The Dandenongs are hills just outside Melbourne, close enough to go for an afternoon, far enough to…read morefeel away from it all. I went there with an old friend while I was on a weeks break when working in Australia. It was so special to be in such a lovely place with some one I was fond of and had not seen for some years. Fairly near the bottom of the hills is a Botanical type garden. It's really just natural, tropical type plants growing freely. Something I never quite got used to was parrots and budgerigars flying around wild; this is their natural home. The colours, even in mid spring, are vivid both for flora and birdlife. I remember the tea shop; so English in the middle of these non English plants. But Melbourne is almost a Victorian piece of England. Go on further up and the views are stunning. You can walk to your hearts content. There are steps to climb to the heighest part- a cardio vascular workout! My friend and I sat to watch the sunset. Slow changing colours and somehow different to Europe. Yet the comfort of knowing the sun sets in the Anrepodes is reasuring; the same sun, the same moon the world over.

I love how you describe it bluesofty, you couldn't be more right. And I had the good fortune of…read moregrowing up in the Dandenongs. It is still my home even though I'm in London. Waking up to the sound of the cockatoos screeching in the morning, a big backyard barely 100 metres from the national park where wild peacocks roam and possums live up the trees, magpies come hunting for food and Mr Kookaburra waits for his bacon rashers. The smell of the gumtrees in summer, and the gorgeous red wattle that grows. You don't get plagued by traffic down here, the shops are in the next suburb, as are most amenities. But who cares? I got to go home to fresh air, natural spaces and amazing wildlife. I could hike up the hills, walk to the waterfall, pick wild mushrooms and berriesokay, this just makes me homesick. But definitely a must-see and the perfect excuse to see Puffing Billy - look up that review! Not to mention the other side of the Dandies is the Yarra Valley, vineyard country that produces award winning wines.