The day started off somewhat lazily, but in a relaxed way, not because I slept late, in fact, I actually woke up in time for the hotel breakfast for the first time. (OK, so, actually, this was not my first time awake in time because I was awake on time the previous Thursday, but on that day I was rushing to get to work and skipped breakfast like usual). I went down stairs to get my self some grub and into the nice eating area with heavy utensils and nice plates. There were coffee glasses on coasters at every seat and the utensils sat upon those really thick, almost cloth-like disposable napkins. Seating was by the host and hostess so that they could first mark off your name on the list of registered guests. Breakfast costs $12.50 and is billed directly to the room account.
Breakfast consisted of scrambled eggs, some smoked sausage links, and very, very floppy bacon. They type of bacon that is cooked just enough to make it warm. The sausages really weren't very good at all and the eggs were pretty bland without adding some more seasoning to them. the bacon was tasty, but it just seemed weird that it needed the be eaten with a knife and fork, not my hands. They also had at breakfast some varieties of mixed fruits and some different yogurts. A couple of the yogurts were themselves flavored with other fruits. The plain yogurt was more like cottage cheese than yogurt. Next to the fruits were some single serving packages of muesli (basically just granola) and some other cereals. After that came the tray of breads for sandwiches or toast and the industrial toasters. The available toppings/spreads for the toast (all in individual packages, too) were a range of jellies, real butter, and (gasp) Vegemite. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to actually try it, so, as suggested to me just a couple of days before, I grabbed some butter to go with it.
When I sat down with my food and spread some butter on a small corner of the bread and the Vegemite on top. My initial reaction was the same as your first reaction might be with a really bitter beer. Oh, if you don't otherwise know, Vegemite is dark, dark brown, almost to the point of being black, which does not make it immediately appetizing when you see it there in the little single serving tray. I was tempted to stop eating that corner of the bread right then and there, and to continue with some jelly instead, but then decided that if I am going to give this spread a chance, I have to actually give it a chance!! I spread the butter on the entire remaining slice of bread, and Vegemite all across the top of that and started eating. What I then quickly began to taste (odd that it wasn't the immediate taste before) was the massive amount of salt in this little spread. I kept eating and the taste, again like beer, became far more bearable. I almost can understand how people start to like it. I will probably give it another try if I manage to wake up in time for breakfast again.
After breakfast I made it back to my room and decided that this extra holiday off from work would be a good day to try to get some of my laundry done. Before hand, however, I did spend some time logging into the system installed at the utility and checking up on performance and configuration, etc. When the work part was done, I gathered my clothes and changed into my swimming suit.
The laundry facilities in my hotel are in the basement next to the pool and work out facility (both of which, now that I am about to leave town as of when I am posting this, have been drastically under utilized). I spent the $3.00 AUS in coins to feed the small front loading washing machine. The detergent was available in pouches with enough detergent for two loads from the hotel staff. The graciously charged the $2.00 for the detergent to the room account. As my one load started spinning away, I went down the short hallway to the pool and started my swim.
Wow I am out of shape.
I swam hard for a lap, panted for air, swam hard for a lap, panted for air again. This went on for most of the 25 minutes that my laundry was cycling. I alternated strokes after each lap, and I do know how to breathe while swimming, so I really am just horribly out of shape. The water in the pool was warm, and not yellow, so I do believe that it was a heated pool. On interesting effect of the pool, however, was the fact that my eyes never started stinging from chlorine and the pool water residue on my lips tasted rather salt, so it is entirely possible (and this might make sense with the drought, though I really don’t know) that the water is purified sea water, and not otherwise the same clean water that comes through the sink and shower.
Around 21 minutes in the pool (I was wearing my stop watch to keep track of the laundry process) I decided that I had swam enough and sat down in front of the row of machines. As I sat there, I had this over whelming sense of feeling awful, in fact, I thought I might faint. I was able to hold back the feeling just barely long enough to get my clothing into the dryer, spend the $2.00, and get back up the lift and back to my room. Once there, I placed my towel across the floor and assumed a fetal position on the floor while my head kept swimming. Exactly what was wrong, I don’t know. It might well have been the over exertion that I had forced upon my body. I am also convinced that I must have swallowed some of the pool water. Anyway, I sat there on floor past the time the dryer had finished its routine and still a little longer, though how long I am not sure.
Eventually I started feeling better. I went down to get my clothing from the dryer, and found in true dorm like fashion that all of the clothes were still quite damp. Luckily my shower was equipped with a retractable clothes line, so I hung up what I could there and placed the remaining items around the room. A photo of the tub clothes line is here below.
Somewhere amidst the clothing strewn around my room, I managed to lie down to take a nap. I guess it was still on the floor. Once I work up, I moved the still somewhat damp items from the clothesline and I showered from after my swim.
Deciding that all I had really done all day was feel bad, I decided that a new good thing to do would be to walk more of the CBD and try to see some of the remaining sites of the city. This walk was designed to take me to Melbourne’s China Town and Greek area of town. Along the way, I found my way into the Royal Arcade; it happens that this is one of the sights mentioned on the ‘Welcome to Melbourne’ video they showed on my plain flight. In the arcade are the statues of Gog and Magog.
The text is hard to read in the photo, but says the following: (I had to look it up because I was having trouble reading the text even with the full sized image I have stored on my computer).
the time on Gaunt’s clock since 1842. They were
carved from clear pine and modelled on the
figures erected in Guildhall, London, in 1708
to symbolize the conflict between the ancient
Britons and the Trojan invaders"
(also known as Corineus and Gogmagog) having
been captured in battle by the Trojans and made
to serve as porters at the gateway of an ancient
palace on a site later occupied by the Guildhall.
It is traditional for Gog to stand to the north
and Magog to the south."
I cannot tell you for certain which direction is north in the photo, sorry, but I believe that the clock faces North.
After leaving the arcade, I saw this decorated street performer playing his wooden flute (pretty well I might add) to the background music supplied by his sound system behind him. I have some video footage of his playing for all those that would actually like to hear it. (This has not been the only street musician I have seen, but there have not been very many. On Tuesday - day 18, I saw a girl who couldn’t have been older than 7 playing her special small violin).
My next stop was China Town. In typical China Town fashion, there were Chinese arches all around the area, most were erected over the streets entering the area - this was the only one I saw in the middle of the street. The stone lions at the base of the arch happen to be the same ones highlighted in my Australia tourist guide.
Also in the China town area, the normal street lamps have been replaced by lamps that symbolize proper Chinese paper lanterns, but of course these ones are glass.
While in China Town, I made a fun purchase of some sesame balls. I was hoping for the variety filled with red bean paste, but managed to purchase the hard, solid variety instead. I enjoyed eating them anyway. I continued to walk around, enjoying my snack, and found proof positive that the Chinese in Melbourne (or at least some of them) are Methodists. I would love to know what some of the ext on the sign says, (Hint!!) though I am sure it is just talking about service times. The church also had a statue of John Wesley out front, which I have a photo of, but have not included in this post.
After China Town was the Greek part of town. Their decorating was a little less extravagant as the arches just blocks away.
There was nothing particularly exciting about the Greek part of town. I have had baklava since being here, but I did not purchase any while in that part of the CBD. The only other specifically Greek decorating I saw was on the sidewalks. The concrete slabs in some areas have the same pattern as around the trees stamped into them. The other cool sight that this part of town had was some souvenir shops where each and every item had Greek writing on them only, and there was also a CD/Music store featuring only imported CD’s of Greek musicians.
When I felt satisfied with having walked around this area, I continued on my way far up Swanston Street and found familiar sights such as a new Aldi opening soon and an Avis rental car office. More importantly, I found the big public library, the old Swanston Street City Baths, and the campus buildings RMIT (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology). By this time of night, the Library was forcing people out and the Baths didn’t appear to be letting anyone in either, but at least I was able to find out where they are located. At this point it is very unlikely for me to manage to see the insides of either place. I guess I will just have to make it back down to this side of the world sometime again.
The baths, some of the creative RMIT buildings, and the statue of St. George slaying the dragon can be seen below.
Across the street from the library was a nice corner side Gelato shop. I purchased a cone to keep me company as I walked back do to the other end of the CBD. Being that it was late, I decided that I needed a real dinner and stopped at Young and Jackson’s restaurant right at the busiest corner of the CBD. (the corner Flinders and Swanston Sts.) At this restaurant, conveniently also a micro-brewery, I ordered a Cajun chicken sandwich and a beer. The sandwich had some floppy bacon on top of it and was served with fries. The beer, which I ordered based on the recommendation of one of my two waitresses, was a Y&J Hefeweizen. It was a good beer served in a true Imperial Pint glass. It had a definite hint of fruit (seemingly strawberry) flavors, which worked very nicely with the overall taste and texture of the brew and it drank nicely.
The two waitresses were working very, very hard with the full room of tables, and provided very good service, so I decided, though not expected nor needed in Melbourne, to go ahead and tip them a couple of dollars each.
[Aside: I found out in conversation on Tues. – day 18 while having lunch with one of my clients that there have been newspaper article recently talking about how the waiters and waitresses in the city are starting to expect tips thanks to all of the ignorant tourists who don’t know better. Since the wait staff in Australia get paid proper wages, unlike back home, the tip really is what it should be, a completely optional ‘thank you’ to be given for exceptional service, only. I explained to my client why tipping is necessary in the States based on the earned wages and how most wait staff are supposed to report their tips as income. We also discussed the GST (goods and sales tax) that is automatically included in all purchases of goods and prepared foods, etc. It really is very convenient not to have to do the math of taxes and tips when determining what meals fit within your budget, and which ones don’t.]
After dinner, I started walking home and went to bed, needing to be back in the office the next day. On the walk home, however, there were these two confused looking guys walking down the street. They stopped as I approached and asked me if I knew where China Town was located. I told them simply that they were heading in completely the wrong direction, and being a tourist myself, though I have only had to look at it once or twice over my entire stay, I pulled out my trusty map of the CBD. I pointed out to them where we were and how to best get to China Town. It was very convenient that I had just come from their myself. Along with this small activity, I had realized that I was starting to feel much less like a tourist and more like a temporary resident.
I continued to walk down the street towards the hotel when I found, at the corner of Queen Street, a very confused looking couple. I approached them to find out where they were trying to go. They told me, in their noticeably British accents that they were looking for the Queen's Bridge. They were right to think that the bridge belonged at the road with the same name, but there happens to be a very large subway train station in the way. The bridge is actually at the end of the street on which my hotel and office reside, so I offered that they just follow me down the block for a bit. They did and we parted ways when we came to the crosswalk. Melbourne really does have a HUGE tourism industry with a never ending supply of tourists from all over the globe.
[Aside 2: The larger number of photos in this post is to make up for the lack of photos, and even lack of fun things to read about in my next few posts. Fair warning!]
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