Michelle and I flew to Melbourne (pronounced by aussies mel-bin) early Friday morning so we could be around for the first couple days of the melbourne cup carnival, which is the country's biggest horse racing event of the year (and they take their horse racing very seriously!). The carnival goes from Saturday through Tuesday, with the Melbourne Cup race held on Tuesday afternoon. While that race is the biggest single race, Derby Day, on Saturday, is evidently the rowdiest, most fun day of the carnival to attend. We left Sydney at a time when the street outside our apartment was literally swarming with people who were just coming out of bars and clubs ending their nights as we headed to the airport to start our day (the fact that I couldn't imagine being out till that time and had absolutely zero desire to be so made me feel old). We got to Melbourne and I found my way up to our office there…a much smaller office than Sydney but pretty nice actually. Michelle and I meandered around the CBD a bit at lunchtime Friday and then in the evening before having dinner…the city definitely gives a different vibe than Sydney, a little more laid-back perhaps. Architecturally Melbourne has a bit more of a European flavor, but it doesn't have the iconic landmarks that Sydney has (the harbor, the opera house, the bridge). Melbourne does have a much more lively CBD, whereas Sydney's CBD largely shuts down in the evening after work, in Melbourne's there are bars and restaurants that attract crowds much later into the evening.
Saturday we got up and after having breakfast (have I mentioned that Australia in general doesn't seem to really be into the breakfast/brunch scene like the U.S. does…you can get eggs and toast in a restaurant but that's generally the only breakfast option) we headed off to the race track. The train station was packed with people getting on these trains, but luckily they had it pretty well planned so there were trains running like every 4 minutes so it didn't take long. The racetrack was much bigger and grander than Sydney's (where we were a couple weeks back) and the scene was similarly amped up…just thousands and thousands of people there to party and watch the races…guys in suits and ties (often crazy and colorful) and girls in dresses and with either some ridiculous hat or hair piece of some sort. I don't quite understand why it is that people do that for these type of events, but I find it extremely entertaining! We stayed at the races for the better part of the day, wandering the grounds, seeing the races, etc. It was cloudy for most of the day but the sun came out in the late afternoon which was nice. After a long nap, we woke up and it kind of felt like a new day which was a little bit trippy…we headed back out to do a bit more exploring of some of the outer neighborhoods north of the city and to have dinner. We ended up in the italian area of town on a street that is just lined with italian restaurants…reminds me of little italy in NYC in that at each restaurant you have someone out on the street trying to talk you into coming into their restaurant to eat. We found a place that was a little less pushy and had a nice dinner.
Saturday we got up and after having breakfast (have I mentioned that Australia in general doesn't seem to really be into the breakfast/brunch scene like the U.S. does…you can get eggs and toast in a restaurant but that's generally the only breakfast option) we headed off to the race track. The train station was packed with people getting on these trains, but luckily they had it pretty well planned so there were trains running like every 4 minutes so it didn't take long. The racetrack was much bigger and grander than Sydney's (where we were a couple weeks back) and the scene was similarly amped up…just thousands and thousands of people there to party and watch the races…guys in suits and ties (often crazy and colorful) and girls in dresses and with either some ridiculous hat or hair piece of some sort. I don't quite understand why it is that people do that for these type of events, but I find it extremely entertaining! We stayed at the races for the better part of the day, wandering the grounds, seeing the races, etc. It was cloudy for most of the day but the sun came out in the late afternoon which was nice. After a long nap, we woke up and it kind of felt like a new day which was a little bit trippy…we headed back out to do a bit more exploring of some of the outer neighborhoods north of the city and to have dinner. We ended up in the italian area of town on a street that is just lined with italian restaurants…reminds me of little italy in NYC in that at each restaurant you have someone out on the street trying to talk you into coming into their restaurant to eat. We found a place that was a little less pushy and had a nice dinner.
Sunday we headed south to the "southbank" neighborhood, had brunch and walked along the
river a bit before heading out on what turned out to be a journey of epic proportions to the beachside suburb of St. Kilda. The walk was longer than we had thought and it ended up being a hot and muggy day so we were pretty drained by the time we got there. We walked around a bit, saw the market, went to the amusement park (although none of the rides were enticing enough to go on) and saw the little harbour which was very pretty. But we were pretty much done for and couldn't stay outside much longer (for those of you who know michelle, you know she really doesn't function well in the heat). By that time we pretty much had to head back into the city and get our things together to get out to the airport for our flight back. It was a fun weekend and I liked Melbourne a lot, but I have to say I'm glad to be in Sydney…you just can't beat the sheer beauty of Sydney's harbour (although its probably not fair to judge Melbourne on a little less than 3 days there but oh well, I just did).
Some more pics:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLanding.action?c=bqmhkbd.7kk2zuk1&x=0&y=tjfolp&localeid=en_US
Now its time to count down the days to the election!
Now its time to count down the days to the election!
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