We arrived in a cloudy, drizzly, Melbourne. Having accommodation sorted through Air B’n’B again, we settled into our temporary room in Altona Meadows, South West of the city.
Armed with only a microwave, a ready meal lasagna was on order for tonight, and we made the most of a comfortable double bed and settled down to the Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers.
With a limited amount of time here down in Melbourne, we set out early in the morning. Having done a little research we had a few spots we wanted to check out before exploring the city itself. The first, was Westgate Park, where every summer this lake turns pink due to the algae in the water. It’s totally natural, no photo-shopping here!
The algae that turns the water so vibrantly pink, is an important part of a flamingos diet – hence why, they too, are pink!
Managed to set up the camera, and grab a group shot before heading off towards the city.
The next stop was Hosier Lane, famous for the impressive, ever changing street art that is graffiti.
A popular tourist spot, you can see a whole array of amazing graffiti, our personal favourites were the Monsters Inc. characters. First up Mike Wazowski.
And then there was Sully! Amy and I give our best impressions like absolute tourists!!
A couple of other shots of graffiti, that I personally thought were really impressive.
I’m sensing a severe lack of religious figures since we’ve left Asia, so here goes…Ghanesh!
Little selfie, it illustrates just how long the road is too. So much graffiti the whole way along, and as high as the artists could reach!
After a quick stop for lunch, the Merlin annual pass came into play. With the weather not looking particularly promising, the decision was taken that a few hours indoors would be very welcome. The Sea Life Aquarium in Melbourne was certainly a lot bigger than that in Manly. Amy and Kate decided to find their inner child and join in with the log book. Amy stamps at her 2nd station.
They both completed the log book with flying colours! And received a couple of goodies before they left.
It’s a struggle to take any good photos in an aquarium, but these are a few of the more interesting ones. The famous clown fish, or as we all know, Nemo!!
I was desperately trying to get a decent picture of this shark, but the angles were all wrong. The Sawshark was the most interesting of all the sharks on display.
And we also got a shot of the penguins being fed.They would swim rapidly in circles, sometimes wrestling for the squid that had been thrown into the water.
The weather had brightened up a little, so we took a new form of transport to explore the city of Melbourne. Amy pulling her best fake smile!!
We made our way along the Yarra River, and ended up at the Olympic Park, where the Rod Laver Arena, MCG and Melbourne football ground all stand. Much to my delight…!
Amy in front of the Rod Laver Arena. It’s just a shame we weren’t here next week, as the Aus Open would have been in full flow!!
Amy utilising the lifts around Melbourne… Even on a bike!
Having dropped the bikes off, we made our way to the Latin Food Festival that was happening down by Federation Square. Not only did they have food, but they were also entertaining the crowds with their traditional music.
All this cycling called for a little snack! This potato swirl covered in spices, was particularly delicious!
In the evening, Kate and I, managed to convince Amy and George to come to the Big Bash 20/20. It was an all Melbourne affair, with the Melbourne Stars taking on the Melbourne Renegades. With Kevin Pietersen playing for the Stars, we all sided with the mighty greens!
There was some mid-match entertainment in the form of a Mexican Wave, which made plenty of appearances over the course of the night! Amy particularly enjoyed George and Kate’s enthusiasm!
I was more than content with a pint and the cricket!
There was a colourful sunset over the stands during the innings interval…
The Stars won an eventful finale, with a last ball win.
A fun ending, to a busy, but great first day in Melbourne.
A more relaxed second day, as we made our way up the Eureka Tower to the Skydeck. The outside deck gave for some pretty awesome views, although God, was it windy!
A view of Melbourne city, not as big as Sydney in terms of skyscrapers that’s for sure. You can’t really see it in this picture, but the mountains almost surround the city on land, and the other direction there is just sea.
Amy, George and I at the top of the Eureka Tower.
A photography shot that I like…
In the evening the plan was to catch the sunset in Altona Meadows, before having a BBQ and getting a little bit tipsy on Amy’s birthday Goon!!
A cool group shot. If you’re wondering why I haven’t got my hands in the air, you’ll have to check out the Melbourne video and watch our time lapse of the sunset.
An incredible shot of the sunset, such a bright orange and red sky!
Back at our house, we set about the BBQ. Sausages, burgers and some corn on the cob.
And then it was Amy’s turn to shine. The belated birthday girl drinking the first swig from her Goon sack, that George and Kate had bought for her.
A slightly muffled morning, meant that we were late out of bed, and consequently weren’t the most productive. However Amy and I introduced George and Kate to Escape Hunt (the same as in Singapore), which was of course great fun!
In the afternoon we visited China Town, where we stuffed ourselves with delicious Chinese, and took a look around the historic area of Melbourne.
We literally stumbled across the Parliament House, so decided that we’d best take some pictures, and take a stroll up the steps.
With the sun slowly setting, we made an executive decision to rush to St Kilda (bit of a gamble as we weren’t sure how great it was going to be) to watch the sunset over the sea.
The gamble was certainly justified, as we spent our last night in Melbourne watching the sunset from the St Kilda pier…
It was time to say goodbye. Until next time Melbourne…
Alex and Amy's Travels 