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I gave myself the day off the day after I got back from my trip away from Melbourne. But on the Saturday I planned to meet my friends still in Melbourne from my first tour, Mason, Julia and Jacky, in the city for a drink.
I headed in early as it was a sunny day and I knew the weather would be turning the next week and I wouldn't have a chance to explore the city in such good weather again. The belt clip on the large rucksack I had taken away had broken and so I started my day with a wild goose chase around the city asking at every bag shop if they sold replacements. I found that I would have to buy a whole new strap with my buckle, which would set me back about $12! Not happy and hungry I decided I would give it another shot another time and ponder the problem further and instead went on a food hunt. I hadn't yet explored the Queen Victoria Market that is well known by all Melburnians and so bought some food there and wandered up to the Carlton Gardens up the road to sit and eat my lunch.
The weather was glorious; sunshine pouring through the orange and red trees while the pathway was piled high with the leaves that had already fallen. I watched a young Asian couple, all dressed up, having their photos taken by some friends for what I could only assume was their engagement. They had tied balloons in the same colour scheme as the girl's dress, to a tree and pulled cute poses with each other. Walking onwards towards the Treasury gardens, I watched a bride and groom have their photos taken on the steps of Parliament House and then on arrival into the gardens saw another bride and groom have their photo taken in front of the small pond and fountain. All three settings were just beautiful and it made me smile that so many people had found happiness and could enjoy the late autumn sunshine.
I walked through the Treasury gardens into the Fitzroy gardens and wandered past the Conservatory, Cook's Cottage, the Model Tudor Village and the Fairy Tree, a tree with various fairytale folk carved out of the tree and decorated with paint. I caught the tram along Flinder's Street and walked up to Southern Cross station to meet my friends. We walked back into the shopping precent and had a drink at one of the little cafés in Block Arcade where café after café is squeezed into the smallest space possible. We caught up with what we had been doing and the tours we had been on since leaving each other.
Realising most of us hadn't been to the Eureka Skydeck, the viewing platform on the 88th floor of a building in the middle of the city, we headed there to watch the sunset. Mason had already done it, so we said our goodbyes as he was leaving the next day and after many photos parted ways. The three of us left went up the tower on the fastest lift in the southern hemisphere - 9m a second; your ears can definitely feel it too! But the view from the top was fabulous. Like children in a candy store there were too many things to photograph and, with a 360 degree view of the city, I went from window to window just amazed at all the tiny things below. Both my camera and one of the other girls' cameras were low on battery and gave up the ghost just before the sunset. So relying on the remaining camera, we tried to take a group shot of us and the beautiful night skyline behind us, unfortunately I have a habit of blinking when a flash goes off so every single picture was pretty much ruined by my inability to keep me eyes open!
We ended the evening by first hanging out in fed square listening to an old guy, hooked up to an amp, play guitar in front of a fire. (It's these small things that make me love Melbourne) and then hanging out in their hostel exchanging all our details and planning how we will visit each other, them in Germany, and Me in England. Saying our last goodbye I headed home on the train.
- comments
Alison MacKrill I think that one of the most rewarding things about travelling in strange lands is the friendship that can be found with so many wonderful people along the way. Whether the friendship is with someone met in Fiji, on tour in Australia, or as a member of the family, it will have added greatly to the pleasure of the journey itself and will remain when the travelling is over.