely there. So really the hive of up and coming tv and movie stars is Victoria even though the location is everywhere.  Sydney in this context is the outposted office.

Bondi Rescue the TV show is just that, entertainment but those boys and girls at various Surf Life and Save clubs are all volunteers and do good work off camera.  Have you been down under? 

Sent from my GT-P5210 using Tapatalk


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## Tez3 (Aug 2, 2015)

Geo said:


> Have you been down under?



Ooer that's a bit personal!  Sadly no I haven't, I have a friend in Tasmania, used to work with him here, he's what a Guiding friend of mine calls a bouncing Pom lol, he was a copper in Sheffield here, a copper in Hobart, a copper back here, the Governor's driver in Tasmania, we were going out to see him but of course he came back!  My Guiding friend went out there got married had two kids but husband was a drinker, so she upped and left.

To be honest it's the stupid tourists that make me laugh on the Bondi programme, 'never seen the sea? can't swim? well of course you go in the sea half clothed!


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