Well I am back and about to give a long winded and one sided report of my trip to Melbourne. Photos to come soon.
My transfer took me to Southern Cross Station. My hotel was across the road. I really like what they did to the place. I have issues with the name change but the contours of the roof and the cute yellow boxes that house ticket windows and offices were a top contrast. It works very well.
I put my bags down at my hotel then set off for the MCG. I was a little disappointed with the tour because we did not go to the GSS side and because the tour was mostly about cricket. Proportionally speaking this is not the best reflection of the ground's history but given that most of us on the tour were from cricket playing countries or were cricket fans above AFL (sic) fans few people seemed to mind.
[Sydney Bragging]Our SCG nets are bigger than the Bill Lawry Centre[/Sydney Bragging]
I must say the MCG - well what I saw of it being the Northern Stand, is the best sports stadium in terms of facilities I have ever visited. The Long Room, Members areas, press facilities and corporate facilities are out of this world.
[Sydney Bragging]Though I think the press facilities and corporate facilities at Homebush Bay are more extensive[/Sydney Bragging]
Even in viewing it is very impressive. For such a large ground you are right on top of the action. Contrast this with the top tiers at Homebush Bay that are set back a distance.
After the MCG tour I ventured to the Royal Exhibition Building. Regrettably I was on a tight schedule and did not have time to visit the Museum but what I did see sparked my curiosity. I will return there in the future. The REB is just a wonderful building, the only one of its kind remaining. Fittingly, there was a Heritage Home Exhibition on at the time so the exhibits complement the structure itself. I have some photos and will post them up soon.
From the Royal Exhibition Builiding I visited the Albion Charles Hotel in Northcote. Not one skerrick of Fitzroy Lions memorabilia. A little disappointing and seeing their 50 pokie Tabaret made me cringe. It seems pokies are also killing some Victorian establishments.
I then strolled down Brunswick Street. As a part time Vincentian, it was touching to see the Daughters of Charity establishments there. I caught a good look at the oval and took some photos. I will post these up later.
I had a late lunch at Nino's. My Calzone was good value and certainly filling. I caught a tram back to the city. I walked around and found it a joy to see so many old theates that remain in Melbourne. Sydney is quite notorious for having knocked many down only to say ten years later, "oops, we needed that." I only went inside the Athenaeum Theatre but found it to be a lovely building.
Before dinner I took a train out to North Melbourne. Was going to go to the Western Bulldogs Social Club but did not have the time. Boy the Roos are poor! I could not believe how small the buildings were. No photos this time as it was too dark. I surveyed the old betting ring area as well. It would have been quite big for a Greyhound betting ring and in a very good spot.
I had dinner at Spuntino's. Very good though the Sangria was too sweet. I filled up too much on the Tapas and unfortunately did not leave room for the Churros. I will be back for those.
Saturday morning I went and had breakfast at Caffe Map on Elizabeth St. A very good feed - better than my hotel breakfast which used this sickly sweet OJ, the kind you get in Macdonald's. I spent the morning shopping in Richmond and in the city before heading out to Caulfield. [Sydney Bragging]We have a better looking GPO and a better looking Old Customs House[/Sydney Bragging]
As with most Melbourne stadiums, accessability to Caulfield is first class. The train didn't take long and the streets were well set up for entry into the venue. The racecourse itself has some nice grandstands but it was light on public GA seating and the lawn was flat. [Sydney Bragging]The viewing at Sydney tracks from the lawns is much better[/Sydney Bragging] Of course most of the time Caulfield is not required to cope with this many spectators so it would not usually be a problem. The Caulfield betting ring was tiny but several mobile TABs and bookies pleased punters like myself. Food and bar queues were quite small and presented a good variety. I am told the crowd was down on past years but it seemed packed and things went very well logistically.
I only picked one winner and that was Tawqueet, having seen it win in Sydney a couple of weeks back. Unfortunately I only had $5 on it, preferring to pick trifectas and quinellas. The dividend I got from the bookies was $16. Unfortunately the TAB was paying $23.10. I picked 3 seconds but lost out the rest of the day. A lot of outsiders won. Nice money if you can pick it.
Back into the city and I stopped off at Punt Road. Richmond were putting the finishing touches on an easy win over Footscray-Edgewater. Richmond have quite a team - a lot of state players. Nice people in the stand too - they must've wondered why someone so dressed up was watching the cricket. I ended up buying a cup of tea and watching the last 8 overs.
Back to the hotel to get changed and visit Telstra Dome. Again accessability was first class and the retractable seating made the viewing quite good on the bottom level. I am not yet sold on viewing downstairs for any sport in AFL mode. I was also bothered by the concourse on the middle level. It was very cramped and the food outlets were too, with average service. It was a shame because my actual meal was good and I haven't seen Jam Donuts on a stadium menu since the SCG took them off in around 1999.
The game itself was something else. I will post on that in the Tri Nations thread. Unfortunately someone spilled beer on the ground and that got my program wet. Luckily I fished one out of a bin that was in good nick.
I had planned to go out after the game but ended up falling asleep on my bed until early Sunday morning.
Today I went on the Neighbours Tour. I had a great time. Next time, I will take the $40 tour to meet a cast member and I will stay in town on a Monday night to visit the trivia night. I impressed some Pommy chicks (yes they were hot) with my Neighbours knowledge. The Aussies on the tour (most of them) felt sorry for me.
I walked around Southbank (the Yarra was brown today) and then had pizza for lunch at the Old Pepper on Chapel St South Yarra. Crap pizza with too much ham, not enough cheese and light on sauce. THIS IS WHY I ASKED FOR SUGGESTIONS
After lunch I caught my flight home.
I really love going to Melbourne. It is a city that has so much to offer and has such a great vibe. Coming home I see how Sydney is too rushed. Melbourne is a city I could quite happily live in, if it weren't full of Victorians.
PS. Best public transport in Australia by far. I can see why there are so many anoraks in Melbourne.
