On arriving into Melbourne early evening (Saturday 02/08/2014) dropping off our camper van and sharing a taxi into the CBD, we checked into our accommodation where we again had bunk beds! We figure this is pretty much common practice for hostels ........ Guess who ended up on top bunk ......? ;)
Once we'd sorted our stuff, locked everything away and had a wander about around our hostel, we headed out for the evening towards the Crown complex where one of Suzanne and Padraic's' friends had recommended for us to go for food at a place called 'Merrywell' - apparently this is the number 1 place in Melbourne to go for burgers! As we hadn't really eaten all day, a burger seemed the 'easy option' as in we didn't have to choose anything specific venue wise or find a suitable restaurant to try out. We walked for about 15 minutes when we arrived at what we thought was the Crown Hotel but it turned out to be the whole complex. Crown is a brand and it consisted of three hotels, numerous shopping centres, a cinema, casinos and a circus.
Once we'd sorted our stuff, locked everything away and had a wander about around our hostel, we headed out for the evening towards the Crown complex where one of Suzanne and Padraic's' friends had recommended for us to go for food at a place called 'Merrywell' - apparently this is the number 1 place in Melbourne to go for burgers! As we hadn't really eaten all day, a burger seemed the 'easy option' as in we didn't have to choose anything specific venue wise or find a suitable restaurant to try out. We walked for about 15 minutes when we arrived at what we thought was the Crown Hotel but it turned out to be the whole complex. Crown is a brand and it consisted of three hotels, numerous shopping centres, a cinema, casinos and a circus.
We found 'Merrywell' and when we arrived it was so busy (Melbourne was especially busy this weekend as it was hosting the AFL finals) and there were no spare seats here in sight - you basically grab a table and then go to order your food so there were loads of people just wandering around. On walking about we found a bench but were told by a couple nearby that people had just been sitting there and just this minute went to order. That same couple 'Trent' (who was nearly 7 ft tall) and 'Lorissa' (both a similar age to ourselves) then asked if we'd like to join them on their table so we did just that - a really nice couple. In all fairness each and every Australian we've encountered to date has been really friendly - this makes a massive change to being at home where if you try to strike up a conversation with someone they can look at you as if there's something wrong. It was really good chatting to them as they both live in Melbourne and they gave us lots of advice on places to go and see including little tips for during our stay in the city and throughout Oz - it's nice to get the low down from the locals. We also let them know what the UK is like should they come and visit one day. We got on quite well considering we'd just met and they invited us to tag along on their Saturday night out but we declined as we didn't want to impede on their night out ....... plus we wouldn't have been a great advert for the UK as we probably wouldn't have been much fun due to having hardly slept for the past 4 nights - it was starting to catch up on us. After our food and a long chat, (the food was alright but if this is their best burger then the competition must be pretty bad) we headed up through the casinos which were good to see (the casino is owned by the same guy who owns the one we visited when we were in Perth). Within the casino there is a place called 'Lumia Bar.' This bar was a recommendation from Trent and Lorissa as they told us about the fire / flames that go off every hour along the river and they advised us you would get a good view from this bars balcony area ......... so we went to see what it was all about (great recommendation on the bar and the fire / flame thing). We later had a wander around the Crown complex and eventually headed back to our hostel but only after the compulsory 'getting ourselves lost' a couple of times whilst enroute :) eventually we made it, found our room and chilled out.
Big shout out to Trent and Lorissa, thanks again for sharing your evening with us, we had a great laugh and on another day we'd definitely have been out with you. When we're back in Melbourne we'll definitely hook up for a few beers, will see you soon, take care.
The next morning (Sunday 03/08/2014) we decided to walk into South Melbourne and check out the 'South Melbourne Market' which is held every Sunday and it was only a 10 minute walk up the road from where were staying so definitely worth going to see.
The market was really busy, people about everywhere - lots of different stalls ranging from different fresh foods, fruits, gifts, clothes, flowers, massages and general rubbish. Their shrimps (our prawns) were massive, fresh and plentiful and the market in general had such a great selection of different meats, cheeses and all kinds of fish including some that we were offered to sample.
Big shout out to Trent and Lorissa, thanks again for sharing your evening with us, we had a great laugh and on another day we'd definitely have been out with you. When we're back in Melbourne we'll definitely hook up for a few beers, will see you soon, take care.
The next morning (Sunday 03/08/2014) we decided to walk into South Melbourne and check out the 'South Melbourne Market' which is held every Sunday and it was only a 10 minute walk up the road from where were staying so definitely worth going to see.
The market was really busy, people about everywhere - lots of different stalls ranging from different fresh foods, fruits, gifts, clothes, flowers, massages and general rubbish. Their shrimps (our prawns) were massive, fresh and plentiful and the market in general had such a great selection of different meats, cheeses and all kinds of fish including some that we were offered to sample.
They even had a oyster stall selling by the dozen which was packed with people looking to get in a quick bite to eat - this market is really for the food lovers, the rest of the stalls just make up the numbers - all the action was down by the food stalls. Antoni was keeping his eye out for kangaroo steaks or such like but to no avail (we're in Australia - where are the kangaroos?)
We wandered around for a while and decided to get some food ourselves - we were too tempted - the different smells were mouthwatering. We were chatting over lunch and sat people watching for a while. The place was filled with so many different nationalities of varying ages - there was even a boy who must have been no older than 10 years old busking playing the violin. Diverse is the word we think we're looking for to describe this place.
After lunch we got the map out, made a plan and headed out walking towards the Botanical Gardens. On the way we saw the 'Shrine of Remembrance War Memorial' for the men, women and children involved in WW1 so went to take a look and ended up in a memorial service .......... unexpected but good timing as it was the 100 year anniversary since the start of WW1 the following day so there was a special 'light of hope' service so we took part and paid our due respects.
We wandered around for a while and decided to get some food ourselves - we were too tempted - the different smells were mouthwatering. We were chatting over lunch and sat people watching for a while. The place was filled with so many different nationalities of varying ages - there was even a boy who must have been no older than 10 years old busking playing the violin. Diverse is the word we think we're looking for to describe this place.
After lunch we got the map out, made a plan and headed out walking towards the Botanical Gardens. On the way we saw the 'Shrine of Remembrance War Memorial' for the men, women and children involved in WW1 so went to take a look and ended up in a memorial service .......... unexpected but good timing as it was the 100 year anniversary since the start of WW1 the following day so there was a special 'light of hope' service so we took part and paid our due respects.
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We eventually made it to the Botanical Gardens where we walked about looking at a variety of different plant life and looked in the tropical indoor area which was nice, warm and humid - just like being in Singapore again ........ the plants in here were crazy but really good - great shout to come and visit these gardens.
We carried on walking and found some other beautiful gardens. Getting ourselves lost in this enormous place we ended up following a running track where there were lots of people out just in time for the sun going down. Melbourne is similar to Perth in the way people love exercise and looking after themselves.
We walked into the main CBD where on one of the bridges near the Crown complex (Southbank crossing to Flinders Street Station).
We carried on walking and found some other beautiful gardens. Getting ourselves lost in this enormous place we ended up following a running track where there were lots of people out just in time for the sun going down. Melbourne is similar to Perth in the way people love exercise and looking after themselves.
We walked into the main CBD where on one of the bridges near the Crown complex (Southbank crossing to Flinders Street Station).
Here we saw a guy dressed up as the Sesame Street character 'Elmo' busking playing the bagpipes ........ random. Anyway in Melbourne there is a free tram which goes around the main inner CBD area, this tram is super old, it's wooden but comes with commentary providing you with different facts as you pass through the city (great concept). We got off the tram near China Town and headed up there to find somewhere for dinner. We looked at a few different restaurants - there were loads - the biggest Chinatown we've ever encountered - quite possibly only China itself could beat this one. We were trying to find the one with the most Asian people in it as we figured it would probably be one of the best (standard trail of thought when passing through such places) so we joined a queue, didn't look like an amazing place from the outside but we had ourselves a great meal.
Following dinner we made our way back ........ slowly (we had a bit of a food coma going on) and wandered back through the CBD taking in the nightlife, checking out the fire show before finding our hostel to chill out for the remainder of the evening. Sunday night in Melbourne is not the most liveliest of places.
Following dinner we made our way back ........ slowly (we had a bit of a food coma going on) and wandered back through the CBD taking in the nightlife, checking out the fire show before finding our hostel to chill out for the remainder of the evening. Sunday night in Melbourne is not the most liveliest of places.
The next morning (Monday 06/08/2014 we went down for breakfast in the hostel. As we didn't have WiFi at our hostel we went to the McDonald's on the corner to use theirs to do some more research on our travels. After buying cups of tea we got tempted into a piece of cake but no burgers! We then went back to the hostel to talk to the guy at the travel desk about trips for Melbourne and also for our onward trip to New Zealand. He proved to be very helpful.
We booked to go on both the 'Neighbours' tour (it had to be done after both spending our childhoods and University lives watching it) and also the tour to 'Phillip Island' to explore the wildlife but in particular to see the 'little penguins' (actual name) at the penguin parade. These are native to both New Zealand and Australia and are also the worlds smallest penguins.
Following our chat we finally headed out properly this time and aimed to go down towards 'Albert Park' to see the park area (this are is also the home of the Australian Grand Prix Formula 1 course) and then head down towards 'St. Kilda'. The lady at our hostel suggested we got the tram to 'St. Kilda' but she said if we were keen walkers then to walk down to the coast although it may take us quite a while. After a quick change into our walking shoes we headed on out - finally! Just so you're aware we're not particularly keen walkers - on our way we checked directions with a passer by as the map given to us from the hostel wasn't very clear. We ended up meeting a lady called 'Mersada' who was from Yugoslavia and had lived in Australia for about 26 years ....... she was about 60 years old herself and she helped us find 'Albert Park'. In a state of confusion whilst trying to give us directions in her broken English she just decided to walk with us and put us on the right track. We had a really good conversation with her about all sorts. It was interesting learning about her life and her time in Yugoslavia and Australia, she'd been in Melbourne for years and brought her family up here. A very lovely lady and full of life, she said since she's lived here in the sunshine she's never once been sick and that her life here has been tough but more than worth it. Thank you Mersada for taking the time out of your day and walking in completely the wrong direction in order to help us out - it was very much appreciated and we enjoyed our conversation learning about life in Australia.
So we eventually found 'Albert Park' and on entering the park we spotted a driving range golf club. Carol had never been to a driving range and fancied a try so we decided to have a go. We got 50 balls and shared turns and Antoni taught me his golfing skills.(Aaaahahaha golfing skills) Carol didn't do too badly considering it was her first time - it was definitely the training ;) hmmm.
After our golfing experience we walked around 'Albert Park' following the F1 racing track round the way in which the cars would travel. Antoni was 'buzzing' the whole 5.3km way around. Although it was a really sunny day it was still a little chilly. Lots of people were running around the track on yet another designated running course which had markings for their distances travelled.
We booked to go on both the 'Neighbours' tour (it had to be done after both spending our childhoods and University lives watching it) and also the tour to 'Phillip Island' to explore the wildlife but in particular to see the 'little penguins' (actual name) at the penguin parade. These are native to both New Zealand and Australia and are also the worlds smallest penguins.
Following our chat we finally headed out properly this time and aimed to go down towards 'Albert Park' to see the park area (this are is also the home of the Australian Grand Prix Formula 1 course) and then head down towards 'St. Kilda'. The lady at our hostel suggested we got the tram to 'St. Kilda' but she said if we were keen walkers then to walk down to the coast although it may take us quite a while. After a quick change into our walking shoes we headed on out - finally! Just so you're aware we're not particularly keen walkers - on our way we checked directions with a passer by as the map given to us from the hostel wasn't very clear. We ended up meeting a lady called 'Mersada' who was from Yugoslavia and had lived in Australia for about 26 years ....... she was about 60 years old herself and she helped us find 'Albert Park'. In a state of confusion whilst trying to give us directions in her broken English she just decided to walk with us and put us on the right track. We had a really good conversation with her about all sorts. It was interesting learning about her life and her time in Yugoslavia and Australia, she'd been in Melbourne for years and brought her family up here. A very lovely lady and full of life, she said since she's lived here in the sunshine she's never once been sick and that her life here has been tough but more than worth it. Thank you Mersada for taking the time out of your day and walking in completely the wrong direction in order to help us out - it was very much appreciated and we enjoyed our conversation learning about life in Australia.
So we eventually found 'Albert Park' and on entering the park we spotted a driving range golf club. Carol had never been to a driving range and fancied a try so we decided to have a go. We got 50 balls and shared turns and Antoni taught me his golfing skills.(Aaaahahaha golfing skills) Carol didn't do too badly considering it was her first time - it was definitely the training ;) hmmm.
After our golfing experience we walked around 'Albert Park' following the F1 racing track round the way in which the cars would travel. Antoni was 'buzzing' the whole 5.3km way around. Although it was a really sunny day it was still a little chilly. Lots of people were running around the track on yet another designated running course which had markings for their distances travelled.
The race track itself is a public road which gets transformed into the circuit once the Grand Prix is heading over in that direction. We went to the F1 course starting grid and paddock area and took lots of photos. Antoni was 'buzzin' as he would say!
As the sun started going down we continued walking down through 'Albert Park' towards 'St. Kilda' and onwards to the beach and pier. We have walked quite a way by now. We made it down onto the pier at 'St. Kilda' just in time for the sun setting across the bay ...... perfect timing - It was a gorgeous sunset.
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Walking down onto the pier to watch the sunset we'd read previously that you can see the 'little penguins' hiding here in the rocks. We had also been informed that they tend to appear once the sun goes down. There were quite a few people down here for the sunset and you could get a glimpse of a few penguins hiding between the rocks. In all fairness given the amount of children shouting at them and with the Chinese contingency trying to pretty much steal them we think we'd be hiding too if we were them. The sky looked amazing with loads of colours and with it being such a clear day we saw a great view of the Melbourne skyline. Unsuprisingly we took lots of pictures.
Having stayed a little longer (once the sun had set) and once the crowds had dispersed the 'little penguins' emerged from the rocks and stood looking at the remainder of us with curiosity (probably thinking to themselves why are we not shouting trying to catch them) they were really nice to see.
We're glad we made the effort and spurred each other on given we'd already walked about what seemed like 100 miles that day to come and see this - we literally didn't stop from the minute we left our accommodation ........... it was nice walking but maybe catching the tram would have been a better idea :)
As we hadn't eaten or drank anything pretty much all day we decided to find somewhere on the coast at 'St. Kilda' and we found a place just off the beach called 'Beachcomber.' After a few drinks and some dinner and of course a cup of tea to warm us up we decided to treat ourselves and get a taxi back to our hotel and just chill out for the rest of the night - we were shattered!
We got up early the next morning (Tuesday 05/07/2014) as we were heading out on our 'Phillip Island' day trip. We had some quick breakfast and we were picked up by the tour company in a mini bus. We had a couple of hours drive towards 'Phillip Island'. The first place we went to was 'Churchill Island'. Our first stop on 'Churchill' was at a place called 'Moonlight Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park' (Mornington Peninsula) to go and feed the wallabies and kangaroos. This was a great experience. Some of the kangaroos even had little baby joeys in their pouches and we got to hand feed them too ........ so cute. They are all so tame - I guess we did have food for them after all. This animal sanctuary doesn't keep the animals there like a typical zoo would - the animals here are free to come and go as they please so really they are here off their own accord - we think the lure of free food has something to do with it. It was really nice to see.
We got up early the next morning (Tuesday 05/07/2014) as we were heading out on our 'Phillip Island' day trip. We had some quick breakfast and we were picked up by the tour company in a mini bus. We had a couple of hours drive towards 'Phillip Island'. The first place we went to was 'Churchill Island'. Our first stop on 'Churchill' was at a place called 'Moonlight Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park' (Mornington Peninsula) to go and feed the wallabies and kangaroos. This was a great experience. Some of the kangaroos even had little baby joeys in their pouches and we got to hand feed them too ........ so cute. They are all so tame - I guess we did have food for them after all. This animal sanctuary doesn't keep the animals there like a typical zoo would - the animals here are free to come and go as they please so really they are here off their own accord - we think the lure of free food has something to do with it. It was really nice to see.
We fed some more animals, had lunch here and chilled out a little before heading over to 'Phillip Island'. Our first stop on the island was at a koala sanctuary where we saw some more koalas within the trees. There was one who had a little baby koala with her.
After this we went to a ranch called the 'Churchill Heritage Farm'. On arriving here we had demonstrations on 'cracking the whip' where, despite Antoni's fears, I went up in front of everyone and had a go. I surprised him that she could actually do it better than most of the other volunteers .......... and, I didn't hurt myself or anyone watching either :) Antoni didn't want to play this game as our tour guide didn't have the air ambulance on speed dial and he was sure he'd take his ear off or something. To be fair the tour guide was staying well clear too!
We then had demonstrations of a sheep dog rounding up a flock followed by a sheep being sheared - neither of which we volunteered to participate in - just imagine he could of given Antoni a new haircut! There were also some other animals here to see to take pictures of but we just headed back towards the coach.
After this we headed to a place called 'Nobbies and Seal Rocks Centre' - this is a place where they have loads of seals on a rocky island ........ the trouble is the island is miles away. They basically have a camera placed next to this island you can see in the distance and you put a coin in the viewer and you can see the seals on a screen from that camera. Some tourists were taking pictures of the screen from the camera filming - for all we know it could just be a series of recordings as you cannot see the island. This was a little disappointing (for those of you who have visited the Isle of Mans 'Sound' or 'Calf of Man' you will have definitely have seen more seals there).
Following this we went back in the bus and headed towards the famous 'Penguin Parade' at 'Summerland Beach'. This place was very busy as everyone was there to see the 'little penguins' at sunset. We took our seats in the stands right by the waters edge and sat there waiting, unfortunately weren't allowed to take any photos once the sun had gone down as the camera flashes confuse the penguins. The reason for not using cameras is because the penguins nest along this stretch of coast and they leave their partners and young to go feeding, upon their return from the ocean the penguins would use their same tracks in order to find their nests. So, when a 'flash' goes off this would distract and disorientate the penguin and they would get lost, not find their mate or young and they end up dying through loneliness and starvation as they would continue to search for their nest to no avail. This however didn't stop most of the Asian tourists and you could see first hand how the penguins get startled and confused which wasn't nice to see. Likewise once the penguin has returned to its nest the mating couple do a rather funny 'welcome home dance', greet each other and go off into the nest together - really nice to see. We did however find ourselves getting increasingly annoyed and frustrated, along with the penguin park rangers, at the selfishness of the Asian tourists and blatant disrespect they showed. It was however amazing to see the penguins coming out of the sea to head back home. We saw more coming up the boardwalks although we didn't see as many as we were promised which was a shame. Just the wrong time of the year for this. Shortly after we headed back and got dropped at our hostel where we chilled out for the rest of the evening.
We were up early again the following day (Wednesday 06/08/2014) for our trip to 'Erinsborough' for the 'Neighbours tour'. We figured we had to do this trip for old times sake - the tour guide was a guy from Northern Ireland and he was a bit of a comedian! We thought we could talk a lot (especially Carol) but he literally didn't stop from the minute he picked us up to dropping us back. It wasn't a bad thing though. We think he knew everything you could possibly want to know about neighbours past and present! He is definitely a Neighbours geek but I guess it comes with the territory of having that job! The Minibus was unsurprisingly full of British tourists!
Once in 'Erinsborough' we stopped off at the sign for a quick photo opportunity. We then headed into the film studios where we took a few photos of some of the set. Here we then met one of the current actors 'Kip Gamblin' (he was also in Home & Away, Casualty and Holby City) who now plays the character 'Brad Willis'. He stood chatting with us all, we had photos and autographs. Antoni was really hoping for Susan Kennedy ;)
After this we headed to 'Ramsey Street' (Pin Oak Court is it's real name) to see the famous street. Here we took lots of pictures of the houses with the Ramsey Street sign.
We were told the people or residents who actually own the houses on the street receive $28,000 a year to close their blinds and park their vehicles on the main road once a week and maintain their gardens to a decent standard for filming. However even if they don't keep up the garden work the neighbours team would just send round their own gardener anyway ........ not a bad little earner for one day a weeks inconvenience! (these houses will cost you approximately $750,000 to $900,000 though) ..... I guess they also have to put up with strangers like us turning up on the street everyday going bonkers for 'neighbours' however they do have 24 hour security on the street to stop any trespassing - they only film the street scenes here and the rest is done in the studios.
After our trip we headed back towards Melbourne where our guide played a couple of episodes of a Neighbours on the minibus from back in the day - episodes we actually remember watching! We got dropped in the centre of Melbourne that afternoon so we made our way up into the CBD and jumped on the tram again for a short ride to hear about the city's history. We then walked up towards 'Little Italy' (or the Italian Quarter) nearer the north east side of the city. We decided it would be nice to have lunch up there especially as we both love Italian food! We had a wander along the main road and found the famous 'Brunetti' where we had a look at the cakes, chocolates and desserts - eyeing up what to have for dessert later on :) We had lunch in a lovely Deli called 'BOC' where we both had lasagna (standard!) with a nice glass of red (Carol opted for the smaller bambino/kids portion which she was glad of as she wanted to leave room to go back to 'Brunetti' for a nice dessert) So after a bit more of a wander we went back to 'Brunetti' had dessert and Italian hot chocolate ......... mmm.
We wandered back down towards the CBD, found Degraves street - nice little street full of cafés and we located the graffiti street which was really cool. We saw some people doing the graffiti while we were there ...... some great art work on show.
After our trip we headed back towards Melbourne where our guide played a couple of episodes of a Neighbours on the minibus from back in the day - episodes we actually remember watching! We got dropped in the centre of Melbourne that afternoon so we made our way up into the CBD and jumped on the tram again for a short ride to hear about the city's history. We then walked up towards 'Little Italy' (or the Italian Quarter) nearer the north east side of the city. We decided it would be nice to have lunch up there especially as we both love Italian food! We had a wander along the main road and found the famous 'Brunetti' where we had a look at the cakes, chocolates and desserts - eyeing up what to have for dessert later on :) We had lunch in a lovely Deli called 'BOC' where we both had lasagna (standard!) with a nice glass of red (Carol opted for the smaller bambino/kids portion which she was glad of as she wanted to leave room to go back to 'Brunetti' for a nice dessert) So after a bit more of a wander we went back to 'Brunetti' had dessert and Italian hot chocolate ......... mmm.
We wandered back down towards the CBD, found Degraves street - nice little street full of cafés and we located the graffiti street which was really cool. We saw some people doing the graffiti while we were there ...... some great art work on show.
We nipped into the library quickly for some free WiFi to try and book our taxi for the morning to take us to the airport but ended up in a travel shop and booked to go in one of their minibuses - worked out about half the price! If you fly to Melbourne remember that the CBD is miles away and that taxis don't come cheap - find the airport shuttle bus and give this a whirl as there is no rail link.
As it was getting late we headed on up towards 'Queen Victoria Markets' as tonight hosted the night market.
This was a pretty cool place. It is literally a market full of different food stalls from all over the world with wood fires burning, mulled wine and live music. It wasn't quite like the Manchester Christmas Markets but it wasn't far off and it had a similar vibe. They even had a silent disco going on which was cool, we had a try for a bit but it was more funny watching some randoms dancing along with the headphones on - Antoni was trying to encourage a dance off :)
Wandering around with a mulled wine in hand (feels weird as it's August, it's cold and we're having a 'Christmas' drink to keep warm) searching out all the food options we decided to get something - Antoni opted for the soup in a bread roll option whereas I went for the hog roast. We followed this by having waffles with Belgium chocolate and strawberries .........mmmm waffles.
It started raining while we were in the market - the first rain we'd had since arriving in Melbourne CBD which we were told was quite unusual as normally they experience the four seasons in a day (we definitely experienced the four season effect on TGOR!) Carol cursed it today though as she'd only said a few hours earlier that she was surprised we hadn't had rain ......... oh well it is our last night here and we've come well prepared anyway with our waterproofs and umbrella - just like being in Manchester ;) .........almost.
We walked back through the CBD and went back towards the Crown complex where we wanted to watch the fire show one last time but we wanted a view from the bridge instead. We were a little early so we stayed warm inside of the complex for a short while and then headed back out in time to watch the show ........ we had a great view from over the river halfway across the bridge and it has also stopped raining ;)
After the fire show we walked back down to our hostel where we chilled with a cup of tea and headed up to our room to pack for an early start the following morning ........
Next stop New Zealand ....
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