Melbourne trip

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Eleanor was lucky enough to be given two tickets to the Australian Open tennis, this prompted a short trip to Melbourne and a chance to catch up with my brother Phil and his family. We all went which meant that there were four drivers making the ten hour trip a breeze.
We made an early start on Saturday the 20th (6.10am) and arrived in Melbourne around 5.30pm after stops at Goulburn, Albury and Seymour. It was a warm day so the air conditioning was appreciated. That night Christine prepared a great salad, cooked a very nice Pasta dish and Phil did some kangaroo and sausages on the barbeque. We washed it down with a few nice reds (John Loxton Shiraz) and had a delicious coconut cake for desert that was also cooked by Christine.
Sunday was the tennis, Eleanor and I parked the car at Glen Waverley train station and took the train in, as it was Sunday the all day tickets cost only $2.50. Our tickets were in the channel 7 corporate box, in row B (1 from the front) and right behind the players. The tennis was great, we saw three very good matches - Amelia Mauresmo Vs Lucie Safarova; Andy Roddick Vs Mario Ancic and Serena Williams Vs Jelena Jancovic. The Roddick/Ancic match was the best lasting 5 sets with Roddick the winner. Serena Williams won quite easily whilst Lucy Safarova had an upset win over Mauresmo the defending Australian Open women's champion.
After catching the train back to Glen Waverley we headed back to Phil's for a nice roast dinner - lamb, beef and veges, prepared by Phil.
Monday was shopping day, Eleanor and Justine wanted to visit the factory outlets in Richmond, Christine also joined us. The high light for me was lunch at a noodle bar and having a win on the horses whilst waiting at the Vines hotel for the girls. That night Christine cooked a superb curry and Elyse made a very tasty chocolate log.
Tuesday morning we departed for Sydney, we left at 9am and arrived back home a bit after 7pm. We all enjoyed the trip especially catching up with Phil and the family, hopefully Eleanor can get some more tickets next year.

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