Bloomin' 'eck it's a bit parky down here in the deep south!! Well, it's not so much that it's freezing cold, it's just that central heating isn't exactly Australia's forte. Sometimes you could just do with a nice warm house that's warm all over (rather than in the one room that's got a heater). So I'm sitting here right now on a Thursday morning, tapping away in two jumpers and a blanket wrapped round me. And I did got to bed the other night in flanelette pjs plus leggings and a long-sleeve top underneath. But then I'm not known for being great in the cold. You still see people wandering around in shorts and flipflops but they are definitely in the minority.
But enough of my cold-weather moaning. Only a week or so and I'll be chasing the warmth up the coast towards Cairns - looking forward to that. But first I've got to hope that Tiger Airways, who I'm supposed to be flying back up to Brisbane with, are no longer grounded by the authorities for safety reasons otherwise I'll either be stranded or forking out wads of cash on another flight. Not ideal.
Aside from all that, I do really like Melbourne. It's a funky, arty, interesting place. I'm currently staying at Amelia's in Fitzroy, an old friend from the Audit Commission who moved back home to Oz a few years ago. Fitzroy is a trendy slice of bohemia, where the cool kids try so hard not to be cool, striving to be subversive and alternative but just ending up the same as everyone else (which makes me laugh!). The weekend was spent hanging out with some of Amelia's friends - for tapas on Friday, and Canada day celebrations over brunch on Saturday. Saturday was spent feeling a bit hungover after not enough tapas and a little too much wine. My first experience of sparkling red wine though, which I like, I like it a lot. More of that later!
My host was feeling more worse for wear than I so I ended up driving her car, my first experience behind the wheel in over a year. At least they drive on the same side of the road although it took a while to get the whole tram etiquette. Melbourne has one big tram network spanning the city and it's pretty sprawling. They run pretty frequently and aren't a bad system. I just hadn't realised when they stop you aren't meant to undertake them as passengers are disembarking and need to get across the road. A yell from Amelia soon sorted that out. But it was good to get back into driving. I'm tempted to hire a car and head along the Great Ocean Road independently rather than booking a bus tour with hoards of others.
We spent the rest of the day being pretty lazy and slobbed in front of the tv watching episodes of Big Love and rubbish films. We did manage to pop out for a tasty pizza down the road but then it was back to the sofa.
Sunday was my first introduction to an Aussie favourite (or so it seems when you get out and about) - powerwalking! Not a big fan as it goes against my very English love of a nice long walk in the countryside, taking in the sights and sounds, getting a bit of exercise but not overexerting yourself. Powerwalking just means you don't have time to take it all in and you end up a bit puffed out but with none of the pleasure, as far as I'm concerned. Perhaps it was because I was unprepared, fooled into thinking it was going to be a traditional leisurely stroll. Although the gym gear of my fellow walkers should have given it away!
After a wander round Fitzroy, resisting the temptation to buy any clothes and blend in with the cool kids, I headed over to Paul's in Mont Albert, my new home for the next few days. Another friend from the Commission, he was part of the pub quiz team and then emigrated out here six months ago. Mont Albert is a leafy, quiet suburb further out of town. One delicious roast dinner later and we were catching up on all the news and gossip.
As he hasn't yet found work, busying himself with getting married and finding a new home, we hung out for the next few days. We took in a trip to St Kilda, a nice part of town with a pier, beach and funky streets of bars, cafes and restaurants. The whole city is definitely the food capital of Australia. With a strong Italian contingent it is the second largest consumer of coffee in the world, after Rome. You can't move for coffee shops and they do a great selection of teas too, which suits me.
A walk round Albert Park followed, where the Grand Prix is held (thought you'd like that one Dad!). That evening we went to a pub quiz at the Skinny Dog Hotel in Kew. It is very strange spending time in all these places with English names, they weren't very original in a lot of Australia with their naming of areas. I've been to Brighton, Camberwell, Kew, Richmond, Scarborough, Oxford Street, Paddington, and heaps more.
We didn't win the quiz as it was a bit too Aussie focused for three people (although one is a native) who haven't lived here for a number of years. But we didn't totally disgrace ourselves either.
The following day managed to tick one of the main things off my list of activities while I'm here - a wine tour. Heading out to the Yarra Valley with the Australian Wine Company, we took in four cellar doors, all very different. The first was quite old and rustic with a modern twist, the second was very sleek and modern, the third completely rustic and homely and the fourth was Domaine Chandon, owned by Moet & Chandon. Here's something I didn't know before, it should be pronouned 'mowett' not 'mowee' after the Dutch not the French.
We learnt the proper way to taste wine (I still feel like I'm going to choke if I sip it through my teeth and I definitely won't waste good wine spitting it out but call me a pleb!) and then were taken through some of the chardonnays, pinot noirs, shiraz and sauvignon blancs that are popular in the region. The valley is very beautiful, it's just a shame the weather was so appalling during our tour. The wind and rain hampered too many photos being taken of the vineyards or surrounding scenery but it was good to get to Yerring Farm with it's wood burner to huddle around. I could have stayed there all afternoon supping their 2003 pinot noir!!
I hadn't intended to buy any wine, it not exactly being travelling friendly but just couldn't resist some more sparkling red and a pinot noir at our final stop. We polished the former off that evening over pizza and tv but the latter is waiting to be savoured over the weekend, if I can wait that long.
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