Sojourn to Melbourne
Melbourne is like a hard-working Mother.
She wakes up early at six in the morning and is asleep at nine'0clock.
It took me and A. four days to get used to day-light savings and on our last morning, we were up at seven'0clock and that was as close to a sleep-in as we could get!
In Melbourne, 8:00am is the new 9:00am and that is when most stores open; perfectly handy if you want to do a little shopping before work!
A. and I arrived in Melbourne at 11:40pm on the twenty-fourth of December and were tucked up in bed at his Aunt and Uncle's place at 12:30am.
"We have to be up early." A. warned me before we fell asleep.
"Early" turned out to be six-thirty, which isn't so bad - that's when A's alarm went off.
"Time to wake up!" A. said as he shook me awake.
We left Sunbury train station at 7:00am, arrived at Southern Cross around seven-thirty.
Stepping into an elevator a familiar smell filled my nostrils, an unwelcome one!
"Is that...pee?" I ask A. unnecessarily and plug my nose, hoping I hadn't stepped in it accidentally.
"That's normal for here." A. says dismissively.
Twenty-five minutes is a long time to be walking when you haven't eaten breakfast and your personal trainer loves squats! (That was my fault for not warming up properly.)
"A...how much longer?" I ask, fighting to keep my irritability in check.
Since he woke up, A. had a hankering for pancakes and wanted to show me how Pancake Parlour is better than it's sister-chain in Brisbane.
As we walk, A. acts as my own personal tour guide. He gives me a brief run-down on different buildings and what their uses are. I'm grateful because it takes my mind off my aching legs and rumbling stomach.
My taste-buds are singing hallelujah when A. leads me into a building where there is a sign that says Pancake Parlour.
My prayers are answered and I was immensely grateful as it meant I would not have to eat my boyfriend!
Delayed gratification ensured that I enjoyed every bite of my hearty breakfast of savoury pancakes, poached egg and bacon; washed down with a chocolate thick-shake my temporary onset of grumpiness was over and we could go to more important things, such as browsing Flinder's Street. A. wanted to buy perfume for his Mum so we went into a few shops, A. was talking to an assistant who produced a bottle of perfume which A. smelled, then he asked for my opinion.
After a deep sniff, I told him the truth. "I don't think your Mum would appreciate a bottle of bug-spray for Christmas." Thankfully A. and the clerk found it funny.
"It's not very popular." The clerk admitted. Because we were running out of time, A. took me to Dymocks; even at ten in the morning the sight of books doesn't cease to excite me!
Then we went to an old fashioned arcade, where I found this wedding dress that would have been snapped up in the 1900's. A. and I stare at it for a moment and I say.
"If I came to the wedding wearing that, the guests would mistake me for the wedding cake!"
A. found the perfect gift for his Mum there. We had a Rum & Cola with Chloe in the famous Young & Jackson and took a tram back to Southern Cross to collect our luggage. We jumped on another train, one which took us to Holmesglen Train station where we met A's Mum and walked to Matthew Flinder's Hotel.
It was just past two in the afternoon and I was exhausted by all the walking and sight-seeing I had done that day, so A. and his Mum went for a walk and let me catch up on some much needed sleep.
I slept for two hours and then it was time to grab fish and chips and time to meet A's Grandma.
I don't know why I was so anxious about meeting her, the woman is wonderful!
Down-to-earth, cheerful, witty and sharp as a tack! She also loves Christmas and is excited at the prospect of opening a big present which she cannot open until morning.
Then a startling realisation hits me: I had forgotten to buy A. a present!
"I am so awful!" I confessed to A.
"What?" He asked me, looking very concerned.
"I forgot to buy your Christmas present! Things have been so crazy the past couple of weeks! Whenever I tried to look for a present for you nothing jumped out at me!"
I know A. was hurt, but he did his best to make me feel less horrible about it.
That is when we decided to give each other money to spend for Christmas.
Because we had nothing in the hotel room for Christmas Day breakfast, A. and I went to the Macdonald's across the road. It was a lot of fun - we had the place all to ourselves except for one other customer and a few staff.
It was a fantastic Christmas Day, small and intimate with only A's Mum and Grandma.
We watched a replay of the Melbourne and Sydney Christmas carols and ate a scrumptious lunch of vegetables, ham, turkey and gravy.
I called my loved ones back in Brisbane and wished them a Happy Christmas.
We finished a very lovely, quiet Christmas back in our hotel room with take-away McDonalds and The Big Bang Theory.
Boxing Day was another big day. Awake at six-thirty, took a train to Flinder's Street, ate breakfast at the Emporium Shopping Centre. It is huge! Five floors of merchandise!
I made a mental note not to come on an all-day shopping spree with my sister, Victoria.
There was only time to gawk at the opulent surroundings, but not browsing - because we were headed to A's idea of church. The Melbourne Cricket Ground. Australia Vs. India.
I finally meet A's friends, B. & Z. that he goes to footy games with.
It's the perfect day for cricket, it's cloudy without being unbearably hot but the sun is fierce; so I make sure I lather on lots of sun-screen and drink lots of fluids.
Eight hours later, both teams are still playing perfectly - but alas, Day One of the Test has no one in the lead yet; so A. tells me.
At five'0clock Melbourne teaches me another lesson.
GO TO THE TOILET WHEN YOU CAN.
It took ten minutes of holding on before we found a suitable toilet in The Public Bar.
I inwardly swore if anyone tried to stop me, I'd play the outraged and pregnant trump card!
Thankfully, nobody did.
A short while later, A. and I said goodbye to our cricket friends and hello to our friends from Brisbane. "Stumy" met through A.and I.
I have been friends with A. since primary school and A and S had been friends for like...years.
Anyway, now we are the Fantastic Four. What is funny is all our first initials are the same.
And eventually, in time. Our last initials will match as well!
We eat at a chinese restaurant, our eye-balls almost pop when we see the bill and after that is dealt with; we go and have a drink at the local watering hole. Then S. and A get down to the most important item on the agenda. Making A. and I laugh so hard we blush and cry as our boyfriends mercilessly make us laugh, harder and harder until we are coughing and our ribs ache.
It's an awesome night and ends on a train stopping at Glen Waverly where the Fantastic Four said their goodbyes for another couple of months.
And that is how another day ends in Melbourne.
The following day, A. takes me to Chadstone Shopping Centre.
It is huge and I don't wander too far on my own, I see lots of wonderful things and although I am tempted to call A. and ask him to give me the $100 he would give me for Christmas, I know I'll need that money when I go home. So I browse and enjoy the different shops. I find the perfect present to give Victoria for her birthday.
That night there I met more of A's family which was so much fun!
I was really nervous to begin with, I am always nervous meeting new people but A's relatives were so warm and welcoming that my shyness evaporated.
Great company.
Great food.
Great night!
Melbourne is exotic, a smorgasbord of culinary delights and culture.
In Melbourne there is fast transport, fast food and everybody is an Olympic speed-walker.
For my last day in Melbourne, A. and I hopped on a train with our suitcases, one guitar and one large tarp in my pink suitcase. We arrived at Southern Cross station. For twenty minutes, we walked to the hotel where we would spend our last night in Melbourne.
The Mercure Swanston Hotel is smack-bang in the middle of Swanston Street, bordered by China Town. We drop off our suitcases at the concierge and set off to meet up with A's friend B at Queen Victoria Markets, established in 1878.
One thing I really love about Melbourne is how the modern and the old world collide, how generations of architects built on the wisdom of those who had gone before; not tearing down but preserving.
After seeing everything the Queen Victoria Markets had to offer, such diversity and culture; everything from groceries to garments, this little piggy went back to the hotel room planning to save up for a shopping spree at market!
A visit to Melbourne is not complete without eating a sausage.
Snag & Stand, located in Melbourne CBD was only a skip and a hop to our hotel.
Things that make you go Mmmmm...
A. walks me back to the hotel and while I take advantage of a bit of quiet time, watching tv and jotting down an idea for a children's book; A. goes shopping with B.
We go for an early dinner and go to the restaurant at the hotel.
There is only one other couple in the restaurant and the waiter shows us to a table for two by the window. As we wait for our dinner to come, A. and I people watch.
"Look! There's the Kardashian sisters!" A. tells me.
"Where?!" I ask before spotting three Kardashian look-alikes, dark haired beauties toting shopping bags.
Well spotted, A!
Before long, we decide to stop people-watching out loud just incase we get sent to bed without dinner!
On the walk from the hotel back to Southern Cross, we came across a homeless lady on Swanston Street.
Sadly, we had come across her twice before today.
Her face was gaunt and she looked like she was about to cry, but she bravely bit her lower lip.
According to the sign that as in front of her like a shield, she had been the victim of a domestic violence. A. gave her some loose change and in that moment, I was so grateful that A. is kind, loving and took compassion on this woman whose misery lined her face.
And the sad thing is people walked by with their shopping bags and she sat there with the clothes on her back and a few meagre belongings. I felt so guilty that I had no change to give her and lifted up a prayer that the right person would come by to help her, that she would have a warm bed and caring people around her to lift her back on her feet.
A. and I arrive early at ten-thirty and head to the international airport. After A. checks in we decide to say goodbye. We kiss. The world spins.
Think "This Kiss" by Faith Hill epic!
I cannot wait to do that again when he gets home!
Four and a half hours later, I board a Tiger Airline plane.
The plane takes flight, as it launches itself off the ground, my stomach feels like it could fly too!
And I am on my way home to Brisbane, grateful for everything I have and everybody I know.
Here are a couple of photos from Melbourne.
Queen Victoria Markets.
The Shot Museum, located in the Emporium.
I can't remember the name of this cathedral in Flinder's Street.
So I call this the Castle!
I reckon the squats I did in my P.T session plus all the walking I have done has made my legs look AWESOME! But who cares? There is a water fountain behind me that is breathtaking!
What an amazing journey I have had! A sojourn to Melbourne was the perfect way to finish 2014!
I am now back in Brisbane, waiting for A. to come back from overseas and beginning to crack down on my 2015 goals. I look forward to this year with excitement and nervous anticipation.
My goals are an extension from where I left off last year.
1. Go with the flow. Not to worry about the future so much and concentrate on things at hand.
2. Maintain fitness.
3. Save more money.
4. Finish Childcare Diploma.
These are my goals, but life happens. That's something I have learnt.
No matter how structured your plans are, sometimes God has something better!
Happy 2015!
- Sarah x
She wakes up early at six in the morning and is asleep at nine'0clock.
It took me and A. four days to get used to day-light savings and on our last morning, we were up at seven'0clock and that was as close to a sleep-in as we could get!
In Melbourne, 8:00am is the new 9:00am and that is when most stores open; perfectly handy if you want to do a little shopping before work!
A. and I arrived in Melbourne at 11:40pm on the twenty-fourth of December and were tucked up in bed at his Aunt and Uncle's place at 12:30am.
"We have to be up early." A. warned me before we fell asleep.
"Early" turned out to be six-thirty, which isn't so bad - that's when A's alarm went off.
"Time to wake up!" A. said as he shook me awake.
We left Sunbury train station at 7:00am, arrived at Southern Cross around seven-thirty.
Stepping into an elevator a familiar smell filled my nostrils, an unwelcome one!
"Is that...pee?" I ask A. unnecessarily and plug my nose, hoping I hadn't stepped in it accidentally.
"That's normal for here." A. says dismissively.
Twenty-five minutes is a long time to be walking when you haven't eaten breakfast and your personal trainer loves squats! (That was my fault for not warming up properly.)
"A...how much longer?" I ask, fighting to keep my irritability in check.
Since he woke up, A. had a hankering for pancakes and wanted to show me how Pancake Parlour is better than it's sister-chain in Brisbane.
As we walk, A. acts as my own personal tour guide. He gives me a brief run-down on different buildings and what their uses are. I'm grateful because it takes my mind off my aching legs and rumbling stomach.
My taste-buds are singing hallelujah when A. leads me into a building where there is a sign that says Pancake Parlour.
My prayers are answered and I was immensely grateful as it meant I would not have to eat my boyfriend!
Delayed gratification ensured that I enjoyed every bite of my hearty breakfast of savoury pancakes, poached egg and bacon; washed down with a chocolate thick-shake my temporary onset of grumpiness was over and we could go to more important things, such as browsing Flinder's Street. A. wanted to buy perfume for his Mum so we went into a few shops, A. was talking to an assistant who produced a bottle of perfume which A. smelled, then he asked for my opinion.
After a deep sniff, I told him the truth. "I don't think your Mum would appreciate a bottle of bug-spray for Christmas." Thankfully A. and the clerk found it funny.
"It's not very popular." The clerk admitted. Because we were running out of time, A. took me to Dymocks; even at ten in the morning the sight of books doesn't cease to excite me!
Then we went to an old fashioned arcade, where I found this wedding dress that would have been snapped up in the 1900's. A. and I stare at it for a moment and I say.
"If I came to the wedding wearing that, the guests would mistake me for the wedding cake!"
A. found the perfect gift for his Mum there. We had a Rum & Cola with Chloe in the famous Young & Jackson and took a tram back to Southern Cross to collect our luggage. We jumped on another train, one which took us to Holmesglen Train station where we met A's Mum and walked to Matthew Flinder's Hotel.
It was just past two in the afternoon and I was exhausted by all the walking and sight-seeing I had done that day, so A. and his Mum went for a walk and let me catch up on some much needed sleep.
I slept for two hours and then it was time to grab fish and chips and time to meet A's Grandma.
I don't know why I was so anxious about meeting her, the woman is wonderful!
Down-to-earth, cheerful, witty and sharp as a tack! She also loves Christmas and is excited at the prospect of opening a big present which she cannot open until morning.
Then a startling realisation hits me: I had forgotten to buy A. a present!
"I am so awful!" I confessed to A.
"What?" He asked me, looking very concerned.
"I forgot to buy your Christmas present! Things have been so crazy the past couple of weeks! Whenever I tried to look for a present for you nothing jumped out at me!"
I know A. was hurt, but he did his best to make me feel less horrible about it.
That is when we decided to give each other money to spend for Christmas.
Because we had nothing in the hotel room for Christmas Day breakfast, A. and I went to the Macdonald's across the road. It was a lot of fun - we had the place all to ourselves except for one other customer and a few staff.
It was a fantastic Christmas Day, small and intimate with only A's Mum and Grandma.
We watched a replay of the Melbourne and Sydney Christmas carols and ate a scrumptious lunch of vegetables, ham, turkey and gravy.
I called my loved ones back in Brisbane and wished them a Happy Christmas.
We finished a very lovely, quiet Christmas back in our hotel room with take-away McDonalds and The Big Bang Theory.
Boxing Day was another big day. Awake at six-thirty, took a train to Flinder's Street, ate breakfast at the Emporium Shopping Centre. It is huge! Five floors of merchandise!
I made a mental note not to come on an all-day shopping spree with my sister, Victoria.
There was only time to gawk at the opulent surroundings, but not browsing - because we were headed to A's idea of church. The Melbourne Cricket Ground. Australia Vs. India.
I finally meet A's friends, B. & Z. that he goes to footy games with.
It's the perfect day for cricket, it's cloudy without being unbearably hot but the sun is fierce; so I make sure I lather on lots of sun-screen and drink lots of fluids.
Eight hours later, both teams are still playing perfectly - but alas, Day One of the Test has no one in the lead yet; so A. tells me.
At five'0clock Melbourne teaches me another lesson.
GO TO THE TOILET WHEN YOU CAN.
It took ten minutes of holding on before we found a suitable toilet in The Public Bar.
I inwardly swore if anyone tried to stop me, I'd play the outraged and pregnant trump card!
Thankfully, nobody did.
A short while later, A. and I said goodbye to our cricket friends and hello to our friends from Brisbane. "Stumy" met through A.and I.
I have been friends with A. since primary school and A and S had been friends for like...years.
Anyway, now we are the Fantastic Four. What is funny is all our first initials are the same.
And eventually, in time. Our last initials will match as well!
We eat at a chinese restaurant, our eye-balls almost pop when we see the bill and after that is dealt with; we go and have a drink at the local watering hole. Then S. and A get down to the most important item on the agenda. Making A. and I laugh so hard we blush and cry as our boyfriends mercilessly make us laugh, harder and harder until we are coughing and our ribs ache.
It's an awesome night and ends on a train stopping at Glen Waverly where the Fantastic Four said their goodbyes for another couple of months.
And that is how another day ends in Melbourne.
The following day, A. takes me to Chadstone Shopping Centre.
It is huge and I don't wander too far on my own, I see lots of wonderful things and although I am tempted to call A. and ask him to give me the $100 he would give me for Christmas, I know I'll need that money when I go home. So I browse and enjoy the different shops. I find the perfect present to give Victoria for her birthday.
That night there I met more of A's family which was so much fun!
I was really nervous to begin with, I am always nervous meeting new people but A's relatives were so warm and welcoming that my shyness evaporated.
Great company.
Great food.
Great night!
Melbourne is exotic, a smorgasbord of culinary delights and culture.
In Melbourne there is fast transport, fast food and everybody is an Olympic speed-walker.
For my last day in Melbourne, A. and I hopped on a train with our suitcases, one guitar and one large tarp in my pink suitcase. We arrived at Southern Cross station. For twenty minutes, we walked to the hotel where we would spend our last night in Melbourne.
The Mercure Swanston Hotel is smack-bang in the middle of Swanston Street, bordered by China Town. We drop off our suitcases at the concierge and set off to meet up with A's friend B at Queen Victoria Markets, established in 1878.
One thing I really love about Melbourne is how the modern and the old world collide, how generations of architects built on the wisdom of those who had gone before; not tearing down but preserving.
After seeing everything the Queen Victoria Markets had to offer, such diversity and culture; everything from groceries to garments, this little piggy went back to the hotel room planning to save up for a shopping spree at market!
A visit to Melbourne is not complete without eating a sausage.
Snag & Stand, located in Melbourne CBD was only a skip and a hop to our hotel.
Things that make you go Mmmmm...
A. walks me back to the hotel and while I take advantage of a bit of quiet time, watching tv and jotting down an idea for a children's book; A. goes shopping with B.
We go for an early dinner and go to the restaurant at the hotel.
There is only one other couple in the restaurant and the waiter shows us to a table for two by the window. As we wait for our dinner to come, A. and I people watch.
"Look! There's the Kardashian sisters!" A. tells me.
"Where?!" I ask before spotting three Kardashian look-alikes, dark haired beauties toting shopping bags.
Well spotted, A!
Before long, we decide to stop people-watching out loud just incase we get sent to bed without dinner!
On the walk from the hotel back to Southern Cross, we came across a homeless lady on Swanston Street.
Sadly, we had come across her twice before today.
Her face was gaunt and she looked like she was about to cry, but she bravely bit her lower lip.
According to the sign that as in front of her like a shield, she had been the victim of a domestic violence. A. gave her some loose change and in that moment, I was so grateful that A. is kind, loving and took compassion on this woman whose misery lined her face.
And the sad thing is people walked by with their shopping bags and she sat there with the clothes on her back and a few meagre belongings. I felt so guilty that I had no change to give her and lifted up a prayer that the right person would come by to help her, that she would have a warm bed and caring people around her to lift her back on her feet.
A. and I arrive early at ten-thirty and head to the international airport. After A. checks in we decide to say goodbye. We kiss. The world spins.
Think "This Kiss" by Faith Hill epic!
I cannot wait to do that again when he gets home!
Four and a half hours later, I board a Tiger Airline plane.
The plane takes flight, as it launches itself off the ground, my stomach feels like it could fly too!
And I am on my way home to Brisbane, grateful for everything I have and everybody I know.
Here are a couple of photos from Melbourne.
Queen Victoria Markets.
The Shot Museum, located in the Emporium.
I can't remember the name of this cathedral in Flinder's Street.
So I call this the Castle!
I reckon the squats I did in my P.T session plus all the walking I have done has made my legs look AWESOME! But who cares? There is a water fountain behind me that is breathtaking!
What an amazing journey I have had! A sojourn to Melbourne was the perfect way to finish 2014!
I am now back in Brisbane, waiting for A. to come back from overseas and beginning to crack down on my 2015 goals. I look forward to this year with excitement and nervous anticipation.
My goals are an extension from where I left off last year.
1. Go with the flow. Not to worry about the future so much and concentrate on things at hand.
2. Maintain fitness.
3. Save more money.
4. Finish Childcare Diploma.
These are my goals, but life happens. That's something I have learnt.
No matter how structured your plans are, sometimes God has something better!
Happy 2015!
- Sarah x
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