My sister and I have just come back from an 8 day road trip to Victoria. And what did we discuss whilst travelling through this fine state? Why on earth our parents immigrated to NSW when they could have become Melbournian’s. We suit it far better!
I’ve tried very, very, hard to think of things I don’t like about Victoria and there are but two things on my list.
1-There are no signs to warn you about speed cameras. While this does kind of make sense, I think I might end up with a few fines which has a big fat BOO written all over it.
2- There are so many good places to eat, that it’s actually hard to try new cafes and restaurants. Every time you go back you simply want to return to the same places you’ve been before because they were so very, very good. Take the Veggie Bar on Brunswick Street for instance. It seems it’s impossible for me to be within a 5km radius of the place and not visit. The same with University Cafe on Lygon Street and Miss Marples in the Dandenongs. I don’t WANT to try anywhere else nearby because they may not be as good and then I’ll just be disappointed.
This was my 8th trip to Melbourne and I feel like I know the City almost as well as I know Sydney. I’ve also been fortunate enough to spend time doing things outside of the city as well. And given that one of my soul mates now resides in Victoria, I know there’s many more trips on the horizon! In fact, I only have two months to wait before I get to go back to visit said soul mate.
Here’s a few of my favourite things/moments/places from this visit:
- Spending time with my lovely sister who is fabulous and wonderful
- Singing ‘On the road to Gundagai’ whilst actually on the road to Gundagai
- Trying one of the famous bee stings from Beechworth Bakery and visiting the cute town where Ned Kelly was arrested
- Realising I seriously am just never going to be a caravan park girl after struggling to cope with a cabin and communal toilets in Bright
- Consuming Lord of the Fries within half an hour of arriving in Melbourne
- Degraves Street, the most gorgeous, cobbled, bluestone alley that has stacks of cool shops and cute cafes. It seems to be the place I always end up when I first arrive in the city
- Veggie Bar on Brunswick Street, (times a gazillion to the power of infinity)
- Buying awesome boots reduced from $230 to $50. Seriously, would you ever get such a deal in Sydney? I think not.
- The Immigration Museum. It was fantastic but made me angry and emotional about what a racist government Australia has always had
- Hairspray the Musical!! This was my Christmas present from Leigh and I’d never seen it before. It rocked so hard! Jack from ‘So you think you can dance’ was fantastic, fantastic, fantastic!
- Getting to the Dandenongs in one piece despite the ridiculous directions courtesy of my craptastic GPS
- Discovering there’s a Brunetti’s in the lingerie department of Myer – Sheels, if you don’t ever feel like the tram ride to Lygon Street, you can buy a bra with your cake.
- Breakfast at The Outpost Cafe, courtesy of a recommendation from my adopted cousin
- Discovering the deliciousness of fregola at a cute cafe in Healsville
- A sobering drive through areas affected by the 2009 bush fires, I seriously had no idea of the scale
- St Kilda Markets where Leigh bought me the MOST gorgeous birthday present ever!!! (But I have to wait three months for it!)
- St Kilda = Acland Street = Cake
- A picnic on our hotel room floor accompanied by dead coackroach impersonations by Leigh and me accidently (wasabi) pea-ing on the floor
- Taking every wrong turn possible on the way to the airport to pick up David
- Fresh pasta at University Cafe followed by delicious cake at Brunetti’s on Lygon Street
- Visiting my Donna Kebabs for the last time before she has her baby and turns into a milk factory
- The Picture Books exhibition at the State Library. The guide was excitable and cute and now I want to read more children’s books!
- Roast rolls, biltong & yogurt from the David Jones food court
- The Disney exhibition at ACMI, I really must look up marketing jobs at Disney
- The Vegie Bar (yes, again, it rocks ok?)
- Watching Models Inc dvds in the evenings
- David never failing to find awesome, locavore friendly cafes in random towns like Aubury
- Tex Mex on the way home from the new Mexican Cafe in Tuggerah
- Laughing at and with Leigh. A lot.
Hmmmm…think I may have just listed every single thing we did. Well, I guess that’s cos it was all awesome.
I think I need to start sporting one of these T’s.
The random musings of Neen 
