Heeps=A lot

From Around Melbourne

Melbourne is Chuck Taylors, mohawks and meet pies. A very western place where art and culture, the ocean and and footy (Australian Rules Football) are all at your fingertips. We've been here for a week now. And with the exception of a few out of town excursions, we're been recuperating from the whirlwind that was New Zealand. It has been quite easy to get back into ordering delivery, lounging on the couch and pa-rousing the internet at our leisure.

Susanna's friend Jake and his two roommies, Sally & Claire have been so hospitable during our stay. Putting up with our luggage, that took over their dining room, to the sleeping mattress that fills their entire living room floor. They've been so nice and we really appreciate it. As luck would have it, Jake is on a break from work for three weeks. Thus, becoming our personal guide to Melbourne.

Our first night in town (Wed) Jake took us out to see a couple comedians. The Australian Comedy Tour was in town, with heeps of comedians performing for two weeks straight. The first guy we saw was from the UK and an extremely fast talker. For American ears, this posed a bit of a problem. I wasn't always able to catch his subtle humor or make out the beginning/end of some of his one liners. Thank goodness laughter is universal. Overall it was a good show. The next comic was another gent from across the pond. He was more of a story teller with jokes thrown in and a moral at the end. An entertaining show, but by the time he finished, Susanna and I were nodding off in out chairs.

A couple nights later we kicked it off with some fierce RummiKub battles. In the background, the footy game was on and we were formally introduced to Australian Rules Football. Jake had some buddies over who are also fanatic supporters (fans) so we got the scoop on scoring, rules, players and of course, rivalries. We finished up the footy game and the night at the "Prince" (pub) down the block. Bars close at 3a.m. here. Needless to say the next day was a wash.

Jake lives in a quaint suburb along the Bay. Shops, restaurants and bars all within walking distance from his house. A local tram at the end of the block that picks up for the city and surrounding areas. For someone who hates walking, I've done a lot of it lately. And strangely enough, I'm not that upset about it.

More relaxing, ordering in, checking email, uploading pictures (link on left of page) and drinking pots (smaller than a pint). The days are cruising by and It's really starting to feel like an extended vacation. In New Zealand we followed an itinerary, but in Oz we've got nothing pressing (except for our departure ticket). It's so frickin' nice!

NZ has rugby and Oz has footy. This past Sunday (Susanna's B-day) Jake treated us to a footy match. Collingwood Magpies vs. Carlton Blues. We took the tram into the city and stopped for a few warmup pots. Here, I grilled Jake on the games particulars as to be able to increase my validity as a Collingwood supporter. Rolling up to the stadium with 77 thousand other crazed fans was great. You could feel the electricity in the air. Tis the usual with any large professional sporting event. To my surprise, there aren't sections for opposing fans. All the seats are mixed and for the most part the people behave. What a stark contrast to the European soccer supporters. Behind us sat a 10 yr. old Collingwood fan that was sheer entertainment. Face painted with team colors on, shouts that periodically came from him were, "man up boys!" and "c'mon pies!". Even with his team down, his enthusiasm never wavered. I should have known, earlier Jake stated that Collingwood fans are for life and if you're not a Pies fan, you vehemently despise them. It's just the way it goes. Beers and meat pies (pot pie with ground beef inside) were on the menu. The game is fairly fast paced and pretty brutal. A big play or a big hit will turn the place into madhouse. It was and an absolutely wonderful experience. In the future, look for me at the Aussie Pub, in PB.

The next big day out was the Melbourne Zoo. It was pretty cool seeing all the obscure animals that aren't always in American zoos. The zoo was actually fairly small, only housing 2-3 of each species for viewing. Favorites included the indigenous platypus, koala and kangaroo. Being such a small facility and really uncrowded, it afforded us an up close and personal view of a lot of the animals. Susanna has great shots (coming soon). The best was a walking path through the kangaroo range. They'd come right up to you, have a sniff and be on their way.

Nearing the end of our stay with Jake, we planned out our next couple of moves.
• Campervan rented for a week: We'll be cruising The Great Ocean road in search of waves.
• Two more nights at Jake's: We have two days after we drop off the rental before our flight out. Coincidentally, we'll be back in Melbourne for ANZAC Day (Memorial Day). Lots of parties and a couple concerts (RATATAT & DJ SHADOW/CUT CHEMIST) around that time.
• Melbourne to Sydney, Sat. 26: Having decided that the drive all the way from Melbourne to Sydney would be too harsh, we opted for a shortcut. At only $79, it was all to easy to skip the long drive and maximize our time in the places we'd really rather be.