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Published: November 21st 2007
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As I write this entry, as you can see, I'm no longer in the land down under (although NZ is even more down under than AUS but nevermind that). I'm going to do a little recap of my time in Melbourne.
When I arrived in Melbourne on Nov 14th, I checked into a hostel in the city and stayed there my first 3 nights. The hostel was big and quite nice but more than anything you just felt like a number there. I met a couple nice girls in my room but on one that I'd go out of my way to keep in touch with. I spent the afternoon on Wednesday and Thursday exploring the city, the famed markets, and just taking it all in basically. Melbourne is a very multicultural city. It's not unlike Toronto to be frank because as you walk around you can't help but notice all the Asian people and their influence on the shops/restos/etc... sushi, thai, indian restos galore which suits me just fine!! There are lots of areas a short walk away from the CBD which boast their own unique feel... i.e. I walked Brunswick Street in Fitzroy which is known for having
a real retro feel and an alternative shopping scene. It was a cool area! The city was situated on a river vs. the ocean like Sydney but the ocean was close by which meant beaches were a short tram ride away. Friday I did just that and took a tram to St. Kilda which is a suburb of Melbourne wherein there's a pretty ordinary beach and a great main strip with lots of cool alternative shops and restos. Luckily Friday was a beautiful day and as such I was able to tan and swim... loved it. I almost forgot to add that on Thursday night I met up with my friends Jared, Gabby, and Mandy - people I had met on my Europe Contiki trip. We went out for a nice dinner at Southbank (an area all along the river with posh restos and some shops). Afterwards we went out for a drink at a funky bar/club but we made it an early night as they all had to drive home afterwards and they lived quite a ways from the city center. Unfortunately that was the first and the last time that I saw them during my trip to Melbourne
city view from suburb of St. Kielda
St. Kielda is a lovely beachy area! (did see Mandy once more though as she dropped off my shoes that I had left in her car, oops!)
My good friend Alison also from Contiki came and picked me up at my hostel on Saturday and we headed for her house. I stayed with Aly and her lovely parents for the remainder of my time in Melbourne. It's so nice staying with friends when you're overseas... Had a great time catching up with Aly! Saturday we didn't do much but Saturday nite we went out with a few of her friends for a nice dinner. The girls then all had tickets for the Justin Timberlake concert (which I had already seen in TO and obviously didn't have tix for) so I roamed the streets of the city and chilled out waiting for the concert to finish. We then met up and headed to a bar for one of Aly's other friends birthdays. All of Aly's friends are so nice! We stayed at Aly's friend Kay's house that night as she lived close to the city and Aly was going to be driving her to the airport the next morning as she was flying to Japan - super
neat!
Sunday Aly and I went to the Dandenongs a short drive from her place. We drove through little quaint villages and through lush rainforests... it was lovely!
On Monday and Tuesday I did a 2 day tour of the Great Ocean Road and the Grampians. The company was called Wildlife Tours and it was an excellent trip - the tour guide was great! I really enjoyed the trip and got to see so many amazing things... For example, we went kangaroo spotting at night and literally a 1 minute walk from our hostel there was a field filled with them, we went so close to them, it was incredible!! The GOR was just as stunning as I'd expected, it was absolutely spectacular. Seeing all the devastation from the big bushfires in the Grampians was an experience in and of itself. Lightening is the primary cause of the fires, then cigarette butts... so unfortunate.
I will continue this entry later... must run!! My Contiki starts tonite! 😊
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