Melbourne voyage

Jetlagged, warmed to a radiant glow, I'm back from Melbourne.

I still can't get used to Sg's weather. Well, at least my flu is almost gone. I wonder if it's the cold weather in Melbourne, the EaseACold, or my Sg-made lozenges :p

We took a red-eye flight to Melbourne, departing Sg late on Thur evening. Arriving Sydney just after 6am australian time, we touched down one hour later than the estimated arrival time - thanks to the ever-increasing noise pollution level in Syndey. We missed our transit flight to Melbourne, but didn't have to wait long for the next one...which came half an hour later :p

The weather was a welcoming cold, and I practically "bathed" in it :D

By the time we reached the hotel, it was noon. The room was quite cosy, and the location was along one end of Lt Bourke. Armed with maps collected from the airport, and warm jackets, we set off for lunch and to explore Melbourne City.

Our first stop was Melbourne Visitor Center @ Federation Sq. The center was so colorful and full of information, we became disoriented. It took us a while before we figured out we were there to book a day tour to GOR :p

We had lunch and went back to explore the City precincts. Melbourne shops are largely scattered and disorganised on a wide spectrum. You will be able to find a sidewalk cafe and designer boutique next to each other. Strolling up slope along the walkways, we got lost in the quaint shops and European architecture.

The buildings along Collins oozed aristocracy, while those along Bourke, Flinders and Swanston are interestingly quirky. By 5pm, it was nightfall. By 6pm, the temperature dropped to a low, and the skies were dark. The city lights came on, and the city center took on a new charm with horse-drawn carriages along Swanston.

We rose early next day at 6:30am to ride to GOR. We stopped at many attractions, including the Bells Beach, Great Ocean Road sign, Koala Trees, Apollo Bay, Rainforest, 12 Apostles, Lord Arch, London Bridge, and Colac. It rained and drizzled at quite a few stops, and I got caught in the rain unknowingly. Mist came out with my breath during the night.

It was exhausting and by the time we reached City, I almost hit the sack. My growling stomach won't let me sleep, and we found a 1950's Italian cafe to dine in. It was a gastronomic experience :D

I came down with a nasty flu on the third day. We got some medicine for me to self-medicate and pressed forward nonetheless. We went to Queen Victoria market, and then the Melbourne Musuem - where I got lost in the Human Anatomy displays (they are real human remains!) and the Aboriginal artifacts and practices. The indoor rainforest was pretty cool and the Australian animals section was quite an eye opener (they are real specimens! just imagine a wolf or kangaroo specimen :P). We walked to Fitzroy for a stroll in the romantic neighbourhood just as the sun sets.

The 4th day was spent exploring more suburb land. We went to Priceline for more med and set off for Bridge Rd @ Richmond. We set foot at noon and walked non-stop till 5pm. My legs were breaking and my throat ached when I stopped for juice, food and hot tea :( But it was also the place were we bought most of our stuff and Australian brands. We took a tram to Yarra river and shivered our way to the casino :p We didn't stay long since our interest wasn't in gambling, but sightseeing >:)

We planned for seafood @ Docklands, but ended up with Italian again coz the seafood menu was pretty disappointing. The tram wait was long and cold - I breathed mist again and wondered why the ang moh gal waiting with us can stand out in the cold without a care and still look nonchalant :\

The last day was rushed out since we only had half a day to post our postcards, and to get Koko black chocolates for Blossom and Empress Dowager. I managed to grab a pair of Levis from Melbourne Central on our way back :p

To sum it all up, I enjoyed the Melbourne trip, esp the weather. The people are bland and not arrogant (taking into account their English roots, it's some sort of a miracle!), foods are good but expensive, retail is largely australian based, and culture is diverse but not very interesting.

I would visit Australia again...but maybe after Hokkaido, Vietnam, and....Cuba ;)