Meeting Steph

Steph, my good friend from Norwich arrived in Melbourne today so I cycled my new bike down to st kilda to meet her.

We had a walk along the beach and a good old chat about how she is doing in England and I let her into a couple of my stories.

We then went back up to Melbourne CBD for the walking tour. The tour was great, the guide was a fantastic public speaker and we had a lot of fun seeing and learning about the city. I found that Melbourne has more to offer than almost any city I have been to. So much diversity, you can walk down a narrow alley covered in Rich and vibrant street art and come straight out into an Italian style grand arcade or a cobblestoned cafe district.

We finished off the day by watching the Nadal match back at federation square on the deck chairs.

The Bicycle Blues

I decided today to get the tram out to East Brunswick, to a initiative called Ceres. Ceres is an organic sustainable living organisation. On site they have a bike shop. Not your normal bike shop. People donate bikes of any standard, usually broken. When the customer (ie me) arrives you pick a bike you want and one of the repair men or women will tell you what is wrong with it and explain how you can fix it yourself. So you do all the repair work and they check up on you as you go to make sure you do a good job. I really enjoyed the hustling atmosphere and learning a fair amount how bikes work too.

As soon as I arrived I spotted a big red racing bike I liked. As I walked towards it, however, another guy picke It up and walked off with it! So I found another, I was 90% this was the one for me. A nice navy hybrid, perfect. Just to be sure I took another bike on a short test ride. 20 seconds later I got back and my new favourite had been sold! Grrrrr!

Eventually I found a good green and navy mottled city bike that I liked. This time I was like gollum with his ring and was not letting go of it for Love nor money!

Whilst I was running repairs I got chatting to Shaila, an Australian girl who had had her front wheel stolen. Then as I was paying I met Laoen, a French girl with Vietnamese herratige. Not bad, I bought a bike for $40 and was given two girls phone numbers. I should get oil on my hands more often!

I was very tempted to stop at the world Lego convention on the way back to town, but the que was too long for me unfortunately.

That evening Laoen and I decided to meet up and went to a little cafe in one of the trendy suburbs where a blues band were playing. It was really excellent. I had a fantastic time and even got up for a little dance to the upbeat jazz/bluesy music!

Tennis

Yesterday I met up with a Dutch girl called Sylvia who I made friends with when visiting Jen and Rich for dinner a couple of days ago. We decided to go down to federation square and watch the Australian open tennis tournament, which was being hosted in Melbourne.

Federation square is a lovley big sand stone bricked square in the centre of town which can hold 10,000 people. They have erected a huge tv and loads of deck chairs for people to watch the tennis on. So we got ourselves a spot and settled down to watch a few games. It was really enjoyable and a great atmosphere to be in. The cherry on the cake, however, was that Kia (the main sponsors of the tournament were handing out free tickets to the next days tournament! So I lept on one of the Kia ladies and bagged us five free tickets for the Australian open! 

The next day I was up early and popped down to the bar where I found my friend Brandon I met a few days ago. He was well up for going to the open and I gave my last ticket -Sylvia took two- to the first person to put their hand up when I announced I had a spare in the middle of the bar. The lucky winner was Louis!

So Brandon and I made our way down to the Olympic park, where the open was taking place. We planned our day around seeing the Williams sisters take on the world 13 seeds on show court two. This entailed sitting in the near 40 degree heat watching the games before hand to make sure we got a decent spot under a little bit of fabric mesh to give us some shade. On the plus side we saw, or rather heard, some fantastic grunting and whining in the women's singles!

Three hours later out strolled the Williams sisters to a round of... Bewildered silence... They had magically transformed into two slender Hispanic women who got absolutely annihilated. 

It turns out the sisters pulled out of the competition as Serena was playing earlier that morning. I was absolutely gutted as we had missed a really good Aussie men's doubles match which sounded like a great atmosphere. After the disappointment and were met by Louis and her boyfriend we all headed into the Margret court arena for two really great games of tennis.

After eight hours of solid tennis and two shock rainfalls halting play Brandon and I headed on home. Today was one of the best sporting spectacles I have been to for the sport alone and I am really looking forward to going to Wimbledon when I get home. I also hope Makoto doesn't mind picking up a racket so we can have a few games down hove park.

Great day

Brewery tour

Today after a morning off affine around I met up with Jen and Rich again. We decided to walk out of town to the Mountain Goat Brewery. Which Rich assured us was not too far a walk.

So we walked, and walked, and walked. After I had aged many decades we finally reached the end of our quest. Ten minuets late, but bang on time for the start of the tour. The brewery was really cool with a minimalist but homey feel about the small production line and the bar area. 

We learnt about the history of the brewery and about how beer is made. Which highlighted to me several things Toby and I were doing wrong and why ours always came out ridiculously strong or dreadful to taste!

After the tour we had a few bottles of beer, which we later found out we were not meant to drink on site, and a laugh. It was really good to catch up with Rich and Jen again. I hope I meet them again in New Zealand.

On the way back to town we decided we should take the tram back as we may have missed the following Christmas if we walked back. Unfortunately Australia has this stupid system where you cannot buy tickets on trams and busses but have to have a pre pay card. We had only one of these between the three of us, and that was empty! We then decided to be rebles and hop on a tram anyway.

Then things got exciting again. As we were at a stop I noticed a car was being a little cheeky and was sitting on the tram lines trying to turn right in front of us. Surley the tram driver saw him?

Nope.

We ploughed straight into the side of the car, respect to the tram as it felt like a little bump in the road. The car however had been caved in at the side and stripped of its wingmirror. It turned out that I was the only person who had seen the whole situation unfold. However, I had to decline being a witness or issuing a statement and all got off quickly at the next stop as obviously we were traveling illegally.

Sunny, sunny Melbourne

After a very nice ice cream coffee Amy and I said our goodbyes after a fantastic trip. And I jumped on the rail replacement bus -that's right they have them here too-.

I had a really good trip down. The old boy next to me was a gold and opal miner up in the mountains and was famous for discovering an opal fossil of a huge sea dinosaur. He was a really interesting guy and we had a lot to talk about.

After we arrived in Melbourne Ken, the gold miner, showed me to my hostel. Unfortunately they had no room so in the baking heat I trekked half way across the city to another hostel who could take me. When I arrived, they offered me a job!

I start on Sunday as a travel agent!

I unpacked my stuff and came back down and who do I see sitting in the bar but Joe Katz. My friend I sat next to in biology and business studies at college. We had a bit of a catch up and enjoyed a bowl of cuppa soup and pasta when Jen and Rich, my friends from China arrived. 

We had a good catch up and I monologged about pandas a little to much.

I bummed around most of the next day until it was time to do a bit of work training. I then went for a walk and met up with Rich and Jen again. We took a stroll along the river bank then had some beers back at their hostel. 

We made some waves playing the cerial box game in the corridor. Rich was a very worthy competitior and we both were able to pick up a pen from the floor. Although Jen is very very young and supple and looks no older than 19* she was unable to pick up the beer box in the first round. Maybe it was her big Morton's toe throwing her off balance.

We had a great time and a lot of laughs. I definitely picked the wrong hostel as theirs is around 80% populated by very very pretty women!

*I know you are reading this Jen, sorry for calling you late twenties in an older post!

Farm skills day

AHHHHHH! SOOO COLD!!! 

I awoke with a start in the pitch darkness, the temperature had dropped to roughly minus a million degrees (give or take a couple of degrees I can't be sure). As I had done the toggle up on my sleeping bag so only my face was exposed -looking like a fat caterpillar- I put my arm out of said hole, I didn't want to risk my arse freezing off if I got out of my bag. I groaped around and pulled on a shirt and two pairs of bottoms to warm me up a little, I fell straight back to sleep.

A couple of hours past and I woke up ready to serve. My tent had become an oven and started to roast me alive. I urgently pulled my sleeping bag hole open, which was at the time only big enough to fit my nose through. As I did this I felt the cord burn around my midriff. 

In my haste to get a shirt on I had managed to dress my pull cord under one of my arms. Effectively trapping me in my roasting tomb of canvas. After far too much effort for that early in the morning I broke free to roll out of my tent gasping for air. A little over dramatically but that's what happens when you take a city boy camping.

The rest of the day was great. I saw some woodwork, cheese making and fire lighting tutorials as well as having a go in the sheaf tossing and cross sawing competitions.

After that excitement I was quite tired so after lunch I dug out my hammock I bought in Vietnam and pitched it between a couple of shady trees and fell asleep, rocking gently in the breeze. I awoke a while later to the sound of the guitar. A young girl had taken to the stage constructed of an old horse trailer and hay bales and was covering Miike Snow's Animal in an acoustic style. It was good enough to rouse me and I enjoyed it greatly.

That evening I was on my own again so I joined a family I had met the night before for a few tins and a good chat as we watched the acts take to the trailer stage.

the next morning we packed up and drove through the dazzling countryside back to Wangeratta. I got a little excited when we stopped for a swim in lightning creek. All along the river floor was a golden dust, shimmering in the shards of the morning light. "Gold!" I proclaimed, "Fool!" Was what I heard in reply. I think they were talking about the shiny stuff not me.

We got back and had a delicious BBQ dinner with Amy's family and then watched a good movie.

Mittagundi festival!

Another day of fantastic scenery! 

Around mid day we set off up into the Victoria Alps. Amazing rolling hillsides and steep rugged mountainsides covered with thick woodland and studed with wide eerie colbolt lakes.

To add to the majesty of the scenery the trees were a bright silvery white, glinting back the suns bright rays on a cool afternoon. 

Soon we arrived at Mittagundi. Mittagundi is a very rural activity camp. No electricity, no plumbing just what you can make! A group of people live here year round and their main function is to provide 'back to basics' activity camps for young people.

We set up camp and then Amy gave me a tour of the facilities. Before we jumped in the back of a van to go down to the hall where the bush dance was to be taking place. I'm talking a "swing your partner round and round" kind of shindig. I met loads of really nice people, which was handy as Amy ditched me for most of the night. At one point I was stood like a lemon on the dance floor and was pitied by a bunch of 16 year old girls who took me on and gave me a couple of dances.

After the dancing finished I met a bunch of lads outside, three brothers and a long distance runner training to represent Australia in the commonwealth games, and his two training partners. We had a few beers until it was time to close up shop.

One of the guys managed to sneak into the drinks van and stole a slab of drinks. Seeing this a couple of girls did the same. They came up behind me and popped a big box behind my legs.

"Hide this hide this!" "We've liberated some drinks for later."

Awesome I thought. When the coast was clear I got out my torch and we looked at the haul. 

A box of 86 vegetable burgers..... Good one girls.

Luckily the guy was more successful. He handed everyone a beer, we cracked it open and WHOA! That's not beer it's raspberry flavoured alcohol pop. But it was better than the veggie burgers so we persevered.

After a while, everyone started talking about going to "the mail box" I agreed as it was getting dark and wouldn't mind sitting down in a pub. When we arrived however I realised they were talking about an actual mailbox half way up the dirt drive to the campsite. Out came the guitars though and we were treated to several magical performances by the light of the car headlights. We stayed singing and listening until 3am and it was time to head to the tents.