We made it to Melbourne by the evening and got the car back with no problems.We checked into our dorm at Urban Central, a 4 bed.We didn't see our room mates but it wasn't hard to work out that it was 2 lads! They turned out to be very friendly Irish guys who didn't do much in Melbourne except get drunk and go to the casino!For or first whole day we walked into the city centre for a look around.We stopped at Federation Square where Tom got roped into helping a street performer with his act!!The guy who was Chinese/Polish with an Australian accent, climbed up a 15 foot pole which was being kept balanced by Tom and 3 other guys!!After a coffee at Gloria Jean's I couldn't wait to have a look around the shops any longer, Christmas money was burning a hole in my pocket!!We both bought 2 tops and I got a bargain pair of shoes, it gets so boring wearing the same clothes all the time, that's the excuse!In the evening the Irish guys introduced us to 'Goon'.Its basically cheap wine in a box which apparently the Aborigines drink.Not sure what it says about my taste but I actually quite like it!After a few drinks in the room we went down to the hostel bar for happy hour.I called it a night after a few more drinks and Tom stayed out….This ended up with him falling from the top bunk while trying to climb down the ladder in the middle of the night!!!

Next day we spent the morning doing the Neighbours tour!!!!We got taken to see some of the set including the garage, went past the old high school and then were taken to Ramsay Street, which is actually really called Pin Oak Street!!It's a lot smaller than it looks but its really cool to be stood on the street!We got to meet one of the actors but it was a bit wasted on Tom and I as he was a present actor and we haven't watched it for quite a few years now.Got his autograph anyway though!!In the afternoon we caught the free tram, Melbourne is really good for transport, and went up to Brunswick Street.Not too much to see there though!In the evening we made the most of the free bbq at the hostel, we get excited about free food now!

Tuesday we started by looking around the Koorie Heritage Centre, thought we ought to get a bit of culture and try to learn a bit more about the Aboriginal people.Next we went for a look around the Queen Victoria Market and then had a free tour in the tourist shuttle bus.We got off the bus at the Botanic Gardens, Toms favourite tourist attraction in every city, not!Even he had to admit that these were really good though!We sat in the gardens and had our packed lunch before heading to the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground).We did the tour here as Tom was really keen to look around.It's a huge stadium and I was impressed, although a lot of the things the guide was talking about went straight over my head!!We also got to see all the tennis courts being set up for the Australian Open.This evening we went over to the casino, I was excited as I've never been to one before!The first thing I had a go on was roulette,after about 5 minutes I was $20 down and was strating to think I might not waste any more money!!Then Tom had a go and won $80 straight away, this is not fair!!It wasn't all bad though as he treated me to a drink with his winnings!

Wednesday we thought it was time for a trip to the sea side so we caught the tram to St Kilda.This we got there a bit early as it was like a ghost town and the sea breeze was a bit chilly! So we sat in a cafe for a while catching up with our diaries, by the time we went back out to walk around it was really busy and the sun had come out!There are loads of nice looking cake shops in St Kilda and in the end we had to choose one to go into.I had the biggest ever vanilla slice and Tom had a chocolate eclair yum yum!!We had a nice walk up the pier and across the sea front.This evening we used some of our engagement present to get our own private room at the hostel.It was such a novelty having our own bathroom, nice big bed and even a TV!!I stayed in making the most of it and Tom went and played poker, not so lucky tonight though!

For our last day in Melbourne we went to the Aquarium.Saw penguins (they were great!), sharks, stingrays, and all kinds of tropical fish.In the afternoon we spent some time along the Southbank, had a drink and looked around a few more shops, oh and had another ice cream!Then it was time for our night bus to Sydney….