When in Rome

Hey Gang;

I dunno if those Finn brothers were in Melbourne at the time but they were definitely onto something with that "four seasons in one day" chorus line. Since arriving a fortnight ago the weather waiter has faithfully served up a mezze platter of varying phenomenon each day. Today it was fog soup.

This weekend we immersed ourselves head first into Melbourne culture. I talked footy tactics over beers with the guys in the office. I affectionately refer to them as Mexicans (being south of the border) but they still can't see the irony in drinking coronas on Friday.

On Saturday while The Lovely Samantha went to the gym, Bodhi and I, so as not to stand out, put on every piece of black clothing we had and went down to chapel st for breakfast. We still wear pastels when skyping with family, but black is the new black down here.

Melbourne has a pretty strong coffee culture and being a lite weight myself, just one of their rich blends is enough to keep me fidgeting for a whole week. I've taken to just asking them to heat up some milk and wave it beside the machine. It's the only way I can get any sleep.

A colleague at work suggested Vic Markets for good meat & produce shopping (but the Saturday crowds, he warned, should be avoid at all costs). We decided not to heed his advice and try our luck. We were pleasantly surprised to find ample parking at 15:45pm on Saturday afternoon although less so after inserting two hours worth of coins into the parking meter only to find the market closes at 16:00pm. Still, silver lining and all that - everything is half price in the last 15 minutes. I've never seen a Sunday roast jump into my shopping bag that fast.

On Sunday, following another recommendation, we headed down to Acland st to check out the traditional cake shops. At first glance it's nothing more than an eat street, but wandering down somewhere in the middle, you stumble upon three of the most sinful dens of gluttony ever put on this Earth. Bodhi was like a sucker fish with only the front window between him and mountains of temptation. Sam went weak at the knees and almost fainted. Talk about sight for sore eyes, or possibly plight for sore thighs given the extra chaffing guaranteed to ensue any visit.

Bodhi is absolutely besotted with Melbourne. Being an Thomas The Tank Engine nutter, he's fascinated with all things rail like. He spelled out his first word the other day. T.R.A.M.

Melbourne is good.

see ya,
Minas.