Melbourne

 We had a wonderful time visiting Australia. Melbourne was a fabulous city with lots to see and do. We were surprised for such a big city how friendly everyone was, and how new and clean everything looked! It was however more expensive than we anticipated; hotels, restaurants, and shopping. We thought we would do lots of shopping while we were there but they definitely don't have North American prices - or sales! We arrived to a bit of a heat wave - around 35 degrees, but it can get up to the mid forties in the middle of summer, so I guess we can't complain. We stayed in a great hotel with a view overlooking the city. It was a nice change as there are no tall buildings in New Plymouth!

Our hotel room view

City view along the Yarra river

The main train station and the FREE city tram! 

There was a nice park across from the hotel so one day we packed a picnic of bread, meats and cheeses from the local market (the markets there were fabulous and massive). Oh, and of course a bottle of sparkling wine. It's legal to drink in most public places in Australia and New Zealand as long as you aren't being obnoxious - another great reason to live here :)

Tyler enjoying the picnic

The first night we arrived we had tickets to an act at the local jazz club. Melbourne has lots of lanes and alleyways full of restaurants and bars and this place was down one of them. It was in a cozy basement with a small stage and a big piano. We saw Olivia Chindamo, a local jazz artist sing and at 22, she was amazing. Sometimes I miss living in a big city to see things like this! 

One day we headed down to St. Kilda beach, the main beach in town. It was a Sunday and beautiful outside and the place was packed! I felt like I was in California, there were people everywhere! The beach was nice but the community of St. Kilda was awesome. It was super trendy with lots of great shops and restaurants - I could have spent all day people watching! There is a big pier at the beach and we heard if we were lucky we might get to see a penguin. I guess it was our lucky day because we saw four! It was our first time seeing a wild penguin outside of a zoo. They were adorable and tiny!

One of the adorable penguins we saw

St Kilda beach

The overflow of people from the beach...

The port at St. Kilda

One day we rented bikes to tour around the city. Tyler says it's not a vacation unless he gets to ride a bike! It was a great way to see the city as we didn't have a car while we were there. While on our bike ride we came across the Abbotsford Convent. The building was so gorgeous we had to stop and see what it was. Built in 1863, it's no longer used as a convent, but rather is now known as an arts and cultural precinct. We checked out one of the restaurants while there and were surprised to learn that it operated on a "pay-as-you-feel" model. If you can't afford to pay for your meal right now, you don't have to. If you can, you do. And if you are feeling generous you can pay a bit extra to help cover the costs of someone who can't afford it. The place had such a great vibe and it has been running successfully on this model for 13 years! 

The Abbotsford Convent

"Lentil as Anything" restaurant in the convent

As mentioned, Melbourne has an abundance of bustling laneways. Below is one of the popular ones filled with a variety of restaurants and bars. We also visited Hosier Lane, a popular landmark in Melbourne because of it's street art. There is a lot of graffiti in the city, but it's all very artistic (well most of it) and adds to the "coolness" of the city.

Tyler posing on Hosier Lane

I think they were enjoying getting their picture taken

Checking it all out

Ninja Turtles!

And while at the grocery store one day we came across this...Tyler insisted I take a picture. Not a gingerbread house, but an "Outback Shack." Amazing! I definitely regret not buying this :)

After Melbourne we also went to Yarra Valley and drove the Great Ocean Road. I have too many pictures to fit it all in this post, so stay tuned!