Our trip to Melbourne started with another first. This was the first time someone was actually present to meet us off a flight. Jo and Rowan, friends we first met during our Antarctic cruise, were able to come through security and so, quite literally, met us off the plane. Another first was the fact that both our backpacks were on the carousel by the time we got to baggage claim. Did I mention that our flight was 20 minutes early? Melbourne was off to a good start.
city lights!
Jo took the following day (Friday) off work and so took us on a driving tour of some of Melbourne's most affluent suburbs. It has become common practice for Melbourne's rich to buy a house, knock it to the ground, and build the biggest, most ostentatious, mansion they can fit on the site. They have been coined "McMansions" and needless to say there are many who are up in arms over this practice. One well-to-do individual who went through the process went one further by putting a stained glass window over the front door. Letters in the glass read "DILLIGAF". We have been reliably informed that this is an acronym for "Do I Look Like I Give A F**K". A little cheeky don't you think?
Once parked up in town we hopped on the free tram service and started to view and appreciate Melbourne's architecture, green spaces, dockland area, modern art, sculptures and markets. The city had a good vibe about it. The weather was cold but clear. Not Antarctica cold, more like Ireland on a nippy Winter's morning cold.
The next day started with Rowan and I (Dave) cycling into Melbourne's CBD. We were staying in Boxhill so this was a nice hour and a half cycle along leafy bike paths. After a coffee in town we decided to get the train home. Obviously we would have had no problem doing the return cycle but time was pushing on and we had an AFL game at The MCG (or just The G to us in the know) to go to. Hawthorne versus Collingwood (The Hawks versus The Magpies). Go Hawks!! So just time for a quick turnaround back at the house before all 4 of us headed to The G. We were sitting in the members section and were very impressed by the grounds. Very clean, very open, lots of bars for thirst quenching purposes, and plenty of memorabilia drawing the eye in all directions. Then the game started and everything else became insignificant. We had excellent seats on the center line right down by the pitch. I won't give you a blow by blow account but suffice to say that The Hawks won by a comfortable margin in the end. Yeah, Go Hawks!!
For our last day in Melbourne we took to the countryside and enjoyed some incredible autumnal shades. Rich reds, browns, and yellows filled the landscape. We rolled past the Dandynongs and into Marysville for some light refreshments. Afterwards we continued to roll through the countryside stopping off periodically for a short stroll or to take some photographs. Before heading back to the big smoke we visited several vineyards in the area, spotted a few kangaroo's, and finally watched the sun setting over the city. And almost as soon as it had begun our time in Australia had come to an end. Thanks Jo and Rowan for all your hospitality.
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