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Published: September 15th 2013
10 days in Melbourne
(2nd September - 12th September 2013)
Jetstar did its normal trick in making things a little more difficult for us, this time cancelling our flight so that we had to leave 3 hours later.
By the time arrived in Melbourne it was after 6pm and dark, but we had an easy trip into the city via our pre booked Skybus.
China Town was close by so we had an enjoyable meal that included fried wantons.
Day 1: Breakfast was at the Victoria Markets we enjoying a Turkish egg and bacon wrap, plus a mug of coffee. We then wandered around the markets and the meat displays tempted us to buy two thick fillets of steak as well as some nibbles. As we have an apartment we will be able to cook our meals if we don't want to go out.
We continued on and as Rags has lost his trademark hat a replacement was purchased.
The rest of the day was spent exploring the city, trying out the the free circle route tram and strolling through the Docklands shops where Rags bought a
Does this suit me?
Now where o where can my old one be? I haven't seen it for a couple of weeks so better buy a new one.shirt. Following this we visited the DFO at South Bank where we once again found our favourite Skechers Store.
Day 2: We tried to get an earlier start as our destination today was the open plain Werribee Zoo. Myki Cards were purchased; these are now required on any public transport in Melbourne.
Our first activity at the zoo, after coffee and lunch at the cafe, was a very dusty safari drive around the open area. Judy wished she hadn't washed her hair that morning because it, and the cameras, were thick with dust at the end of the trip. We felt the safari part was a bit rushed and would have liked more time to observe the animals. The zoo itself though, was an enjoyable excursion.
Afternoon tea was some very high calorie cakes bought from the Ackland Street bakery in St Kilda. This experience was a bit like having a pie - we looked forward to it but wished we hadn't had it when we both felt a bit queasy afterwards.
Day 3: First stop was the Half Price Tix office to purchase tickets to Draculas for that evening.
While we were waiting for the office to open we popped into the Visitor's Centre on Federation Square we we loaded up with brochures for thing to do and see around Melbourne.
Draculas was a dinner cabaret style and would have been better fun with a group.
Day 4: A short walk this morning took us to the Exhibition Hall and nearby museum.
From here we grabbed the Visitor's Shuttle bus, and got off at the Shrine of Remembrance. Here a custodian, latched on to us and gave us a personal tour which enriched our experience here.
From there we walked through to the Arts Centre, having thoughts we might view the Monet's Garden exhibition until we saw the queue! We then realised we were hungry so took off to find some food.
Walking through some of the back streets we found some cute little arcades, which retained much of the original architecture and now had many cafes and specialty shops in them.
For dinner we walked to nearby Lygon St, the strip there known for its Italian food. As we experienced in the past, we were accosted by staff outside each
of these, they trying to entice us in. We succumbed to one, the owner being very persuasive, he offering good food plus free garlic bread and a free drink. It was an excellent choice with tasty food at a price we only dream about in Perth.
Day 5: Today we wandered through the city, heading to a polling booth especially run for interstate voters. After voting we continued on. Each time we do this we find something extra. Being a Saturday there was something happening in Federation Square, today a Korean Festival. We sat with a coffee for a while and watched the show but when we went to the food stalls they all had huge queues, so we looked elsewhere.
On the south bank we found a food hall - Melbourne has food halls tucked away all over the place and the food is good quality and cheap, many stall owned by individuals rather than the franchises one tends to see in Perth. Today we had sushi!
Our next stop was the Eureka Skydeck. From the 88th floor we could see for miles all around Melbourne and out to sea. About half way
around the deck the clouds came in and swirled around us. Visibility dropped and it began to rain.
We came out into the rain and took shelter in the nearby Crowne Casino. We checked out the various restaurants considering if we would treat ourselves but considered their almost $100 buffet was a bit OTT.
Instead, we had a bowl of Thai soup at a small cafe before spending some time at the Potter museum.
Day 6: Today was clear with no wind at all - perfect for the Yum Cha cruise we had booked. We caught the tram to Central Pier where the Victoria was docked. As usual, we were early so had time to stroll around this dock taking in the views and sunshine.
There was a plentiful supply of Yum Cha which was excellent! Judy declared the red bean paste rolls to be some of the best she had had! We also tasted lychee beer which Rags considered too sweet for his taste.
We crossed the bay to Williamstown where the tall ships were docked. In the calm sea the captain was able to pilot the boat between the jetties,
Does this suit me?
Now where would I wear this? giving us a close up view. We were able to stand outside on the deck which a local said would have been impossible on most days in Melbourne.
After disembarking we enjoyed a stroll around the wharf area where the GreenPeace boats were docked. Tours of these were free but once again we were put off by the queue.
We made do with snacks and wine at our apartment for dinner as neither of us was hungry after the yum Cha buffet!
Day 6: Today we Rags used a leaflet about Melbourne Arcades to provide a tour of these for us. It's amazing the variety of little shops we found to browse. The tour culminated in a visit to the Young and Jackson Hotel, where the famous painting of Chloe resides in an upstairs bar. We thought we might have lunch there but nothing on the menu appealed to us and Judy suggested fish and chips. She remembered one she had seen at St Kilda so we boarded another tram. Our book had a tour of St Kilda so we alighted at a stop on the foreshore but today it was blowing a gale
so we didn't venture out onto the pier.
Fish and chips was had in a little shop in Ackland Street before our stroll continued to the St Kilda Botanical Gardens.
A Greek meal at Stalactites concluded the day.
Day 7: We were picked up at 9.30am for a Yarra Valley Winery Tour. We were the last pick-up and there were only 6 in our little group led by the very knowledgeable, John. We had two young men from Germany and another couple from Perth. We soon got to know each other and spent the trip out to the valley chatting. The day consisted of visits to 4 wineries and included lots of tastings and a lunch at one of them.The tour concluded at the Chandon winery with a glass of their famous beverage. (not allowed to call it champagne)
After being dropped off we decided an early dinner was needed so ended up in Chinatown at the restaurant we went to on our first evening.
Day 8: Chapel Shopping precinct was our first destination today. We enjoyed strolling up the road and checking out all the upmarket shops. We
The Royal Exhibition Building
One of the oldest remaining exhibition buildings in the world. did manage to make a couple of purchases before finding a little Vietnamese restaurant for lunch.
Returning to Federation Square we spent some time looking through displays on the history of the moving image at The Australian Centre for the Moving Image and another about Shaun Tan's animation of his book, "The Lost Boy". We could have spent longer here, we really just had time to skim over the displays.
Our next stop was the very much graffitied alleyway that we had missed the other day. You can see some of the images below; it's quite a tourist attraction.
Our last stop for the trip was Fitzroy Gardens and Cook' s Cottage before making our way back to the apartment to rest. We still had steak and salad left so we ate in tonight!
Day 9: All things have to end, and after a slow, lazy morning where we went out for our last breakfast in Melbourne, the Skybus finally picked us up outside the hotel and we eventually arrived home in the early evening.
We found Melbourne to be an interesting place to be and it certainly won't take much to
entice us to return.
Check on "Photos" to see more of our trip.
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Home and Away
Bob Carlsen
Your hats...
are lovely!