touristattraction – Blondie.Ginger

Hello All !

Hope you have all had a wonderful week and are enjoying your weekend. I had quite a busy week myself, however still can’t stop talking about this one very special + fun trip I went on with Andrew (my partner).

What started off as a very rainy morning, jumping out of the car to get some local groceries for our lunch pack, while having to keep a strict eye on time to make it to the train platform on time, located at Belgrave in Victoria Australia.

Hint: It’s been hugely known for many generations…

Yes, you guessed it. Puffing Billy – Australia’s favorite Steam train. We parked the car on the other side off the station, grabbed our bags and off we went.

Having been on this particular train when I was 12 or 13yrs old I knew we were yet again in for a fun filled journey.

Having then arrives on the ticket office, with a woman calling us over to get our train tickets, we walked on when a Conductor was awaiting us to stamp our ticket for the start of our journey, what happened next was unbelievable …

… the atmosphere! – lots of people, many of them tourists visiting the area , children in prams/on their dad’s shoulders/holding their grandparents hands, some sequel others can’t stop smiling. We walk past the end carriages towards the front, some are reserved for Tourist groups traveling to Menzies Creek. The majority of travelers have found a seat in the open carriages, we walk a bit further to the front + hop on to the train.

The Head Conductor comes along adding to the excitement of the journey with Australia’s best preserved steam locomotive along Australia’s finest preserved railway.

I hear an announcement: ‘Two minutes to departure, two minutes to departure !‘, I inform my boyfriend that traveling on Puffing Billy is unique & not complete without sitting on the side, looking out the window while literally dangling your feet off the train – enjoying this wonderful scenery + many amazing views, this goes for everyone young + old…

My Partner had been on the train when we was very young so he doesn’t remember, but boy.. he felt like a kid in a candy store! His smile spoke volumes.

We got off at Lakeside, where we had our lunch before getting back on the train to continue our journey on the trains final stop at Gembrook. My hands were frozen and the rainy weather did indeed add to the atmosphere…I could have easily worn a scarf, gloves and beanie…just mind the fact that it is Summer here in Australia (I was just super cold because of all the wind while traveling).

It was an incredible journey all the way to Gembrook station where we heading in to Charlotte’s on Main. Charlotte’s is a cute cozy cafe which allows to fully relax + rewind before taking the train back…home.

To all of you out there, who have always wanted to go and visit this beautiful country, to those who live in the area + to those in other parts of the country, Travel on Puffing Billy or simply enjoy the incredible scenery – it is worth every dollar and cent!

Because of this business operating predominately on a volunteer basis, I truly hope + wish for future generations to enjoy this beautiful journey for many, many years to come !