Day 12 - St.Kilda's delights - warning, longer than usual blog..!

We arrived in Melbourne late on Friday night and jumped straight into a cab. We knew we were staying on the other side of town but I don't think either of us realised just how big a city Melbourne is. Over 30 mins later, we arrive at the address on our accommodation email, Fitzroy St. It being 11.30pm on the Friday before Christmas, and Fitzroy St. being one of the busiest party streets in St.Kilda (if not the whole of the Southern Hemisphere) it was absolutely heaving! Noisy, raucous, drunk people everywhere. Tired from the travel and not known for being a seasoned night owl, I'll admit I was a little apprehensive as to our chosen accommodation.

We dragged our bags to the out of hours reception to check in. The night porter told us we weren't actually staying there, but about a km away on Acland St. When he got a pretty blank response to his suggestion of a taxi, he turned knight in shining armour and offered to nip us there, along with another random who had also turned up to check in and been given similar information. As we waited for him to let us through to the bus parked at the back of the foyer, he promptly changed from his gym kit into a shirt and trousers for the trip.. Professional yes, sweet yet, totally unnecessary..yes!

So we get deposited on Acland St instead. If Fitzroy St. Is the party capital of St.Kilda, Acland St is it's slightly underage, shouldn't really be drinking but does anyway, quirky younger sibling.

Our apartment is only just bigger than Frank but equally perfectly well formed. And this place has cupboards for hanging clothes, a bed that doesn't need assembling/dissembling daily and get this...our own personal toilet and shower! Kerching!

Saturday morning we checked out the maps we'd been given to get our bearings and see what's to do. Our street is directly opposite the iconic Luna Park fun fair. The entrance of which is through the open mouth of a huge, rather jolly/scary clown.

Acland Street is vibrant, no matter what time you visit it. All manner of shops, bars, coffee houses and cake shops to tickle your fancy. It is eclectic and the sort of 'arty' that reminds me of my CRC and Uni days. People expressing themselves at every turn, from random hair cuts/colours, decorating (or dying) your poodle, unique outfits, and graffiti everywhere. Some scruffy asbo scrawl, but more often it is artwork, striking murals, intricate practiced works of art decorating alley ways, deteriorating buildings, pretty much anything that stands still long enough to be tagged. The street art is a conversational topic of visitors and locals alike.

Whilst it is difficult to describe the 'feel' of Acland St. and St.Kilda, I can describe the climate. Positively British summer time. Overcast, dreary, threat of drizzle. We have taken to wearing either trousers or a jumper (bloody determined not to resort to both!) Christmas Day on Wednesday and we're hoping for dazzling sunshine and 30degree heat so we can BBQ on the beach. It is the idle of summer here after all!

The afternoon entailed further exploration, including red wine (Clarkey) and cocktails (Strider) and obviously eating. I could go on about the restaurant and the sea food counter and the sambal stingray that we had for dinner but am sure you're all getting fed up of us reporting on what we've eaten.. ;-)

A quick stop at a coffee house with wifi to skype my olds with the intention of carrying on in town. Alas, it was not to be. Thoroughly flagging we ended up playing trivial pursuit in our pjs before 9.30pm. Rock on!