Up Up And Away

Have you ever noticed that when the world is still half asleep the airport is one place always in constant motion. Walking from my house to the train station this morning, the streets were quiet, with only early risers (or late nighters) roaming. 20 minutes later when reaching the airport shuttle, the hustle and bustle reflected something of 2 in the afternoon.

There are always a bit of nerves when setting off on a new adventure (even if only for 10 days). But nerves slowly turn to excitement as the plane takes off and your up up and away.

I am currently on the plane on my way to Alice Springs, for a 5 day outback adventure. Alice Springs is considered the unofficial capital of the Outback. It is full of Aboriginal traditions and sacred sites, a vibrant local art culture, fascinating pioneering history and incredible landscapes. It is claimed to be one of the most interesting places on the continent and most people agree that you haven`t seen the Outback until you`ve been to Alice Springs. 

Black Caviar

I cannot believe I forgot to mention this in my last post, but last weekend at the races I was lucky enough to see the running of the #1 horse in the world black caviar, and the most famous Australian horse. Last weekend at the Caulfield Guineas he beat the winning record of the most famous Australian horse before his time, Pharlap. He now has a 14-run unbeaten streak! And I got to see him run! 

Footy may be over, but the sports keep on coming

The #1 thing to do in Melbourne during the spring is attend one of the many spring racing carnival events.  This weekend I headed down to the Caulfield race track with my friend Tyson for the Caulfield Guineas event.

The races are a great time. Everyone dresses up with fancy hats and all and enjoys a day full of sunshine and world class horses. 

Although i`m not much of a betting person, I managed to win $200 on my first bet! 

After a day at the races, it was time to tune in to watch the Melbourne Victory soccer team take on Sydney FC. Unfortunately the game came to a draw, so no bragging rights for either side. 

Sunday, Australia was playing South Africa in the Rugby World Cup, so we headed to a local pub to catch the game. Australia won and goes on to play New Zealand, in what looks to be a killer match next weekend.

Melbourne Fringe Festival

Melbourne is well known for the large number festivals that happen throughout the year. Over the past 2.5 weeks the Melbourne Fringe Festival has been on showcasing a variety of art forms all over the city.

Last night Jess and I decided to check out one of the comedy shows entitled 10 Things I Know About You  staring a comedian by the name of Simon Taylor. The show went through a number of psychological theories and how they are appicable to life, in trying to establish 10 things I know about you. The show was very well done and had many stitch evoking moments. To all you Melbourians, take advantage and go see the show on one of the final two nights.

Enjoying the Spring Weather in Melbourne

Melbourne has a lot of outdoor beauty and what better time to take it in then spring!

Sunday, Jess and I headed to Fitzroy Gardens for a stroll. 

First up was the conservatory which houses a ton of beautiful spring flowers. 

Taking in the beauty. 

Then it was onto Cooks Cottage, which was home to the famous explorer James Cook. I don`t think any description/history lesson I will give would do justice, so to learn more check out: Cooks Cottage Info

Dressing up in period clothing

Inside the cottage 

Along with all the beautiful flowers and gardens, there are so many things to see throughout the gardens.

Fairy Tree

Tudor Village

Dolphin Fountain 

Tuesday, Amy and I embraced the beautiful weather with a stroll around St.Kilda. After stopping for a delicious treat we headed for a walk around the brilliant Albert Park Lake.

Just imagine how good they actually smell and taste... 

Never a better view

Grand Final Weekend!!

This post is slightly overdue, but this past weekend was the much anticipated Footy Grand Final, which saw the Geelong Cats take on Collingwood Magpies. After getting some good rest Friday night, Grand Final day started off with placing my first footy bets. With a little help from Andrew, I had $10 on Podsiadly to kick no goals in the game and Kelly to get the most disposals. Once the bets were laid we headed over to Andrew`s friends house to watch the 2:30 kickoff. The party was hoping with everyone dressed in there footy gear and eyes glued to the TV screen.

It was a long hard fought battle by the Magpies, but Geelong took the cake with a 119-81 win.

As for my bets... I had no luck with Kelly, but Podsiadly went down in the 2nd quarter with an injury, which scored me $50!

Despite the game being over the party continued well into the night, with alternating rounds of ping pong and beer pong. Driving home at well after midnight, people were still lining the streets to get into bars and pubs across the city. They do say Grand Final weekend is bigger then NYE here in Melbourne! Overall, couldn`t have asked for a better first Grand Final experience (except maybe if Carlton was playing, but that`s another story).

This ones for you Dad