Melbourne

The weekend after Jordan’s birthday I ended up going to Melbourne with Pamela and her daughter Zoe.  At first I was not going to go at all but Pamela convinced me that we should go together because if I didn’t go I would be upset later on for not making it there.  So Zoe and I left on a Friday night and were meeting Pamela there.  Of course our flight was delayed and we didn’t arrive there until 10:30 or so.  Melbourne is a bit more scattered and by that I mean that it is a large city that seems to go on for a long ways but is condensed with lots of stores, malls, restaurants and much more. 

So we finally made it to the hotel and Zoe and I collapsed on the couch and decided to eat some ice cream since it took us so long to get there and all the troubles it took to get a taxi to the hotel.  Let’s just say we never did get the taxi and just made our way to the hotel by foot and train.  We went off to bed for the long day of shopping that we had planned for the next day.

I don’t have many pictures from this day because we spent a lot of time shopping and it seems somewhat boring to take pictures of the shops.  We started off by going to a market in Prahan.  It was a food market and was a lot different then the market that we have in Tasmania.  It was inside to begin with and just seemed to have a lot more produce than we would have found at our markets.  There were also people selling chocolate, cookies, bread and other random foods.  We didn’t stay long and made our way down the street to go into some shops.

A lot of the shops we went into were vintage shops, which is really not my style and the clothing was quite expensive.  The clothing is expensive to begin with here but I just couldn’t fathom spending $150 on a pair of jeans that may or may not be in style in the next 6 months.  So I tagged along and just did mostly window shopping because I didn’t want to break the bank.  We stopped for lunch along the way and then back to more shopping.  Zoe can keep going and going and I suppose I was the same way when I was young.  I hate to say it but I think I have become someone who just goes shopping for the thing I need rather than just to shop.  It is sad…I know. 

After several hours of shopping we headed back to relax and get ready for dinner.  We ended up going to a place called Lucattinis.  It was an Italian restaurant that was in the middle of Chinatown.  Yes weird that it would be there but it was amazing food!  I had homemade pasta with a ragu sauce and it was just delicious.  Here is Zoe outside the restaurant. 

After dinner we were going to go see a movie but decided on going to get some gelato instead and head back to the hotel.  We were all exhausted from the day and hanging out on the couch at the hotel with some fan tails (candy) and watching a movie in out p.j.’s sounded so much better.  Well we went to get gelato at this place called Trampoline.  It is suppose to be the best gelato in Melbourne and I must say that it is excellent!  Here is a picture of the place and our gelato.

I took some pictures of the Melbourne “skyline” at night too.  I am not sure if this is the true skyline but I don’t really know what else to call it.  It is really pretty at night and pretty during the day too.  After our gelato we headed back to the hotel and relaxed until we went to bed.

The next day we went shopping some more. I know how could we have not reached every shop already?  I did end up buying a shirt and a scarf so at least this time I wasn’t going home empty handed.  I was getting quite thirsty and when we were walking to the restaurant the night before I found something else exciting in Chinatown and that was a German beer hall.  So while Zoe and Pamela finished up shopping I made my way over to the beer hall and grabbed a drink and waited for them to meet me there.   It was a perfect way to end the shopping day. 

After I finished my beer we headed out to lunch and because Lindsay and Jordan were playing in Melbourne that weekend they met us out for lunch as well.  It was good to see them and I was jealous because they ended up going to AFL game after lunch.  I still haven’t made it to one yet but maybe next time I come to visit I will be able to. 

After lunch we said our see ya laters and headed off to the airport.  It was a long weekend of walking and shopping so by the time I got home I was completely wiped.  I enjoyed Melbourne but I still feel like Sydney is my favorite place on the mainland.