Drat – another overcast & drizzly day in Melbourne. In spite of the rain, it’s surprising how busy the streets are with shoppers and tourists on a Sunday morning.
Trams run throughout the CBD and suburb areas and are free in much of the downtown area. Mary scoped out a tram route to the Queen Victoria Market. It’s massive, crowded and great fun. The market is a historic structure with numerous heritage sheds selling everything from meats, seafood, deli items, clothing, to touristy trinkets. Interesting to see Pittsburgh Penguin jerseys hanging next to ‘footie’ tees for the ‘Fremantle Dockers’. Gotta be on top of your shopping skills though – we saw the same shirt priced anywhere from $12 – $5!
In the afternoon we trammed our way to Flinders Street on the Yarra River. The intersection of Flinders Street and Swanston is full of Melbourne landmarks. The Flinders Street Railway Station, completed in 1909, is a cultural icon of Melbourne, with its prominent dome, arched entrance, tower and clocks. It is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. Unfortunately, restoration work has much of the exterior covered in building material. Nearby are Federation Square and St. Paul’s Cathedral. Across the Yarra is the Southbank section of Melbourne, a very popular spot, which is loaded with restaurants & pubs lining the rivers bank. Great walking on the Promenade.
The walk back to our flat cuts through many of the alleys and arcades for which Melbourne is known. Tiny shops & restaurants, outdoor dining, & street art. A very cool scene. I’ve been in need of a haircut and eagle-eyed Mary spotted a barber open on Sunday. The gal who did the work was great – a Japanese transplant, snowboarder, who loves Salt Lake City (the only place she’s been in the States) and wants to make sure she sees Detroit soon (cracked me up). Mary says I won’t need another haircut until next spring though – it’s pretty short!
Dick
————-
Apparently, the saying in Melbourne is that they have all four seasons, usually in one day. Like Pittsburgh, where if you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes. The forecast this morning is for rain, clearing into the afternoon.
We take our time with breakfast and do a couple loads of laundry on the ‘quick’ cycle. I spend some time understanding the tram system and we are good to go.
We decide to do the Queen Victoria Market, one of the largest markets I have been too. The building facade is deceivingly small from the outside, it is actually 7 hectares (17 acres) and covers 2 city blocks in central Melbourne. It is very well organized with all the butchers in one place, the cheese mongers all together, produce, etc. We spend several hours just taking it all in.
The weather has cleared (for now), and head down to the river, a very bustling and lively scene. Families out with the kids on a Sunday afternoon. The city of Melbourne seems to really embrace the Christmas holidays, there are city sponsored Christmas decorations everywhere.
Back to the apartment to decide about dinner, we take the long way back and happen upon a barber shop that is open along the way. Dick needs a haircut, so why not – he won’t need one for a long time now.
We decide on a fusion Asian place for dinner that is back along the river. The weather looks great, so we don’t bother with an umbrella or rain coat. After 10 minutes of walking, the rain starts again. Oh well, a good excuse to pop into a pub for a pint. We never did find the restaurant, but found a good place in one of the small alley ways that are all over the city. I had a chicken, mushroom, pesto pasta dish and Dick had the lamb cutlets; both were outstanding.
Mary