Day 4 - Safaris and Wild rides

 After several days of blue skies and crisp air, we were due a cold, overcast day and that day was today! After a slightly later start (half an hour more sleep - yay!), Ray drove us the 45 minutes out of town to Werribee Zoo, where we were greeted with a very brisk 11 degrees (but ‘feels like 6 degrees’) and the threat of rain. 

With jackets and scarves on, and rain jackets in backpacks at the ready, we threw ourselves in with the animals. It was a quiet day at the zoo so students had a chance to see the animals up close and personal, including the newly opened Australian Trail where kangaroos, emus and other wildlife roamed free amongst the visitors.

We had booked a safari tour through the plains of the zoo where we were loaded into open air safari Jeep buses and driven out amongst the giraffes, rhino and other amazing creatures. 

It was incredible to get to see the animals roaming around rather than behind glass or a fence!

Next up, we were glad to be behind the glass for the lion show before encountering two dancing zebras with a strange resemblance to Austin Powers, displaying their weird and wonderful moves. They enticed us into a dance group where we showed off our zebra dancing styles, and where Montana managed to score ‘photo of the tour’!

Despite the layers of clothing, we felt like we were starting to turn blue from the cold, so off to the cafe where hot chips and hot chocolate helped warm us back up before we embarked the next big zoo activity - navigating the incredible gift shop, where choosing between all the cute and cuddly merchandise was a super tough challenge!

Of course, just as we were leaving the sun come out! This was good news for our afternoon ahead at Luna Park. Ray took us on a scenic route through Albert Park and onto the Formula 1 track, then passed last year’s The Block apartments as well as the building from the current season, and finally into the seaside suburb of St Kilda.

The kids braced themselves against the cold wind off the ocean, were given their wristbands for unlimited rides and were off for three hours of fun and games! 

This was a highlight of the trip for many, and it was excellent to see students put themselves out of their comfort zones by going on fast rides or the scary ghost train and House of Horrors.

We raced across the street for some burger and fries for dinner, before Ray collected us for the trip back into the CBD.

It was an earlier night in the hotel so that we had time to figure out how to pack our bags with all the souvenirs and gifts we had bought (and still remain under the weight limit), and to try to get a good night’s sleep before our final big day tomorrow. 

Coming up - our Docklands experience and the long journey home!