Mum and Dad's Week In Melbourne - Saturday 18th January 2014

I can't believe a week has gone by already since mum and dad arrived but we have been out and about lots and I've been keeping them busy!

On Monday we went to the Australian Open for a day of tennis and we even got to support and cheer on our own Brits Laura Robson and Heather Watson. It was a very warm day and even when we got there at 10 am we could already feel the effects of the heat and were already sweating. First we went to watch Laura Robson take on the 18th seed but she didn't perform as well as we'd hoped and she lost in 3 straight sets; it was still good to watch her though. We then were able to jump to across to one of the other courts to watch our other Brit Heather Watson, who was 1 set down, take on the 33rd seed. It was a great game to watch and she looked very promising winning the second set and taking it to a third set thriller of which she ended up loosing. Not only did we have great tennis in this match but also good crowd entertainment from the Aussie fans who started a Mexican wave, controlling the speed of the wave and getting a super slow mo one going, which everyone found highly entertaining. In the afternoon we watched some men's tennis which was great to see, before the heat finally hit us and become too much and it was time to head home.

For pictures from the Australian Open Click Here - Australian Open

On Tuesday the weather was even hotter hitting above 40 and I don't think mum and dad were quite ready for what hit them. Because it was so hot we decided to head down to St Kilda to the beach for a bit and we were all very much looking forward to a refreshing dip in the sea, which was as expected - heavenly!!! After an hour or so we went for a little stroll in St Kilda (just down the main street - it's too hot to walk too far) and had a drink and ice cream to guess what ... cool down! In the evening Darc came over and we went out for dinner at our fav place - Chin Chin's (I had promised mum and dad we would go because it was so good last time). As expected we had an hour wait again, so we went to fed square where we had a drink in Transport bar before having another delicious dinner (courtesy of Darcy) which was enjoyed by all! After dinner I took mum and dad for their first trip down Southbank on our way to Crown Casino. They couldn't believe the size of the Casino and mum had great fun on the slot machines winning 20 bucks while I once again had another huge cocktail and this time lost money on blackjack (it was obviously beginners and birthday luck on my 21st), with Darc doubling his money! It was a really lovely evening and was nice for mum and dad to properly meet Darc!

For pictures of our day and evening Click Here - St Kilda Beach and Evening in the City

On Wednesday it was another 40+ day and me and mum had a fairly relaxing morning just chilling out in the apartment whilst dad went to play a game of golf at Albert Park, which we could see him on the 18th hole from my apartment. In the afternoon we headed into the city to Bourke street where we went in a few shops and I took them into the big department stores of Myer and David Jones before heading up to Queen Victoria Night Market. Dad loved the night market because it was full of loads of little traditional market stalls and then loads of different foods stalls which had different foods from all over the world. We had a couple of different dishes between us to try which were all good, but safe to say I will be going back to try some of the other food!

For pictures of the night market Click Here - Queen Vic Night Market

On Thursday it was our third consecutive day of over 40 degrees and it was a clear day which made it a great day for going up the Eureka Skydeck. We had amazing views up there and could see out across Victoria and it was impressive to go up and see Melbourne during the day (I had already done the Eureka of an evening). After this we went to meet Sue for a drink before we went to DFO on Southwarf (outlet shopping centre) to spend some money. After we dragged dad around and he had had enough and was bored, we headed to Southbank and sat outside with a jug of pimms, watching the tennis - I think it's compulsory in 40 degree heat! The pimms went down a treat and not surprisingly, me and mum demolished the jug in no time!!!

For pictures from the Eureka Skydeck Click Here - Eureka Skydeck

In the morning yesterday we went for a walk in another day of 40+ heat to the Shrine of Remembrance which is a memorial site for those that died in World War 1. While we were in there we saw a replica of the light display which occurs on remembrance day, where the sun ray moves across the memorial plaque and then we went up to the viewing balcony where we got a great view of the city (although it was a little hazy). We then headed into the Botanical Gardens to sit in the tea rooms by the lake to enjoy a nice cold milkshake before we shot home to grab our stuff to head to Sue's for the evening where we had a lovely evening catching up over a takeaway and wine.

For pictures from the Shrine of Remembrance Click Here - Shrine Of Remembrance

Today the cool change we were told to expect came, meaning the temperature dropped to 23 degrees, which was a bit of a relief. We have had a very lazy day at Sues watching some of the tennis and soon we will be heading back to the city for a lazy evening and to pack and prepare for the next week when we are heading to Phillip Island and Great Ocean Road.

So until then my friends, 

xoxo