Woke up in the morning and had the provided cornflakes for breakfast before hitting the gym again for some quick work out.
Today, I'm visiting Brighton's famous beach huts. I headed for Flinder's station, and thanks to Jackie's Myki card, I was able to enter the station with ease. For those who do not know what Myki is, it's Melbourne's transport card and allows you to tap onto the public transport system. You won't need to use it within the tram free zone though.
I took the 1057hrs train towards Sandringham. The journey took around 30 minutes and afforded me a glimpse of the Greater Melbourne suburbs.
I alighted at Middle Brighton station and slowly made my way towards to beach. Middle Brighton was a nice residential area filled with expensive looking houses. People were very friendly there as well and will not hesitate to assist if you needed directions.
After a 20 minutes walk, I arrived at Middle Brighton Beach. The wind was very strong that day and afforded a clear blue sky (with some clouds, it's Melbourne!). The sight of pointy roofs caught my immediate attention. I was finally there at the world famous (and most expensive) beach huts! There must be at least 30 to 50 of them small huts the size of a 5-star hotel bathroom, and I'd heard each of them was worth at least 6-digits in AUD terms! You couldn't really judge the value by the wooden planks!
The colorful huts hugged the beach's curves, splashing the otherwise typical brown sands and blue skies with all colonies you could think of (as well as some creative designs). None of them were opened, probably because it was freaking cold then! But that didn't deter the numerous tourists from bracing the strong winds and flying fine sand grains from strolling along the bay. It was definitely a nice whimsical backdrop for all instagrammers (though I'm not one of them).
After the huts, I walked towards the direction of Brighton Station. Along the coastal walk, there was a line of wonderfully expensive looking houses that probably cost north of AUD 10 million each. Massive and sprawling in Singapore's standards for sure!
The town center of Brighton was really nothing except for the rail station building. A few shops and restaurants that were all closed. Perhaps I was there at the wrong time of day?
Taking the train back to Melbourne, I transferred via the free city tram to Southern Cross station for some (minor) outlet shopping and a surprisingly cheap AUD 10 lunch set. Yes, AUD 10!!! And it was a 200g Rump steak with fries and salad on the side. A very filling meal indeed!
Quickly dropped by my apartment for a short refreshment before meeting my JC friend, Azlina. Imagine this: the last time we saw each other was way back in 1998!!! That was 18 years ago!!! I was still amazed we could remember each other! The power of Facebook definitely!
We were joined by her husband, Adrian, and walked towards Queen Victoria Market (just a stone's throw away from my apartment) for the Annual Night Market. Yes, I did realize it was still day light, but it was near to summer and we had longer daytime! I got myself a Cyprus chicken set for dinner and we chatted like old pals! Before leaving, we grabbed a (giant) cheese pretzel as well. Oh, not forgetting the wonderfully refreshing Pimm, a fruity cocktail that just makes you wanna continue sipping non-stop!
We took the tram next to Carlton, also known as Little Italy, for some after dinner sweets. We went to Azlina's favourite hunt, Brunetti, and ordered tea, coffee and beer, and of course, bite-sized creation of heavenly cakes! We lost track of time as we continued chatting and chatting. As it was late, Adrian was so nice to drive me back to my apartment! What a wonderful catch up session!
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