Melbourne Day 7 : 25 November 2016

I woke up early for my 1215hrs flight back home, but received an SMS that it was delayed to 1415hrs instead.  Great!  I had time for a quick cornflakes and fresh avocado breakfast before heading to Queen Victoria Market to soak in the morning market sights.

really missing the very fresh avocados!

It was early on a Friday morning, and the market was visibility not crowded.  However, all stalls were opened and you can see all the freshest produces on display.  It was too bad I went out of space on my luggages, otherwise I would have bought some produces home!

When I got back to my apartment, ready to zip up my heavy luggage, another SMS came to inform further delay till 1615hrs.  Oh well, since I was already done, I checked out of the apartment and slowly made my way to Southern Cross station for the airport bus.  It wasn't easy pulling one huge and heavy luggage, with a duffle bag, a bag pack and another large paper bag.  

The journey to the airport was smooth.  Once arriving at the airport, I found myself an empty counter to weigh my check in and it was 27kg!  I had to remove the excess 2kg (this was Scoot and I didn't wanna get slapped with excess luggage weight).  And so, I ended with a very bloated duffle bag weighing 5kg and a packed to the brim bag pack weighing 3kg, plus a large paper bag.  I must looked really crazy with so many handcarrys (luckily not stopped by the airline).

The flight was further delayed by another hour eventually and took off at 1750hrs.  However, it was a surprised to be offered a lunch voucher (to be consumed at the airport), and a $50 travel voucher (for delays more than 4 hours) from a budget airline!  But I was dead tired when I eventually arrived at Singapore Changi Airport around 11pm.  Well, I've got motivation to take Scoot again in the coming months now!

Melbourne Day 6 : 24 November 2016

I woke up exceptionally early today to join a day tour of the Mornington Peninsula.  Took the free city tram to the tour operator and started my journey on a mini bus south of Melbourne.  The grey weather threatened to ruin my ideal journey, but this is Melbourne:  one minute it could be stormy, the next it would be sunshine and balmy.  And true to its form, I arrived at my first destination with clear blue skies!

The Mornington Hot Spring is an off-beat destination for tourists.  This was essentially the only hotspring I know in Australia and it was set on the rolling hills of the countryside.  There were so many different pools of varying temperatures I could not find sufficient time to complete the entire course!  

The first stop had to be the most popular one atop the hill.  It was a small pool that could only contain around 10-15 pax and was directly under the bright Aussie sun rays!  But the views were fantastic!  You get the entire 360 degrees panoramic view of the rolling hills (with chilly winds to boot). There was always a queue there waiting to enter the pool and you often hear whimpers of shivering noises from the very patient 'queuers'.

I worked my way down, pool by pool, each with its own unique attractiveness.  Most were shaded and all were calming.  I made acquaintances with some locals and we were having the greatest time there!

Time flew by really quickly, and 3 hours were up!  Our shuttle came and took us for lunch at the Pig and Whistle Tavern, a rustic restaurant set beside a vineyard.  I had calamari for lunch together with a crisp glass of Moscato.

After lunch, we walked out into the sun for some wine tasting of the Bayview Estate.  2 whites and 2 reds, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Shiraz and Pinky Noir.  However, none suited my palate.  Still, it was nice drinking wine under the shade of a big tree, in the countryside with bright sunshine and blooming floras.

We were allowed to wonder into the vineyard afterwards for some pictures before departing for Sunny Ridge Strawberry Farm.  

It was a back breaking 20 minutes of trying to find the best berries in the field before I gave up and shopped at the in-house store.  Didn't get anymore strawberries (I had to leave all those plucked in my room due to excessive amount of fruits!).  But I did get some mini fruit jams for friends, as well as 2 bottles of cheap Manuka Honey!  Boy, am I gonna have a heavy luggage to bring home now!

After the strawberry farm, it was off to a whimsical garden for the rest of the day at the Enchanted Adventure Garden.  Nothing much there but just to see well manicured plants.  

It was then a drive along the scenic coastal road by the bay, heading back to Melbourne city. 

After a quick refreshing at my apartment, I rushed out to meet Tania again for dinner, this time at the nearby Noodles Market.  Absolutely no idea why the name (as it didn't sell Ang noodles), but it has an assortment of global cuisines.  I had Filipino BBQ and Chinese pork belly bun out in the cold winter's night, chatting with Tania like good ole friends.

We walked next to Chinatown for supper, although it was not fantastic.  We bade farewell for the night as I walked my way back to my apartment for the night (as well as packing my luggage)

Melbourne Day 5: 23 November 2016

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!