Christmas in Melbourne
On arriving in Melbourne we met up with David's second cousin Annie and her family, Mark, Paris, Oscar and Harpo, who were kind enough to take us in for the Christmas period.
That afternoon we headed up one of Melbourne's landmarks, the Eureka Tower for some fantastic views over the city - a great way to get our bearings. It also gave David his first opportunity to take some close up photos of the Melbourne Cricket Ground (or 'The G' as it will now be referred to).
Monday saw us heading to the fantastic Botanic Gardens and another of Melbourne's landmarks, the Shrine of Remembrance. After lunch on the lake in the gardens we hopped on a tram to St Kilda and the beach. A wander along the pier and some great views of the centre later we hit Ackland St and the famous cake shops - thanks for the tip Annie!
The following day we fulfilled one of David's lifelong dreams as Annie, Paris and Oscar took us for a tour of 'The G.' Even I was impressed by the size of the ground (it holds 100,000 people) and the whole set up was much more efficient than any other cricket ground I've been to (well, so far anyway and I'm 'proud' to say that I've been to a few now!)
The National Sports Museum, also in the grounds of 'The G', was good fun and provided plenty of interactive exhibits as well as a pretty impressive hologram of Shane Warne (seriously).
On Wednesday, David's other second cousin, Sue (Annie's sister) took us out into Yarra Valley, famous for its wine and beauty. First stop was Healesville Wildlife Sanctuary where we saw a huge number of Australia's wildlife, though unfortunately the Tasmanian Devils were asleep in their hide. On the way back we visited some of the many wineries in the area, picking up a bottle or two along the way of course,
That night we had our first Japanese meal of the trip at a restaurant nearby where the chef cooked the food in front of us and every now and again threw things at us to catch - these ranged from pieces of omelette we had to catch in our mouths to bowls of rice. It certainly made for an entertaining meal.
On Christmas Eve we had a traditional Hungarian dinner at Mark's Dad's place which is an amazing apartment. Their apartment is in the centre of the city, on the 24th floor overlooking the Botantic Gardens, The G and the whole of the city. It was a delicious meal and a great opportunity to meet Mark's family. Thanks John and Marg for your great hospitality.
For Christmas Day we headed out of Melbourne to Annie's parents, Sonja and Bert (for those of you trying to keep up with the family connection, Sonja is David's mum's cousin). After starting with a particularly strong champagne cocktail we sat down to a cold dinner of delicious meats and salads followed by traditional Christmas pud with brandy butter, brandy cream and brandy custard…yum! It was a fantastic day, thanks to both Sonja and Bert.
On Boxing Day Mark took us to Hanging Rock which is an extremely impressive volcanic rock formation offering fantastic views over the surrounding countryside. The walk to the top also gave us a chance to walk off some of all the food we'd eaten the day before! On our day excursion we were also able to squeeze in another winery which again provided stunning views and wines.
The Sunday after Christmas was a momentous day for us, as after spending virtually every minute of the day together for the previous four months, we were to spend it apart. Jenny was to head to Doncaster for the sales whilst David was to have his more or less perfect day with a round of golf in the morning followed by Test cricket in the afternoon. Both of us had a great time although it was all too much for David who was unable to stay awake in the evening and was asleep comfortably before both Paris and Oscar.
Our final day in Melbourne was spent relaxing and picking Mark and Annie's brains with regard to the rest of our trip. (Mark used to work for Lonely Planet so is a more than useful resource.)
We had an absolutely fantastic time in Melbourne and the surrounds and can not thank Annie, Mark, Paris and Oscar enough for all that they did for us.
Next stop Sydney for New Years Eve...