Melbourne, VIC, AU
Then one day about a month into it, we woke up and realized that cleaning up horse poop at 3:45am 6 days a week sucks. In our defense, we were kinda tired that month so it took a while.
Now that were done “playing with horses” we actually had the time to start exploring this town. Melbourne is one of Australia’s largest cities. It didn’t occur to us what that would mean to two people who spent the previous year wondering around island countries with national populations smaller than most European villages.
Take San Diego, add in generous amounts of Portland, mix throughly with a bit of wine & coffee. Garnish with Australian wackness…presto, you get Melbourne!
Once we get over the shock of having more than 4 people per 10 square mile area we got down to exploring this place. Melbourne lives in the alleyways. That sounds sinister until you realize that the reson for this is that the alleys are where they put their coffee shops.
Living gargoyles, birdman competitions, street performers and watering holes hidden in the middle of the river…there’s a lot one can find simply wandering the streets of this city:
Living here a month we found ourselves getting beyond the dining out scene and getting into dining in. The majority of our home cooked meals? Indian Food from the indian supermarket around the corner.
Look, it was cheap, it was good and it took about 60 seconds to prepare the packet in boiling water. The latter was, after spedning all day wrestling half ton psychotic teenagers, a major selling point.
We did however branch out from time to time and begin to explore the quirks of that most simple of tasks, grocery shopping down under:
Greg and Tiffany are traveling around the world on sailing yachts and keep a video blog of their (mis)adventures. If sailing to Tahiti on a 44 ft sailboat, 3-day delays for wine tastings, getting pooped on by seagulls, opening coconuts with dull machetes, sailing past tornadoes and ukulele Christmas carols are for you, then check them out at www.CoastGuardCouple.com!
They sell Old El Paso here too! I don’t use the refried beans but their enchilada sauce is rockin!
I love your vids guys. We would definitely get along quite well.
Ha ha 🙂 I don’t think I’ve had their enchilada sauce, I’ll keep an eye out for it.
We love checking out your site too! You’re going to be in Europe later this year, right? We plan to be in France throughout August and September. Let us know if you plan to pass that way!
We will be in France in September too! 12-16ish for Paris and then we’re heading to TBEX!
I’ve been thinking about going to TBEX… It’s going to depend on whether we’ve already found a ship to go to the Caribbean yet or not!
I have spent several weeks multiple times in Melbourne while my husband was working on a project. You can’t leave without going to the Melbourne Zoo, and even better, if you can get a Zoo Vet to take you around. And, don’t forget the penquins at Philip Island Nature Park, http://www.penguins.org.au/ . You laugh til you can’t laugh anymore, watching these little guys waddle up from the ocean with bleachers of tourist watching their every move. And, don’t forget the Victoria Market on Saturdays, I believe. Its filled with much “junk” but there are gems hidden among the tables.
However, the most dramatic and scenic landscapes originating out of Melbourne are the Great Ocean Road . . .http://www.visitvictoria.com/Regions/Great-Ocean-Road.aspx
Australia has their own “Grand Canyon” and its much larger!
I hope it hasn’t changed that much since my last visit in 2001, on a layover to pick up my husband for a trip to Cannes and diving the Great Barrier Reef. Have fun and be safe!
Aww, bummer! We’ve already left Melbourne, so unfortunately we won’t be able to take you up on all of your suggestions. Fortunately we did get to see the Great Ocean Road, and it was quite amazing!
(We also made it up to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef, although we haven’t yet posted that part of the trip on the blog.)