Brighton Beach

Sunday was a beautiful day for exploring Brighton Beach and the colorful beach huts.  Thanks to Andree for a tasty picnic lunch!  Brighton is about 25 minutes or so outside Melbourne's CBD.  Aussie families store their beach gear inside the bright houses.  Here are some of my favorite pics.

A broke girls guide to Melbourne - Part 1

Time to get creative and to S-P-R-E-A-D out the funds while waiting for work.  Melbourne is an awesome city and there are tons of free and cheap ways to stay busy if you take a little time to look.  

Ladies, do you need a clothes fix?  I know I did and Merry Christmas to me!  Head to the Op shop second hand store to for deals and new threads.

New orange jacket for the windy Melbourne nights, polka dot blouse, flower shirt for drinks, gray heels, and summer bag for $32!

Summer weather in Melbourne is nutty, but on a sunny day take a free stroll through the Botanical Gardens to get your workout on.

Time to talk food.  I've been on a Middle Eastern kick lately and on a mission for some good eats to satisfy.  After picking up fresh, local produce at the Queen Victoria Market, stop inside for a $3 borek for lunch.  This is a flaky phyllo dough filled with minced meats, veggies, and cheese. It can't be beat for a meal on the run.  Helpful hint - don't shy away from a line.  People waiting = something delicious that's worth the time.

Movie time!  Melbourne has several outdoor spots to catch a flick, but the Botanical Gardens Moonlight Cinema can't be beat for $13.  Just in case you forget you are in Australia, take a  look up.  Bats fly past the moon, bugs torpedo into your head, and critters run through the park as you watch a new or your favorite old film.  Booze and food are welcome.  I loved Skyfall and the atmosphere.  

http://www.moonlight.com.au/

Melbourne city in the background

After watching Anthony Bourdain's episode of No Reservations in Melbourne, I had to hightail it to the Lebanese bakery on Sydney Street.  These cute little baklava bites are $1 per piece and perfect for those watching their waistline.  The bite size treat is easy to eat with a cup of hot coffee from the beans of McIver's at Queen Vic Market.  But who am I kidding? These lasted me less than 24 hours :)

On a funny note, I had my first "trial run" as a waitress at a new cafe in West Brunswick called Lolo and Wren.  I enjoyed the atmosphere and the cash in my pocket, but felt a little awkward at first.  I had to channel my hostess days at Bahama Breeze and put on the service hat for the morning.  Here's hoping I get called back!  It would be fun to work in a cafe and learn about the coffee and local food.

Stay tuned for more deals coming soon....

Merry Christmas from Melbourne

Christmas in Australia was strange.  It was nice.  It was weird.  It was an experience. It was great to put our own mark on Christmas and try out new traditions, but it was weird to not participate in our old family traditions.  It was nice to be at the beach drinking wine watching the kite surfers, but it was bizarre to be in a place with minimal decorations without our families around.  I missed out on our Christmas Eve traditions, instant win "scratch off" time, the great food, and new pajamas.  Overall, it was a good experience and a Christmas I certainly won't forget.  The anticipation of Christmas was more emotional than the actual day, and I'm pretty proud of us for making it through.  Skyping with family and friends helped heaps.  We were determined to make the most of it instead of being sad and had some delicious eats of our own.  Christmas brekky was spectacular complete with blueberry and banana baked oatmeal and fresh fruit salad with the best mangos I've ever eaten.  They are so good here.

True American breakfast with Mac on the table for SKYPing and Spotify going.  I could not get into the Christmas classics this year with the sunshine, so I had to go for some good ol' fashioned country carols and beach tunes.  Who knew Bing Crosby sounds better with snow?

Check out this recipe at http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/01/baked-oatmeal-with-blueberries-and.html

St. Kilda, Melbourne  - This spot reminded me so much of Chicago except the ocean lines the city instead of Lake Michigan.

Lots of boats and wind just like in Chitown

 Christmas wine time

Happy Holidays from OZ

Watching the kite surfers - such a cool sport.

Now 2013 is creeping in... If 2012 was the year of OZ - what's 2013? The year of  ___________????

Christmas is coming...

But wow it doesn't feel like Christmas is around the corner.  It is 100 degrees in Melbourne today as I write this entry.  Officially my first warm holiday season.  Little by little Christmas decorations are popping up around this city.  They don't use as many lights as we do in PA, and I'm missing the evening drives down the streets filled with blow up Santas, snow globes, and moving reindeer.  I would say Christmas is less commercialized here in Australia, but there are still lots of people out buying pressies (presents) and chockies (chocolates).  Downtown Melbourne has their tree, Santa, and Nativity scene up.  Overall, Australia is much more secular than the US, but a lot of churches have caroling nights this weekend and on Christmas Eve.  Christmas Day here is all about the 3 B's - Beaches, BBQ's, and Beer - with the family of course.

Australia has put their own mark on popular carols....

Here Santa needs 6 White Boomers (big, old white kangaroos) to help deliver his gifts.  Apparently deer can't handle the heat....

And Jingle Bells Aussie style...

Dashing through the bush (countryside)
In a rusty Holden Ute (open back truck)
Kicking up the dust
Esky in the boot (cooler in the trunk)
Kelpie by my side (dog)
Singing Christmas songs
It’s summer time and I am in
My singlet, shorts & thongs

OH, JINGLE BELLS, JINGLE BELLS
JINGLE ALL THE WAY
CHRISTMAS IN AUSTRALIA
ON A SCORCHING SUMMER’S DAY

Safe travels to everyone and stay warm:)

Hawthorn flat

Here are a few pics for those who are curious about our Melbourne flat.  It feels AWESOME to have our own space and to be so close to everything in the city.  I'm feeling like myself again already looking up all the free and fun events in the city - you know me! Here's a little tour for you...

Beautiful outdoor patio  - fantastic large grill not shown

Spacious kitchen - anything is better than our DC closet sized kitchen!

Completely unpacked my bags! Yes, this is pretty much everything I own.

Here's the nice big girl bed! There is always some quirk with rental houses and here the second bedroom has a small "sort of" single bed.  So we agreed I get this room for 2 1/2 weeks and then we'll switch rooms to be fair.

Living room

Awesome record collection to keep my ears happy! Can't beat a little Rumours on vinyl

The map of inspiration has been well loved.  It is falling apart here and there.  All the circles are the places we've seen in Australia - Impressive!

American - Aussie Christmas Tree - It is NOT beginning to  look a lot like Christmas with all this warm weather and sunshine!  We're thinking of embracing our inner Aussie and heading to the shore for Christmas day.

Tasty bottle we received as a gift from the winery we worked at in Tasmania.

Well stay tuned over the next few weeks for "The Broke Girls Guide to Melbourne." All this traveling is putting a serious dent in the bank account, but we both have job interviews this week which is promising. Wish us luck!

I couldn't blog without saying we've been thinking a lot about the families and children in Newtown, CT this week.  Sending prayers and love from down under and hoping our government works together to make positive changes for the future of our great nation.  

All I want for Christmas is my....

own apartment…my own apartment, my own apartment… oooooh all I want for Christmas is my own apartment! So we can have a Merry Christmas! (Please sing to the tune of “All I Want for Christmas is my 2 Front Teeth”)

 Oh these last 7½ months have been amazing and challenging in many ways.  One of the most educational, rewarding, and challenging parts of our trip involves our living situation.  Actually SITUATIONS is a more appropriate word.  Pam has “lived” in 38 places along the way.  It is 22 for me.  I can’t believe we haven’t caught cooties so far.  I knew those vaccinations were good for something!

In that time, we have cohabitated with amazing Aussies, Kiwis, Scots, Brits, young, old, and somewhere in between.  We have been exposed to the everyday lifestyle of Aussies and welcomed with open arms into many families.  I feel blessed for the hospitality and kindness we’ve received and wouldn’t change it for the world.

BUT….

There is one thing that I would change right now.  

If you don’t mind, let’s take a quick flashback to your childhood.  Imagine this.  You are minding your own business playing in your toy kitchen pretending to make cookies.   And Susie comes along and wants to make cookies, too.  She swipes your cookie and you scream.  Loudly.  Susie smirks and puts the pretend cookie in her mouth while you continue to scream.  What does your Mom say? 

“You need to learn to SHARE.”  You think to your 2 year-old self “I don't wanna share!"  And "Dumb Susie.  That cookie is not even real.”  You go to the kitchen to find your own REAL Keebler Soft Batch cookie and sulk.  

Where am I going with this? Flashforward to Dec. 2012.  I need to take a moment and revert back to my toddler years.  I am screaming to the world. Loudly.  “I DON’T WANNA SHARE!”

We have paid our dues.  We have shared HEAPS.  We’ve shared apartments, houses, bathrooms, kitchens, beds, bedrooms, tents, and campervans.  I never thought I could ever or would ever be so easy going about my living arrangements.  I can say with certainty we have both learned to tolerate and adapt to many situations, smells, and personalities – oh the stories I could tell!    

But for now, for the next 5 weeks, we have our own place again.  Our own bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, deck, grill … all for US!  No more sharing.  It is 10 minutes from downtown Melbourne, across from a train stop, and in a cute little neighborhood.  We move in Monday and are just itching to unpack our suitcases.  Thanks Santa for this early Christmas gift.   You’ve really out done yourself this year!

WWOOFing - Round 2

From the rose lined streets of Hobart....

To the green hills and blue waters of Oyster Cove...

We never thought we would WWOOF again... but never say never!

We really lucked out and hit the WWOOF-ing jackpot this time around.  We stayed with a lovely couple, Rod and Jeannie.  

The Ledinghams live on a beautiful property complete with a vineyard and multiple vegetable gardens. Unfortunately this year the local wallabies and snails ate a lot of their vines.   Wine production is down, but they were in need of help building a greenhouse and fence on their property.

After a little work, we were given plenty of encouragement to explore and enjoy the area on our down time.  

We kayaked ...

Visited the local animals...

These are newly shaved alpacas... the face only a mother could love!

And we learned a thing or 2 about archery...

Our host also felt we needed a lesson on how to drive a manual transmission.  He certainly remained calm while Pam and I made the car lurch forward and smoke a bit down that dirt road.  Driving on the left side of the road + left handed shifting + 2 slow learning American girls = a potentially burned out clutch.

Needless to say, we did not get very far with the  manual car.  Instead we took the automatic to the top of Mt. Wellington for a view of Hobart on a clear day.

On our last day, we went sailing.  This was a great way to end our time in Oyster Cove.

The Rusalka

Here's the jib

Smooth sailing

Oysters along the shore

Bronte, the dog of the house

Sitting starboard

A special thank you to the Ledinghams for all their hospitality.   I can't wait to get back to Oyster Cove and Tasmania sometime soon.  Until then, we are off to look for work and an apartment in Melbourne.  Fingers crossed!