Tuesday
Today we popped down to St Kilda for a stroll along the beach. It was freezing!! There wasn't much to see in the absence of the sun, but we saw some good cakes and walked along the pier. We tried to see water rats and penguins but there were none out.
We then got the tram back up to Prahran for a walk about We went to the Prahran market which was excellent, and they had a petting zoo there with chickens, goats, lambs and an excellent sheepdog. There were also some brilliant children knocking about that amused us. We looked around a brilliant cooking shop which Hannah's dad would have liked a lot, and saw some brilliant meat and tasted some delicious dips. We also had excellent hot beverages with posh biscuits. We then strolled up to the posh end of Chapel Street in South Yarra which was very nice indeed. Then we strolled back down to the other end of Chapel Street through Prahran and down to Windsor which was amazing. There was an excellent pet shop where we gawked at the puppies (shi Tzu x cocker spaniels - amazing) and the kitties (both normal black and white and also ginger ones, plus some rag doll x Burmese). There were also cute bunnies. We want a pet. We also met a cute dog in the street that wanted to come with us. There were lots of quirky vintage shops and a shop calling itself 'an emporium for the morbidly inclined'. There were also skate shops, record shops and comic shops. Also, there were lots of op-shops (charity shops). Hannah bought a pair of excellent winter boots for $6 - total bargain and ideal for the sore ankle. We also had very nice hot beverages in a very cool coffee shop and while we were outside saw the most beautiful puppy you could imagine, which turned out to be a staffy x pug - amazing. We finished our stroll with a spending spree at the Red Cross Shop - literally the best charity shop we've ever been in. Hannah bought a whole new outfit (dress, tights and hat for less than $25) and Nik bought new shoes and a bargain shirt which was brand new and from Hurley and cost about £15.
We then head back to the hostel for some hair dye action as recent photos have shown that Hannah's hair has gone peach instead of red. As such, Nik got a crash course in home hair colouring and we set up a station outside our hut, with a mirror propped on a chair in the garden and Nik dyed Hannah's hair. He did an excellent job and it has come out a dark red, which hopefully wont fade as quickly.
In the evening, we decided to go out as a special treat (we had been planning it so Nik has been off the drugs today especially). We went to an amazing Japanese restaurant on Greville St where we had bean sprout starters, edamame beans, and two giant plates of the most delicious beef noodles EVER. Accompanied by two different types of Aussie Shiraz which were both tasty as hell. We then fancied pudding, and asian restaurants never have good ones, so we went to a little Sicilian place up the road and had two GIANT slices of limoncello ricotta cheesecake accompanied by a lovely Sangiovese - it was an excellent end to an excellent day (and we both got to wear our new outfits!!).