Last night I left off my posting in the middle of talking about driving here in Australia. I found the sign that says it all today, but I am going to continue talking about my first day.
After my 'interesting' driving experience in downtown Melbourne, I got somewhat lost and couldn't find out where to make a u-turn. This nerve-racking endeavor felt like it had taken hours, but was truly only about 20 minutes. Finally, I was able to cross the Yarra River into the Central Business District and find my hotel. Finding the hotel, however, was not the same as finding a place to park. I circled the block several times before I was able to find a meter, but of course, I had no Australian coins for the machine. I left my car and walked to the nearest store to ask for change. The Australian money, by the way, has small little clear plastic windows in it. You can learn more about it here... http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/currency.html The smallest denomination of bill is $5. The physically smallest coin is worth $2 and is about the size of a double thick dime.
It was now 10AM and the meter had been fed, I walked to the hotel and found that check-in time was 2PM and that the room wasn't ready. The lady at the desk did, however, direct me to the hotel parking garage two blocks west of the hotel. I moved my car and parked it happy that I wouldn't need to drive on the wrong side of the road any more for a while.
I called my only contact in the city and we chatted about how to meet with each other. Since he had things he needed to do first, I started wandering the city noticing the sights, cars, and skyline. I found Federation Square and the Melbourne Visitors Center, some artwork along the Yarra River, a five door Toyota Yarris (aka a four door with a hatch-back) several Holden cars (made by GM), and the Lord of the Fries (see photos below).
1 comment:
That there is a restaurant somewhere called Lord of the Fries makes me very happy, even though I dislike Lord of the Flies as a book.
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