We met up with my niece and nephew for dinner. We took the opportunity to have a look at another part of Melbourne, It is very Vietnamese, with occasional Italian, Ethiopian, Chinese, and Filipino.
General street scenes in Footscray
The Vietnamese know about things French!
And the Italians have been here too!
Food:
Avacado ice cream. Interesting - haven't tried it.
And a bit of Vinglish - or just a missing letter.
I recognised this painting when I saw it
but I had no idea of the story behind it. Nazi stolen art comes to Melbourne - and it wasn't a Van Gogh after all.
And dessert is always fun! The waiter divided a bombe alaska into three for us.
Our weather luck ran out - slightly - on Saturday.
But it fined up later in the day. This was on our way back from visiting a patchwork mega-store and catching up with friends in Templestowe. It was also a lovely view of Melbourne city.
We are getting used to the 37th floor. But I did check the emergency exit last night. This morning we were having breakfast and our windows were being cleaned. Not my choice of job, but she was happy enough with it!
We walked though Chinatown and had dumplings at Mr Bo, where ordering by QR code is mandatory. Hunger forces rapid learning!
And you don't need to go to China to see some quirky English. .
Just to remind you of the truth behind really fresh steamed fish.
Tonight, we are in a two bedroom apartment in Southbank, on the 37th floor with city views. It is nowhere near St Kilda where we had planned to be. And being my father's daughter, the risk of fire was the first thing I thought of!
We arrived to find the key to our booked St Kilda apartment was nowhere to be seen, and the designated number wasn't answering. Eventually we got apologies from the manager and a refund from booking.com, but still had nowhere to stay. We tried several hotels,all fully booked, and were about to think of everyone we knew in Melbourne where we could get a bed! Or at least a roof! But then we found this apartment at Southbank, and it might be the comfort stop of our trip, even though only a few dollars (like $20) more than the St Kilda arrangement. So here we are.
We drove from Bairnsdale this morning, with lunch atTraralgon.
We have had wonderful weather. Not cold, and fine and sunny.
Shops in the main street of Cooma. You know you are in a rural area. They don't sell drench, chooks or rams in Epping.
In fact, we were talking to a couple at our motel. They were off to a ram sale at Berriale. They were fine wool producers.
Driving from Cooma, there were lots of sheep and lambs. They looked in good nick, and the country was lovely.
And there is a dress code. I learned some new terms, helpfully explained. And glad I had done my mending!
We saw these two ducks wandering the main street of Cooma. Completely at home and relaxed. I hope they survived.
We left this morning and at Cooma tonight. A good drive,no rain, but overcast. Difficult to think we are heading into an apocalypse.
On the way, I had a phone call from the archivist at Hamilton College. I had left a message about our grandfather's/great-grandfather's books.
He told me that he had found his record, as well as the details taken when he enrolled. We will see him (the archivist I mean) at the end of next week. Pics to come!
Kin Mun's cold was lingering - not getting worse but not improving either. We decided to cut our losses while I was still well and able to drive. So we will be home early. The Brisbane folks were understanding - they had had their share of colds and flu, of the non-COVID variety.
BTW, all KM's RATs are negative - and there has been enough time for the viral load to build up.
But we have seen new things. Today we went to Southport so we could drive up the Gold Coast. What a change. And a light rail to boot. You do wonder how lockdowns affected the tourist industry. It must have been a blow. But in today's sunny weather, it all looked glorious.
