We landed at Melbourne airport at 6:30 am and drove straight to St. Kilda. After a quick educational chat with the patrolling traffic warden we parked the car in a 4 hour parking spot and went in search of somewhere to have breakfast, because if it’s one thing Australians do well…it’s breakfast!
Abbey Road on Ackland Street was buzzing with locals so we got a table looking out onto the street for maximum people watching and had our first feed of the vacation; Mike had a big fry up, I had haloumi and sweet potato fritters with feta, poached eggs, arugula and dukkah – eating like a local!
Fueled by our hearty breakfast, we spent a few hours exploring the St. Kilda, Windsor and Prahran neighborhoods. There was a real mixture of architecture; the residential areas had some very ugly modern builds jutting up against 19th century terraced cottages with beautifully ornate iron filigree detail. My memory takeaway from Melbourne is the gorgeous ironwork that seemed to be everywhere and it’s only since returning home and researching it that I’ve discovered Melbourne has more decorative cast iron than any other city in the world!
The commercial areas were a mish mash of grungy tacky shops next door to funky cool boutiques next door to hole in the wall kebab shops next door to swanky cafes and restaurants. I couldn’t decide whether to love it or hate it.
It was a gorgeous day and we were enjoying stretching our legs after the long flight so we continued on to a Prahran Market, locally known as “the food lovers market”. Unsure it would impress after having recently been to Valencia, it was actually outstanding, in particular the butchers with mouthwatering displays of beef and lamb…I think this is going to be a meat heavy vacation!
We checked into our AirBnB accommodation at 1 pm. The location in St. Kilda was fantastic, right on the esplanade across from the ocean. The apartment was nice, they’ve clearly tarted up what is a pretty old place but it was nice enough and the price was great for the location.
After a quick cup of tea and a change of clothes we bought a travel pass and jumped on a tram to the Royal Botanical Gardens which were nice to amble around and to watch Melbournians enjoying their weekend in the sunshine.
There were weddings galore, it literally seemed that everywhere we turned there was a wedding party. It made for some great entertainment while we cooled off with an ice cream and watched the wedding world go by.
Jet lag was licking at our heels by late afternoon but were close to the Laneways which we’d wanted to explore, so off we went. We didn’t linger long, our sense is that the Laneways have been created in an attempt to provide tourists with one more Instagram moment; otherwise grungy backstreets have been covered in graffiti (or artwork depending on your interpretation) and a sea of selfie seekers lined up to take their shots. Not for us.
We walked over to the waterfront for sundowner drinks and weren’t totally surprised to find the bars and restaurants absolutely heaving. It was a little too much for us to handle but along the same stretch was the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron which looked a little more sedate and as members of Club Nautique in the Bay Area, we have reciprocal membership to yacht clubs around the world, so we showed our card at the door and in no time at all had a cold pitcher of beer on a roof deck watching the sunset on the revelers below us – perfect!
We had a few different places we wanted to check out for dinner tonight but I think tiredness played a role in our indecisiveness and after walking a fair few miles looking at different restaurants, we ended up at a place right on our doorstep having pizza!