Street art, bambi & rain: I heart Melbourne

OK, so I'm a few days late in posting this, considering we (Jag & I) went into the city on Thursday, and it's now Sunday...

Anyway, we decided after a lovely sleep in (I love holidays!) that we would head into the city and wander around for the afternoon. We both live quite close to the CBD - I'm in Richmond and Jag is in South Yarra - yet we rarely venture out of our own suburbs, except when I make the hike out to work each day. (But ha ha, I am on holidays... til tomorrow, when I go back to work...)

A little debate over "should we or shouldn't we take the umbrella in?" and we were off, sans umbrella, and on a mission to explore some laneways, have a look at the installation on the Yarra of the Melbourne Design Festival, and to perhaps have a little drink here and there to wet our whistles.

As you can see from the photos on the slideshow, we ended up in Hosier Lane, taking photos on my mobile phone, as the digital camera battery died after the first shot! (Snaps to me for remembering to charge the battery... not) Also went exploring various other little offshoots of laneways and found the Until Never gallery off Hosier Lane and up a seemingly endless flight of stairs... This lovely space had a collection of stencil art called "The Land of Milk & Honey" - referring to Australia and all that makes up our cultural and social fabric at the moment. This was a great exhibition, I was impressed not only at the artwork itself but what it was representing.

We then went back down to the cold laneway and wandered a bit more, this time heading to the Melbourne Visitors Centre at Fed Square for a few maps and brochures and of course more free postcards for myself! I felt a bit silly being a Melbournian and going into the Visitors Centre but it was well worth it. Those busy people at thatsMelbourne have created some good little booklets on finding hidden treasures in the city.

From there we found ourselves at Degraves Street, and stopped at a little Italian place called il Tempo for a drink. Feeling a bit glam and grown up, I ordered a Bellini cocktail and knocked it back possibly a little too quickly on an empty tummy... Degraves Street kept us occupied for some time as we took more snaps of the street art and CityLights lightboxes. A few cheeky pigeons scared me away from the dumpsters decorated with various artforms and we were on our way.
Some more walking meant we were in the drizzle and chill of a Melbourne winter's evening, and no amount of gloves, mittens, pockets or romantic hand-holding could warm these fingers!
More strolling and laughter passed when I stumbled up on the Little Salon store on Little Collins Street. I was lucky enough to have a Love blue perspex deer necklace bought for me (after some pestering, cooing and soft gasping over the cuteness of it all) by my dearest. It was on sale, quite significantly reduced, so I am not feeling extravagant or demanding in the slightest!
My little blue bambi, as I have called her, sits prettily with my 'girl and rabbit' brooches - a gift from my birthday last year.

After the excitement of blue bambi, we went in search of some dinner, and found something hot, Greek and tasty somewhere around Lonsdale Street I think. Lovely service and fab food. We left absolutely stuffed and satisfied.

After dinner, then down to Swanston Street and braved the crowds, briefly wandering into Myer for a sniff of some scents before we were politely reminded that they were closing.
Off to Fed Square again to take some snaps of Flinders St Station, the lights, St Pauls Cathedral & then down to the Design Festival installation on the Yarra River. The photos of these simply do not do them justice - they were stunning. The first was a cloud made out of cupcake patty pans (the white paper ones) & the rain was optic fibre cables... loveliness!
Behind us the big ferris wheel turned and the carousel went round, and I snapped more photos than was necessary. We were about to head over for a ride on the ferris wheel when the rain came... and we were drenched!
Running to a tiny spot of shelter was difficult with a lack of fitness, a bag full of brochures and postcards, and 2 jackets on, but Jag was quite enthused by this hiding out and thought it would be a good place to have a bit of a pash on, which was quite romantic with the rain pelting down and all, but I was cold and typically cranky at this, so it was time to trudge on to get a tram home before moi really cracked it and had a little teary, as I am wont to do when cold, tired, wet and hungry.
Again as we walked from the tram to my place, it poured and we got home soaked and freezing... But what a day! I was so impressed with my own city, as I had been many years ago when I was a country kid and came to the city with my parents for trips to the Vic Market and to see my grandparents. I loved the lights and movement, the constant clanging of trams and the bustle of all these people around me. I felt really lucky to live in such a wonderful city, annoyed that we hadn't found more hidey-holes to have a drink and soak it all up in, and in awe of the tucked-away goodness that can be found in laneways and up stairs and behind the sheer largeness of the exterior we all see - the Swanston, Flinders largeness - it was time to take a closer look at the smallness, the intimacy that very clever Melbournites have created as little havens, treasures waiting to be found.

Ah, Melbourne. xx