Day 7 - Wednesday, 9.29.10

I went to Nicolas' place in Mornington for the night.  While he was working in the afternoon I walked around Mornington's Main Street for about 2 hours, taking note of all the shops, restaurants, cafes, and hotels the strip had to offer.  I stopped for a bite to eat at Penman's Coffee Cafe.  I sat outside and had a large helping of deliciously layered lasagna with a glass of red table wine.  I sat there for awhile observing the people and noticing the shops while sipping my wine.  It was wonderful.  I continued to walk along Main Street, and I was about to turn around when I noticed the bay just ahead.  As I approached the water I walked through Mornington Park to look around before settling on top of a cliff overlooking the crystal clear blue/green water of Mornington's Bay.  I stood there for awhile admiring the water, cliffs, sailboats, and people playing along the shore.  On my walk back to the apartment I noticed this architecturally amazing hotel so I decided to look around inside.  The place was actually built in 1890 as a bank before transforming into The Bay Hotel in 1998.

The Bay Hotel

The Mornington Peninsula is only an hours drive from Melbourne.  The area is widely known for its beaches and secluded bays but many visitors come to the peninsula for its vast array of wineries.  With more than 50 cellar doors, the peninsula reveals an enviable reputation for its Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

The area is also known for its 25,000 hectars of national parks as well as seaside activities such as surfing, scuba diving, sailing, diving with the dolphins or swimming with the seals, or horseback riding along the sands of Gunnamatta Beach.

In the evening Nicolas and I went rock climbing.