Well hello blog, it's been a while! I last took you with me as I visited the rock pools at Second Valley. Today, we're visiting another beach in South Australia with a perfectly Instagrammable "rock pool" at Sellicks Beach. These rock pool views are such gems and I'm always keen to hunt for them. Want to find out exactly where to find this location? Read on and I'll take you there!

South Australia's beaches are absolutely beautiful to say the least. Perhaps I shall make it a personal mission to visit each one. For today, let's visit an Instagram-favourite - Second Valley. It was my first time there and of course I was on the hunt for the most beautiful views. Don't you hate it when Instagrammers refuse to say where the exact location of where a photo was taken? Today, I'll show you exactly where to find these rock pools at Second Valley. 

It was my second time in Melbourne. I had already seen Melbourne's CBD, the Great Ocean Road, and even free tourist attractions in Melbourne (see blog posts for itineraries). This time, I wanted to see the famed penguins who reportedly parade their way back home every night. Depending from where you're staying in Melbourne, Phillip Island is 1-3 hours drive away. Now some people stay there a couple days but we only made it a day trip. Read on for our one-day Phillip Island itinerary.

I visited Melbourne again during Spring. While I thought it would be warm, it was cold and windy for a Spring day. Luckily, I brought my floral embroidered denim jacket with me.

Because I had already seen Melbourne CBD and The Great Ocean Road and other Melbourne highlights (see Melbourne Itinerary HERE), I meant to check off some Melbourne stops that I missed out on the first time.

It's Spring in Australia. The sun has come out to play, and so have I. Off we went for a quick road trip down south of Adelaide to pay the Fleurieu Peninsula another visit.

It's quite amazing that despite living in Adelaide for over 2 years, I had yet to visit the state library of South Australia. On this day, I decided to make like Dora and take my mini leather backpack exploring.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away, as they say. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of apples, off I went to go apple picking at my first time attending a "Pick a Pink Lady" weekend in South Australia. Pink Lady apples, obviously.

As you may already know, I, an absolute beginner, went camping at Innes National Park, in Marion Bay, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia. I can now proudly say that I survived camping in the Australian outback! Okay, I'm not sure if a national park really counts but in my book, it does. So glad I did my research though and got smart tips from Go Camping Australia. And now I've come up with my own list of 12 Things To Bring When Camping for Absolute Beginners:

After 2 years of living in Australia, I finally went on my first camping adventure. As a complete beginner (okay yes, I've been a pampered little princess all my life), the experience was new and exciting, What better place to try it out than at Innes National Park in Marion Bay, Yorke Peninsula, South Australia?

When my family came to visit from America, we made sure to travel to Sydney, go around Adelaide, and for our last stop: Melbourne. Because we had kids with us, this is a family-friendly Melbourne itinerary which includes Peninsula Hot Springs, Enchanted Adventure Garden, and the 12 Apostles at the Great Ocean Road. We also traveled during winter last year but this itinerary can be easily done during all 4 seasons.

Day 1-2: THE CITY - Melbourne CBD

I first read about the existence of pink lakes in 2014 on Gary Pepper Girl. Still, I had to gasp when I saw it for myself. Lo and behold, a body of water in my favorite color. Almost unreal, yet there it was. I'd run in and bathe in its candy-colored glory but as they say, beauty is deceiving.

When my family from America came to visit us in Australia, I quickly planned a 3-week holiday with stopovers in Sydney, Adelaide, and Melbourne. We started the trip in Sydney. It was winter time and if you didn't know, winter here is between June to August. We had a 13-year-old and a 3-year-old with us so if you're looking to plan a Sydney trip suitable for the whole family, you've come to the right place!

The snow was exactly how I had imagined it to be - pristine white, soft, and utterly beautiful. It was our first time to see snow and we were off on a skiing adventure. Skiing, on the other hand, was NOT how I had imagined it to be. If you're a first timer/beginner and are planning your first snow adventure at Mt. Buller, then read on for a detailed copy of our itinerary and budget breakdown.

My first snow experience!

One of the best things about going around Adelaide is that you can easily feel like you have transported yourself to a whole new different world - if only for an hour. For today's post, we travel to one of Australia's best geological and archaeological sites. But don't take it from me, I'm no expert and surely can't explain how over a history of millions of years, nature took its toll and resulted into this beauty (check out official South Australia websites for more on the history). And geologists and archaeologists might be able to explain their different scientific theories and histories, but really, we cannot even begin to grasp the wonder of God's marvelous creations. How beautiful are the works of your hands, oh Lord?

For our first wedding anniversary, K and I drove down south of Adelaide to McLaren Vale for a holiday. Because our anniversary fell on a weekday, the internet wasn't too helpful when I googled "what to do in McLaren Vale" since all the events were held during the weekend. But since we had already booked our stay and we would be happy exploring on our own anyway, we pushed through. So if you're looking for a guide of where to stay, what to do (on weekdays and other days), and how much you can expect to spend, read on.

When Scoopon offered a deal for a "magical 2 hour dolphin cruise with lunch and a drink on Port River" at a very affordable price, who was I to resist? At only $49 for 4 people, it was a perfect idea for a double date.

Did you know that the cherries found in cocktails, canned fruit cocktail, or on top of your ice cream aren't "real cherries"? To be perfectly honest, I had no idea until I arrived in Australia and tasted real and natural cherries. Apparently, maraschino cherries or decorative cherries undergo a process of bleaching and preservation with sulfur dioxide and calcium chloride and then soaked in food coloring, corn syrup and others. Real cherries taste nothing like it! In fact, here's a beautiful pair, freshly picked by myself.