Festival of festivals

I somehow managed to be in Melbourne when everything is happening. Surprisingly, the city does not seem packed, and there is a lot going on.Everywhere I look, it seems like there is another advertisement for some other festival - Food & Wine, Fashion Week, Moomba Water Fest, Grand Prix, rugby, cricket - all of them are this week. It's insane. Welcome to summer's end in a sports city.



I like Melbourne, though my first impression of Australia is that it is an awful lot like the US. They even have their own versions of Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader? and The Biggest Loser, sadly. I love that there is public art everywhere - statues, sculptures; there would be fountains, too, were it not for the years-long drought. The public transportation is incredible, and I love that it mostly uses trams that go everywhere. A lot of this city is very practical and logical. Also, they love bakeries. There are bakeries everywhere - French, Chinese, "Continental Cake Shops," whatever. They love a bakery. And therefore I love them.



For Susan's last day in town, we went first to Chapel Street in South Yarra for some upscale window shopping and for Susan's last flat white (her new favorite coffee - like a latte, but no foam). It was cold and rainy, but the weather cleared and so for lunch we went to St Kilda to walk on the beach and eat some FANTASTIC gourmet burgers. I had a lamb burger that was so seasoned and tasty, I don't even know what to do.



We went back to the CBD,even though it is not our favorite, to see the largest opal ever mined (yep, huge. HUGE.) and then we sat by the Yarra and enjoyed the evening. We went up in the tower to see the whole city, and waited for sunset. The same weather report that gave it a 10 % chance of rain (which apparently meant it would rain for 10 % of the day...) also said sunset was at 7:00. It was not. SO we waited a while, and got loopy, and finally saw the lights come on in the city. After, we made a quick trip to the carnival at the Moomba fest before heading back to pack.

We're packing in a lot to the city to see lots of it before it's time to move on. This is labor day weekend, so there is going to be a lot to see and do. But it's also supposed to be 100 degrees. Wish me luck!