Yarra Valley

A weekend well-spent

By Thomas Feng

April 8^th, 2019

A local getaway

Every now and then, my family itches for a getaway; an excuse to be out of town for a few days and remember life outside of mundane routine.

My cousin was getting married in the Yarra Valley, one of Victoria's oldest wine regions an hour and a half out of Melbourne, so it made perfect sense to stay overnight and hang about for the weekend.

It's a picturesque drive along the Maroondah Highway to get there, as we exit the eastern fringes of the city we see grazing fields for local dairy farmers and bounding hills of vineyards who make the most of Melbourne's obsession with wine and cheese.

The weather is stereotypically Melbourne, grey and overcast at once, before a sudden crash of rain and lightning, and the clouds open to a redeeming sun. All within a matter of two hours.

Thankfully, we ate a classy lunch undercover at the famous Yering Station grounds and were able to enjoy a couple of vinos once the sun came out.

A cute moment

A silly blonde child danced absurdly making silly faces and singing in front of some old men enjoying the view of the Yering Station Reserve, and one of the old men started mirroring them, much to the delight of everybody.

Life is too short to take seriously. It is important to loosen up from time to time.

I probably should listen to myself more sometimes.

The Wedding

There is not a more fairytale-like place in the region to become married than at Stones of the Yarra Valley. After you enter the grounds, you can see in-between two old oak trees a romantic chapel with stain-glassed windows, tall timber ceilings and beige walls which bring out a softness in the room.

Nearby there's also a renovated dairy shed for drinks and the spacious, floral stables for a meal.

Take five long tables, a garden full of flowers and a line of candles and you've got an intimate dinner for over 150 people.

There were excellent speeches from the best man and bridesmaids, bride, groom, and family.

You could see how far their love had taken them, from high-school to travelling the world, and how many people their love had brought along with them.

The sun came down before dessert and set the sky alight.

It was a loving night of warmth, nobility, charisma, and celebration.

This was and probably will be the only wedding I attend where over 100 people belt out the classic Chinese song, Guang Liang's "Fairytale", but alas there I was, singing in unison as we became the world's shortest-lived choir.

The dancing talent of the wedding attendees was also off the charts. We earned our free gelato for dessert after tearing up the dancefloor.

Once the music stopped, we all lined up with sparklers and wished the newlyweds the best as they started their new lives together.

An unlikely Lotus farm

It rained the next day, but we were able to sneak in a few moments of respite at the Blue Lotus Water Garden, an improbably lotus garden in between the farmland and forest.

After a big night, it was a quiet spot to earn some respite and take it slow for a couple of hours.

In amidst the tens of thousands of lotus flowers, I felt a sense of mystique to the place. Rain droplets rolled straight off the lotus leaves, and often seeds would unexpectedly and miraculously begin to bloom.

There are also so many types of lotus, with giant lotus leaves from the Amazon with a razor sharp spine, a spiritually significant Golden Lotus, and a pond dedicated to Monet's lilies.

Final thoughts

There is so much more to the Yarra Valley than wine and cheese.

Other places to visit are the historic town of Healesville and Selover's Lookout nearby. If you drive further up, you'll pass through a breath-taking forest and be in tranquil Marysville.