This isn't an attraction in the usual sense.... It's someone's private residence (of sorts), which is so zany that it is a bit of an unofficial tourist attraction. He's apparently happy for people to go look at it, and it's right on the road (with a walking path leading up to it), so very easy to get to.

We spotted it while across the river and had to go find out what it was!

It's located in the hillside in Warburton, we walked there from the warburton trail, but there is a road that goes between the 2 sections, so you could drive to it. Not sure what road that is though. It's about a 2 min walk from the visitor information centre, so not far at all. The map of the local area (which you can pick up at the visitor centre) shows its location :)

I don't know how to describe it..... It's like a treehouse/cubbyhouse/home made from ornately carved wood, with a tribal/Maori/Islander type of feel to it. I presume he lives in part of it, though a lot of it looks like it has no actual function, other than to just be there.

It covers 2 pieces of land, with a road between them, and it's absolutely amazing. There's so much detail, so much to see. It's really something that photos can't capture properly, you have to see it for yourself (Google "boinga bob" to get an idea)

It's free to go look at, it's unbelievable - it's definitely something worth seeing!

Approximate cost: $free

Absolutely lovely little shop! The shop looks like an old fashioned general store, with heaps of teas available. Each tea blend in the store has a jar so you can smell the tea, as well as small & large packets of tea.

The prices are higher than you'd pay for tea somewhere like T2, but here you're buying from a small business rather than a huge company.

I really love their vanilla chai - it's the best I've tasted!!

Yum!

The burgers are pricey, but they are more "boutique" than your standard fast food burger. I guess you get what you pay for.

Made on a proper bread roll, not those chewy hamburger buns, these have lovely fresh ingredients, tasty meat patties and some really lovely sauces. They don't feel greasy or stodgy like some fast food burgers can...

The only downside is I find they drip (from the tomato and sauces) and can be really big (thick), so they are a bit difficult to eat.

Their chips are fantastic - crisp and slightly herbed.

They do a movie ticket deal, so if you're planning to go to the movies and doing dinner too, it's worth getting the deal.

When I first started going here, the food would take FOREVER to be cooked, and it really put me off going there when there are other options out there.... but then something changed and they serve meals in a decent time now, which is great.

I always order a children's burrito meal, as I found the normal size burrito to be far too filling (when you're adding chips, which you have to, because they are great!). The burritos have a great taste, fresh, flavoursome and filling.

I also love their chips! They use a lot of seasoning on them (so if you don't like them seasoned, they aren't for you), but that makes them special :) I'm a fan of them dipped in the ranch sauce. Nom nom!

I seem to recall buying my daughter their nachos once and being very disappointed in them (very little salsa and the corn chips were just pieces of very oily tortilla), but she normally gets the quesadilla (which personally I think is overpriced for melted cheese and a tortilla), which she loves.

I think Salsas is great.

My husband and I had dinner here one night and we were quite disappointed in the main meal.

After some deliberation, we'd both ordered the Moroccan Lamb rack, which was pretty "meh" for the $29 asking price. I really wish I'd picked something else :(

While the lamb itself was cooked well, it didn't have a lot of "Moroccan" flavour. Even though you could see some herbs on top, they were far too mild a taste, barely adding any flavour. It was served with steamed vegies (carrot, zucchini & cauliflower), which were well cooked but also fairly bland vegetables, and a couple of roast potatoes (also nicely cooked). So all in all, a fairly bland meal, and that was disappointing. We definitely did not think it was value for money. We were expecting something with a lot more flavour.

For dessert we shared a slice of their honeycomb cheesecake, which was absolutely divine (very rich!) and redeemed them slightly.

The staff were great, and the atmosphere was fine, but the blandness of the meal was very disappointing.

We stayed in one of these cottages for our anniversary, and it was AMAZING!

We'd looked at pictures of different places to stay, and had thought this one looked to be one of the best of our shortlist. I was even more impressed with it in person!

They really put extra attention to detail here, with beautiful bed linens, a matching theme throughout the decor, a selection of dvds, cds and board games to keep you occupied. A hairdryer in the bathroom, spa slippers, umbrellas by the door and snuggly soft throw rug on the couch. They thought of everything!

The kitchen is a decent sized kitchen, and comes equipped with some pots, pans, utensils and things you might need - so you can cook meals there if you don't want to eat out. They provided breakfast supplies and even lollies :D

It has a fake log fire - so you get the effect of a wood fire, but without the mess and annoyance of keeping it going, which was great. The bed had electric blankets, but we didn't need them as the bedding kept the bed warm. It also has air conditioning for those who go in summer.

Being a little cottage you felt like you were in a home away from home, rather than it feeling like a hotel or something, which was great. It felt really comfortable, while also feeling opulent and very special. You can just sit on your own verandah and listen to the river sounds and feel like nobody else is around. Even though there is another cottage only about 2 metres away, we didn't hear anything from the other people over the weekend (we only knew there were people there because we saw their car and saw them on their verandah once) - So while that had been one thing I thought could be a drawback, it didn't seem to be. There are large trees in front of the cottages, which also gives some privacy to the verandah as well, so while you can see down to the main road, it doesn't feel like you're exposed.

The cottages are on a hill, with a small road running along the front, then the Yarra river, then the main street. You can hear the river from the verandah, and while you can hear the swoosh of cars on the main road, I found it was in a peaceful way, rather than a "traffic noise" way. At night however I found it was very quiet, which made me realise how much background noise there is around my home! Being so close to the main road though, means that it's just a short walk across the footbridge and you're in the main part of Warburton - where there are cafes and shops to browse, or you can walk along the riverbank and feed the ducks.

Another great feature was the ease of checkin/out. They provide you with a security code and you enter that in at the door to get into the cottage - So you can arrive and let yourself in.

The driveway is quite steep, which made me feel uneasy driving in/out and parking on such a steep slope, but I suppose that is the tradeoff for being on a hill and having a great view.

So all in all, I was really impressed with Charnwood - everything was fantastic and I cannot wait to go back there again. I'd definitely recommend it to everyone!

The Monday night class at Rowville, run by Sensei Anthony and Sensei Jeff is fantastic!

They have a great energy, making the classes both fun and disciplined. Encouraging the best out of everyone.

The class is made up of all ranges of belt levels, from white (beginners) up to black belts - with older kids and adults. So it has a great mix of people to make anyone feel welcome. The class is often broken up to allow the lower belts to practice separately to the higher belts, so that everyone gets to work on things that challenge them.

We found the Friday night class in this same location (run by a different Sensei) wasn't a good fit for us, so it does pay to find a Sensei you seem to click with, and I think we've definitely found that with Sensei Anthony and Sensei Jeff. I would highly recommend their class to anyone!

Approximate cost: $11

I was looking to get some protective gear for my daughter, and this place was recommended to us.

I found the staff member I spoke to was very helpful, letting her try the hand/leg pads on to get the right size and chatting to me about Karate. Very friendly!

When he encouraged me to choose the more expensive mouth guard (about $20 compared to $4), I really felt that it was because it provided greater protection for the teeth rather than them just wanting me to spend more money there.

They seem to have a huge range of martial arts gear in store, and you can shop online as well.

I'd definitely recommend this shop, especially if you are looking for cheaper supplies than what the karate clubs tend to offer for their in-house gear.

Red Earth Ghawazee offers fully accredited "beginner" & "beyond beginner" belly dance classes in the American Tribal Style.

Caroline is a great teacher, with a very down to earth approach. The venue is decent sized (though a little small) and without mirrors, but does have windows which act like mirrors in winter. It has airconditioning and the nice touch of them providing jugs of water :) The venue is easy to get to and has good parking.

There are several opportunities to perform at concerts and small events through the year, which are great - as this style of dance has a lot of costuming and it's a lot of fun to get all dressed up to perform.

Because this style is basically a "copy the leader" approach, it's very easy for beginners to do, as there is no choreography to learn, you just do the same moves as the person in the lead does. However it can be a bit daunting when it's your turn to be up the front and lead (as I find it sometimes hard to think of what steps to do). But with practice, that becomes easier.

I would definitely recommend these classes to anyone interested in learning the American Tribal Style dance!

Charni offers fun belly dance classes that are suitable from beginners to the more advanced.

I attend her classes in the Endeavour Hills community centre. She offers a Beginner's class and an Intermediate, where she teaches you classical Egyptian ("Cabaret") style belly dance, including props like veils and stick.

The dance space there is a decent size, though it's lacking a mirror which are handy - but it does have full length windows with blinds, which we use as a sort of mirror :) It's easy to get to and airconditioned (very important in summer :D)

Charni has a warm, bubbly personality, which makes the classes fun and vibrant. She encourages the students to do the occasional performance too, which is great.

I would highly recommend these classes for anyone wanting to learn this style of dance.

She does offer online classes and you can book her to perform at events as well.

Approximate cost: $13.50