Melting in Melbourne

If I was to describe our arrival into Melbourne in two words it would have to be: culture shock. 

Although in many ways it mirrors home, Australia shares very little in common with Asia where we've spent the last three months. We were spoken to in perfect English, given straightforward directions and even asked to wear our seatbelts on the shuttle bus to the city. Strapping ourselves into an air conditioned bus rather than boarding a rattling old tuk tuk felt unnervingly alien. 

And we must have looked a little alien too, walking alongside the smart city folk wearing our elephant trousers, Bangkok vests and no make-up. It didn't take long to realise that our dress code (along with our no bra policy) may need to be revised here.

However, once over the initial shock we were soon taken by Melbourne's charm and found we slipped quite easily back into the Western world (though my purse still begs to differ.) The city is beautiful, quirky and full of life with parts that remind me very much of London whilst others carry more of a Californian vibe. I found it pretty amazing that we could sit on the beach staring out at the horizon with the city's skyscrapers still in our peripherals. 

The only downside to Melbourne is that the weather is a little unpredictable and has been known at times to be as bad as England, i.e. terrible. However, our visit coincided with a summer heatwave which was so intense it made the news back home! Daily temperatures consistently peaked at over forty degrees celcius but we did our best to make the most of the sunshine without completely melting. One afternoon we spent submerged in the sea on St Kilda beach, another under a tree with a picnic in the Royal Botanical gardens and another looking over the city from the top of Melbourne's sky bar. 

The evenings gave very little relief (averaging at around thirty) but at least with the sun hidden away we were safe to sit out in the open, either at a bar, a BBQ or Federation Square where the Australian Open Tennis Tournament was being aired live.  

At the weekend we took a road trip down to Torquay, a small seaside town at the top of the Great Ocean Road. Although just two hours South, Torquay was very different to Melbourne - quiet with just a handful of bars and cafés, and an abundance of Quicksilver and Ripcurl outlets to please the surfing community. The beaches were almost deserted and surrounded by the quiet open countryside rather than the bustling city backdrop in St Kilda.

Our trip to Australia has so far been lovely, made even lovelier by the fact that we've been staying with a friend and catching up with a couple of familar faces who've made the big move over here. Though we've only been here a week, I can already understand why people do!