I started off my Monday with another horrific shower. The other people in the hostel were doing their best to bark like dogs at one another from quite early on, so I got up and went out. I had to go and sort my bank bits out and visit the Maccas to check my email. From there, I decided to go for a wander. I wanted to see if I could make it back to Fitzroy on foot. I've included a little map of how far I walked just because I'm impressed with myself that I didn't end up whinging and turning back halfway through.
I went to the station and managed to find my way across the bridge. Not that it was hard enough at all, just a case of crossing a road and walking onwards... The Yarra is brown and yucky. I walked for a while and took a stroll through Alexandra Park and the Queen Victoria gardens which were beautiful. Apart from the distant road noise, I really felt like I was in Australia and stopped on a couple of benches to kill time and have a ponder about things. There were lots of people running and sunbathing and doing generic city centre green space activities. From there I carried on walking towards the right (My compass consists of left or right, up and down), and reached all the sporting places like the Tennis Centre and the cricket ground although there wasn't really much to see apart of Japanese tourists taking pictures and construction workers.
I must tell you about the schizophrenic bridge. Connecting one of the parks to the Melbourne cricket ground, you had to cross a bridge over the railway tracks. It had speakers on each side of the walkway, every three or so panels along. As you walked past each one, a recording started playing, but every speaker had a different recording and you set them all off as you go. A man talking, children laughing, some lady singing in a different language. It was very weird, especially when it was only I alone on the bridge. I did have to stop and wonder if it was all in my head and that I was about to have a break down in the middle of Melbourne with my fingers in my ears shouting 'LA LA LA LA' to drown the voices out. If only for a second...
I walked on down Jolimont Road and entered a residential area of tall Edwardian buildings with tropical gardens and wrought iron fencing which reminded me of Queens or somewhere in New York. I wondered if these houses which I found so pretty to look at were actually 'rough' houses that natives from around here steered clear of. Still, I liked the quiet and the pretty white wooden detailing on the homes. I got as far as Fitzroy gardens which again, was just a big piece of greenery (apparently captain cooks house is there somewhere but I didn't stop long enough to have a look) and I walked towards Richmond before deciding that it wasn't too smart to walk far enough away from the trams that I'd have no way of finding my way back into the city.
I saw St Patrick's cathedral which was a beautiful and surprising sight. The architecture was quite British, gothic and almost medieval. It just seemed odd to see it in a city that resembles America so much with all of it's bland modern buildings. I walked right along Albert Street before finding myself at Parliament. From there, you just walk down to Bourke Street, follow that and bob's your uncle. Home skank home.
I dropped my things and needed to reapply my makeup. The climate here swings from a chilly wind to scorching sun very very quickly, and all of my makeup had come off in the heat. I was also beginning to notice that my impractical Gladiator sandals had given me some impressive blisters and my calves ached like I'd been in a brawl. But I think the latter was more to do with the floppy mattress back at the hostel. I set off in search of somewhere to have a drink, like a grown up. I walked all around the usual areas that I tend to go to but couldn't find any bars so to speak. Just lots of fashionable cafes and global cuisine. I got to the City Square next to Melbourne town hall and saw a collection of big commercial versions of continental cafes and just went up to one and asked the waiter if I had to eat there or if I could just have a glass of wine. He said something quintessentially Aussie and let me sit. So I sat there for a little while nursing a glass of shiraz with tiny sips and reading a book on my kindle.
jimnies before my roomies got back, which they did, pretty much on cue, and I got into bed with several episodes of Friends cued up. Around nine o clock, sleep o and boringo decided it was time to watch a film in their bed. I was a little unnerved by falling asleep whilst they were still up in the room, but was so tired I couldn't keep my eyes open. I turned to face away from them with my headphone and my netbook and drifted off. With netbook and headphones still roaring away when I woke up again in the middle of the night.
(If you're wondering what the title of this entry is about, capsicum is what these stupid people call pepper, specifically, regular green yellow and red pepper...)
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