We are finally back in Australia. We thought we were prepared for the winter forecast but the grey icy gloom of Melbourne brought a laugh and a shake of the head. Yeah we are back. We stay in South Yarra at the Cullen hotel. First goal ? bacon & eggs ,Vietnamese ,sugarless bread ,coffee , pastries and just about anything I can get my lips around that I’ve missed whilst in the States . We drift through the Prahran market. What a place ,the incredible produce ,a plethora of choice. There is nothing that compares to this place in LA . By the time I I walk out of here I haven’t bought a thing . I want almost everything but Im so frazzled by the huge range and high quality of food that I come out confused and hungrier still . . I need to come back later with Emma in a more composed state . I’ll say it again ,but god the food and produce in Australia is on a different level to the States . I’m saying out loud .”We do it better!”
We would go back to the market , walk several laps before eating some delicious snacks whilst wondering aloud how we’d love to show our American friends these types of places . Australia is spoilt on a whole lot of levels , the food is high on the list .
It’s easy to forget our purpose for this visit ; our visa renewal . We fly into Melbourne to visit family and friends , Emma’s parents 50 th wedding anniversary and a whirl wind of meetings and social engagements . The timing is poignant , a look back at a reality we may have forgotten . It’s the end of winter ,but it feels like it’s early July . It’s cold , raining nearly everyday . Everyone tells us that it’s the bleakest winter in a long time . It’s bleak all right ! There are old habits and skills to brush up on . Driving in the rain , layering of clothes , shrugging the shoulders to keep the body compact and protected , dodging puddles and complaining about the weather .The driving too , the distances we commute and the aggressive approach to the roads in Melbourne . It doesn’t take long before I’ve got cars on my rear bumper , or cars refusing to let you merge even though you’re indicating in advance . I even had a guy driving a mini bus full of retirees speed up to hem me in by behind a commuter bus pulling into pick up . Yep , we are back in Melbourne all right and it’s easy to forget that I was one of those aggressive tradies that pushed hard up on the arses of those poor old cruisers in their Volvos and BMWs. Petrol is expensive enough but the tolls as well . Our Uber from Tullamarine airport to the top of Chapel street near the Yarra river cost $120 , $42 in tolls alone ! It’s embarrassing as a Melbournian to have our major international airport so poorly accessed by public transport . Get ready to be gouged if you’re visiting from abroad .
The coffee ,the supermarkets , the tv programs , the world news , the sporting saturation, old friends , yep I miss them bad . Kids sport , the innocence of our Aussie kids playing contact sport and their parents yelling “ tackle him or her “ had us laughing . I guess we’ve been sanitised by the American system of keeping their kids protected from any type of sporting confrontation. I miss that too . We’ve made a commitment to wind up out time in the United States . It’s not over yet and we don’t know exactly how it’ll finish or what state or exact location we’ll land but it sure has provided food for thought . It’s time to decompress in Sydney for a couple of days, pick up our passports and consider our future . See you soon , we loved our visit . Oh Sydney’s pretty bloody good too .
aussiehowieinla 