Puffin Belly(Drive a Steam Train - The 861 Footplate Experience)

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you may bring along your partner and family or guests, who may ride on the train, or enjoy the attractions of the area.

You have exclusive use of the locomotive for a day, under the expert supervision of an experienced Puffing Billy Railway driver.

You get the opportunity to light the fire, lubricate the locomotive, learn how to raise steam and how the Westinghouse brakes work, before spending several hours firing and driving the locomotive over a very challenging route.

Your day can start as early as 7.00 am when the fire will be lit in the locomotive and steam raised. This will be followed by a briefing session on safety procedures, and on the operation of the locomotive.

After making up a short train at Emerald you will depart at 9.15 am for Lakeside. At Lakeside your locomotive will take water, before you depart for Cockatoo. This section of track features three trestle bridges, and you will have the opportunity to photograph the train at one of these. At Cockatoo you will run the locomotive round the train, do some shunting, before departing for Lakeside . On the way back to Lakeside there will be time for a photo stop at another of the trestle bridges.

At Lakeside you will be able to see, and be involved in, much activity. On your arrival at Lakeside at , the first train from Belgrave will have already arrived at the station. Your train will be shunted into the stabling siding. At 11.40 am the second train from Belgrave will arrive. At 11.45 am one of these trains will depart for Gembrook. The locomotive on the other regular train will run round its train, ready for its return to Belgrave at 12.30 pm. Your train will then leave the stabling siding and come into the station to take water. You will then have lunch. After the 12.30 pm train departs for Belgrave, you will run the locomotive around your train, before departing for your second run to Cockatoo .

On the second run to Cockatoo you will have the opportunity to stop for a photograph at Wright station. On arrival at Cockatoo you will again run the locomotive around the train, do some shunting, then depart Cockatoo for Lakeside . On the way, there will again be time for a photo stop at one of the bridges, if you wish.

At Lakeside you refill the locomotive with water and see the Luncheon Train. Then, after having afternoon tea, you will take your train back to Emerald.

At Emerald you will see the last regular daily train from Belgrave pass on its way to Lakeside. You will then finish the day by shunting the train into a siding, and taking the locomotive back to its shed. Here it will take water, the fire will be dropped, the locomotive will be cleaned, and put to bed in its shed.

Your day will end at about 4.00 pm.

2006 Eureka tower

Some more facts:
- construction began in August of 2001;
- the building weighs 200,000 tonnes;
5,000 tonnes of reinforced steel and 110,000 tonnes of concrete
were used in the construction of Eureka Tower;
- the façade of the tower consists of 40,000 square metres of glass and aluminum panels;
- the glass is specially designed to reflect heat in the Summer, but to retain heat in the Winter

The pictures you find on this page were taken in April 2006;
just a few days before the building was completed (on the outside).
You can still see a crane on top doing the last (gold) decoration work on the summit of Eureka Tower.

Some Intersting Things About the Eureka Tower

Some facts about Eureka Tower:
- designed by Fender Katsalidis Architects;
- the story behind the name of the tower:
the name has a special significance in Australia due to the discovery of gold,
which has played a significant role in Melbourne's history.
Eureka means 'I've Found It' in Greek
and the expression 'Eureka, Eureka' was shouted
by Greek mathematician Archimedes (287-221 BC)
after he had just discovered the theory of displacement of liquids.
Legend has it that Archimedes used his theory to measure the purity
of the gold in the King's crown.
These golden connections have been incorporated in both the name of the building
and the 'golden' pinnacle of the tower which cover the top 11 floors.
This summit is clad in glass that has a surface of real gold.
- building costs were approximately US$ 415 million;
- 2nd tallest residential building in the world;
in 2006, only Q1 was taller, but that was because of its spire on top.
Floor wise, or height from ground level to roof top wise,
Eureka Tower is the tallest residential Tower in the world;
- at the beginning of 2006, the developer of Eureka Tower proposed adding an almost 54m/180f tall
communication mast/observation tower on top of the 297m/975f building;
- in April of 2006, a new proposal was announced:
a skywalk of over 50 m/164f that would lift the height to over 350m/1150f;
- the building will have an observatory on the 88th floor, 288m/945f above the ground.
The observatory is due to open at the end of 2006.
It will be the highest observatory in the Southern Hempishere;
- the tower has 13 elevators; two of which will service the observation deck.
They will be among the fastest in Australia, reaching the observatory,
traveling at 9 metres per second; 540 metres per minute.
- the buildings has 556 apartments.
The top ones will be the second highest in the world,
with the penthouse at level 84 (278,5m/913f) as the highest.
Only the John Hancock Center in Chicago has higher apartments;
- between ground level and floor 11 there are offices, restaurants, retail,
a health and fitness centre, a swimming pool, and a residents' car park (800 cars).
Floors 11 tot 80 will contain the 556 apartments.
The apartment levels are divided in three sections:
floors 11 to 24 will be 'River rise'; floors 25 to 52 will be 'Premier rise';
while Floors 53 to 80 will be 'Sky rise';
The top nine floors of the complex, known as 'Summit complex', will have the observatory,
the 84th floor penthouse, restaurants, a function centre, and a nightclub on level 87.
Two floors are in use as service and plant floors.

Eureka Tower photos

Yarra River

Although it's usually a muddy brown and it's not as clean as the city would like, the Yarra, which rises in the mountains east of town and flows through the suburbs and the city to the bay, is still an indispensible part of Melbourne.

In its upper and suburban reaches its bushy banks form parklands dotted with walking trails. Plying the river towards the city are water taxis and leisure craft; hugging the shores are award-winning restaurants, cafes and bars.

Riverside parks, cycling tracks, rowing sheds & lush green gardens are framed by the Crown Entertainment Centre at one end and Victoria's beloved MCG at the other. Walkers, cyclists, joggers, roller-bladers and skateboarders can all be found along its banks, while plenty of rowers skim the water from dawn to dusk.

Flemington Race course

This is the home of Flemington Racecourse in Epsom Road. Flemington Racecourse is famed for the renowned Melbourne Cup, part of the Spring Racing Carnival, one of Australia’s premier sporting events that draws visitors from around the world.

Whether you are a first-time visitor or a regular racegoer the racing is always exciting at 'Headquarters'. Flemington Racecourse is home to the Victoria Racing Club (VRC), the premier racing club in Australia. The VRC has the largest membership of any club in Australia.

The grounds are glorious with their rose gardens, impressive grandstand which boasts state-of-the-art facilities, and spectacular views of Melbourne.

Great Ocean Road

The Great Ocean Road, also known as the Shipwreck Coast, is rich in culture and history. Together with the volcanic Hinterland, this area includes many attractions and natural wonders. These include Port Campbell National Park, Lake Corangamite (Australia's largest permanent salt lake) and the Twelve Apostles. The coastal towns of Port Fairy, Warrnambool, Port Campbell and the historic Camperdown create the perfect choice for family holidays and unforgettable experiences.