Tag: friends

Melbourne Australia

View from my rental apartment

I have arrived in Melbourne Australia – a city I am really digging. The temperature is perfect and the vibe reminds me of a low-rise New York city. I think I could possibly live here some day.

I arrive at the airport and take the skybus to Southern Cross station. I take an uber from there to my airbnb.

Melbourne Airbnb

I plan to stay in Melbourne for a full week including Christmas so I wanted to get a hometown feel instead of staying in a hotel or hostel. I chose the funky neighborhood of Collingwood to stay in an Airbnb studio. The owner is an Australian artist now based out of the UK. Her specialty is imaginative collages. You can find her artwork at Collagism. Her artwork and interesting sense of style can be seen in the apartment.

I love having a “home” for the week. There are some poor neglected plants on the porch that I nurse the week I am there, giving me some sort of normalcy during my travels. Collingwood is a funky but sleepy neighborhood, I think it probably got hit by a recession in the area since it seems many places have closed nearby. There are still enough places in the neighborhood to keep me satisfied and it is nice to not stay in the middle of a tourist district. Collingwood is in walking distance to some town highlights and once I figure out the trams it isn’t hard to get to where all the important sites are.

I head out to meet with another travel buddy whom I met on my Jordan tour in September. Melbourne is her hometown and she has some spare time before the holidays to meet with me tonight. We met at a lively café on the river for a snack and and a cocktail. She has to work tomorrow so we don’t stay out late.

Once again I am very thankful once again I get to meet so many great people during my travels.

After walking my friend to the train I wander around town looking at holiday lights. The Christmas holiday is in two days so Melbourne is full of color.

When it is time to head back I couldn’t quite figure out tram in the evening so just took UBER back. Luckily by the next day I had it figured out.

I am loving the nighttime view from my apartment.

Christmas Eve

Today is Christmas Eve. If the holiday is anything like in the USA then most things will be shutdown tomorrow. I head to the grocery store to stock up on goodies for tomorrow – including Meredith Dairy Goat Feta which I am addicted to.

Coincidently a friend from high school is in Melbourne at the same time as I. She is stopping in Melbourne to meet some of her clients before she heads off to her honeymoon in Fiji. I meet up with her and her lovely husband for a day of fun. (Interestingly enough we both lived in NYC at the same time for about 4 years and for some reason we were never able to meet up. It took traveling to Australia to see each other again!)

We meet up for brunch. So many times I dine alone and most of the time I don’t mind being on my own but it is very nice to have company, especially around the holidays.

Then we head off to our river cruise down the Yarra River.

I almost wear this to my river cruise today. My apartment has fun props.
Walking along the water
Cruise boat

We stand up in the back. There is clearance for us to stand under most bridges but at least one makes us duck down.

Our cruise drops us off at Williamstown where we explore a little bit. Williamstown is Melbourne’s first port settlement. There are stores and cafes. We settle on a outdoor seating area and chat for a while. When it is the scheduled time for our return trip we head back to the port to catch the return journey.

The fun isn’t over when we return to Melbourne city. We decide to try it out at a roof top bar for a little while. We don’t stay too long though. Each one of us seems to want to get back to our lodging for the rest of the evening (something typical for us 40 somethings). Besides it has been a long day!

This is the kind of joint we are at
Rooftop cocktails

Finally figured out the tram system and I wander back to my apartment just in time for this glorious sunset.

Tomorrow is Christmas and I have no plans. I plan to eat and relax all day long….

Adelaide, South Australia

I leave Victor Harbor and head north towards Adelaide. The drive seems to start off fine but soon I see areas off into the distance with what I think is dark cloud cover but I find out is actually smoke clouds. I double check the news to see that I am not taking myself into harms way; it appears I am not at this time.

I drive down two lane curvy roads past many wineries. I am feeling disappointed I did not include this region, McLaren Vale, in my travel plans. It is a beautiful area and I am sure the wines aren’t too terrible either. I’ll be sure to try some of the region’s wines later in my travels.

I finally arrive in Adelaide. It is a nice quiet city. The downtown isn’t too large and I don’t find it too hard to navigate around. I do get a little confused on where to drop off my rental car but I eventually figure that out. I am a couple hours late in my return which could trigger me to have to pay for an additional day. Fortunately I am given a reprieve. Adelaide already seems like it has a small-town friendly presence.

Prior to dropping off my rental car I left my bags off already at the hotel at luggage storage. Now I have an opportunity to wander and walk back to my hotel.

  • Wall art
Polites signs everywhere in Adelaide and South Australia. At first I thought it was a term for gaming but later learned it is the name of a 1900’s real estate tycoon.

I find some street shopping where I walk around and browse. There is also an outdoor seating area where I grab a beer and get something to eat.

My hotel is close to a shopping street. It is quiet this evening but it gets busier the next day with shoppers getting in last minute Christmas shopping.

I wake up early and go out to breakfast and get some delicious pancakes at The Original Pancake Kitchen. I think my hotel normally has breakfast included but the hotel restaurant is under renovations.

Bavarian Apple Panckaes

After breakfast I go back to the hotel to sort through and pack my bag since I have a flight tomorrow. I am back to living out of my bag again. It was nice to have a week reprieve of having to stress about correctly packing everything into my bag.

In the afternoon I meet up with a new friend I made in September while traveling to Egypt. Adelaide is her hometown. We grab some coffees and she gives me a tour of the town. She shows me her beautiful university and we take a walk in a lovely park. It is nice to catch up.

We stop for sushi and also have time for a glass of wine on a terrace.

I love meeting good people on my travels. Sometimes it is hard for me to come out of my shell and talk to new people but I am rewarded when I do.

She has evening plans so I stroll the town in the evening. As the night goes on the streets get lively. I see groups of young men traveling about in what seems like stag nights and birthday celebrations.

I think about seeing a movie but end up going back to my hotel to make sure I am prepared for my next journey.

I wake up next day to smell of smoke that has penetrated my hotel room. I start to really notice the fires now.

View from my hotel window. It is hard to tell but it is smoky.

My friend has to work today but is able to meet me for breakfast and coffee since I have some time to kill before my flight. I am so glad I met her months earlier in Egypt.

Now on to Melbourne where I am spending the week, including Christmas.