Day 9
Another lazy day. I think I spent too much energy in the first half of my trip. But then again, I saw and did everything I've wanted to do on my entire trip - and entire life - already, so when shouldn't a lazy day be allowed? A vacation abroad doesn't necessarily mean stuffing each day to the brim with activities, sights, shopping, and losing oneself amongst the local hot - and no so hot - spots. A vacation, even a vacation abroad, is just that. A vacation from the norm. So for me, even lazy days not teaching are a vacation. And definitely lazy days spent abroad. So after that, now I take pride in saying this is another lazy vacation day.
But not too lazy. This is time to explore, after all.
So today, I lazily woke up around 7am. Or maybe 6. Two of the three girls in my four-girl hostel dorm decided to check out in the wee early morning hours, one right after the other. After drifting in and out of sleep and dreams in the quiet time after they both had left, I finally awoke enough to climb down from the top bunk (not an easy feat, let me assure you) and retrieve my charged iPad. It was 7:45am.
However early it was, though, when I awoke, I didn't make it out the front door until just after 10. I'd decided I wanted to see St. Kilda today, partially because it was easy to get to, translating to a low-stress day for me (any day like that is a vacation for me), but St. Kilda also has a beach. And of course, I love the beach.
I hopped on the 96 tram which stops just outside my hostel, and rode it all the way to the last stop, arriving in St. Kilda about half past 10. I got off the tram into a sea of beach shops, which I didn't want to go into because, loving the beach, I also love beach shops. (Shopping is another favorite. Combine the two and BAM. I'd be needing another suitcase, and not one of the carry-on variety.) So I walked a bit, past beach shops and lunch delis, past a little store selling things you might get from India, then a few more shops and another store selling more things you might find in India. This one was a bit different and more like Pier 1 Imports, although with the addition of clothes and not so many table wares. It looked interesting, so I popped in for a look. Along with funky furniture, tapestries, eclectic jewelry and stones with various healing powers, the clothes selection offered quite a variety, such as tops, classic-style skirts, sarong wrap skirts, dresses, pants, outerwear, and scarves. I tried a few items on and left with an olive green long-sleeved shirt made of cotton and softer than a koala.
When I left there, I was feeling quite peckish as I hadn't eaten anything yet today, so when I came across a chocolatier shop, I went in to see what it was about. I ordered a latte with two sugars and a fresh fruit (strawberry, always strawberry) croissant and ate my breakfast just inside, but overlooking the street. I would have loved to eat outside, but it was a cool 45F and slightly breezy, so I stuck to the inside of the cafe.
My breakfast was delish and even came with a little chocolate truffle and some good conversation from the barista, as I was the only one in the cafe. Believe it or not, he had actually been to Destin, FL on spring break a few years back. Small world. (Destin? Spring break? Of all the hot spots to choose from...?)
Anyway, when I left the cafe, I headed to the beach. It wasn't far, but when I got there I noticed the sky was looking ominous. I walked up and down the beach, a bay beach so it wasn't too big, inquired about a massage sign I had seen (all booked for today), and then headed north along the tram line, which ran by more shops. When the shops turned from beach-area to sketchy, I hopped back on the tram and came back to my stop at Hanover St.
Instead of going back to the hostel, though, I popped over to the Melbourne Museum, just across the Carlton Gardens park. The entry fee was $10 and for that I saw dinosaur skeletons, exhibits on animals of the world - including various insect species, exhibits on the brain, the human body, the human mind and all of its inner workings, an exhibit of final-year creative problem solving projects from local university students, an exhibit on Melbourne - the past to present, and a very interesting covered outdoor exhibit on forests and the life within them. I also happened to be a school-tour day with young elementary students, so I got through the dinosaur and animal exhibits fairly quickly, as I am on vacation and quite happy I don't have to be a school chaperone.
I finished my museum tour with a trip to the cafe and got a turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce and fresh chips (fries) for take away to the park just outside. It rained while I was visiting the museum so I didn't sit on any of the park benches, bit I walked around pecking at the chips until I found myself back across the street and at my hostel.
It's early evening now, getting dark, and is quite chilly outside, so I might stay in until its time to check out later and grab a taxi to Southern Cross Station and then the 24hr SkyBus to the airport from there in the wee hours of the morning.
Another lazy day. I think I spent too much energy in the first half of my trip. But then again, I saw and did everything I've wanted to do on my entire trip - and entire life - already, so when shouldn't a lazy day be allowed? A vacation abroad doesn't necessarily mean stuffing each day to the brim with activities, sights, shopping, and losing oneself amongst the local hot - and no so hot - spots. A vacation, even a vacation abroad, is just that. A vacation from the norm. So for me, even lazy days not teaching are a vacation. And definitely lazy days spent abroad. So after that, now I take pride in saying this is another lazy vacation day.
But not too lazy. This is time to explore, after all.
So today, I lazily woke up around 7am. Or maybe 6. Two of the three girls in my four-girl hostel dorm decided to check out in the wee early morning hours, one right after the other. After drifting in and out of sleep and dreams in the quiet time after they both had left, I finally awoke enough to climb down from the top bunk (not an easy feat, let me assure you) and retrieve my charged iPad. It was 7:45am.
However early it was, though, when I awoke, I didn't make it out the front door until just after 10. I'd decided I wanted to see St. Kilda today, partially because it was easy to get to, translating to a low-stress day for me (any day like that is a vacation for me), but St. Kilda also has a beach. And of course, I love the beach.
I hopped on the 96 tram which stops just outside my hostel, and rode it all the way to the last stop, arriving in St. Kilda about half past 10. I got off the tram into a sea of beach shops, which I didn't want to go into because, loving the beach, I also love beach shops. (Shopping is another favorite. Combine the two and BAM. I'd be needing another suitcase, and not one of the carry-on variety.) So I walked a bit, past beach shops and lunch delis, past a little store selling things you might get from India, then a few more shops and another store selling more things you might find in India. This one was a bit different and more like Pier 1 Imports, although with the addition of clothes and not so many table wares. It looked interesting, so I popped in for a look. Along with funky furniture, tapestries, eclectic jewelry and stones with various healing powers, the clothes selection offered quite a variety, such as tops, classic-style skirts, sarong wrap skirts, dresses, pants, outerwear, and scarves. I tried a few items on and left with an olive green long-sleeved shirt made of cotton and softer than a koala.
When I left there, I was feeling quite peckish as I hadn't eaten anything yet today, so when I came across a chocolatier shop, I went in to see what it was about. I ordered a latte with two sugars and a fresh fruit (strawberry, always strawberry) croissant and ate my breakfast just inside, but overlooking the street. I would have loved to eat outside, but it was a cool 45F and slightly breezy, so I stuck to the inside of the cafe.
My breakfast was delish and even came with a little chocolate truffle and some good conversation from the barista, as I was the only one in the cafe. Believe it or not, he had actually been to Destin, FL on spring break a few years back. Small world. (Destin? Spring break? Of all the hot spots to choose from...?)
Anyway, when I left the cafe, I headed to the beach. It wasn't far, but when I got there I noticed the sky was looking ominous. I walked up and down the beach, a bay beach so it wasn't too big, inquired about a massage sign I had seen (all booked for today), and then headed north along the tram line, which ran by more shops. When the shops turned from beach-area to sketchy, I hopped back on the tram and came back to my stop at Hanover St.
Instead of going back to the hostel, though, I popped over to the Melbourne Museum, just across the Carlton Gardens park. The entry fee was $10 and for that I saw dinosaur skeletons, exhibits on animals of the world - including various insect species, exhibits on the brain, the human body, the human mind and all of its inner workings, an exhibit of final-year creative problem solving projects from local university students, an exhibit on Melbourne - the past to present, and a very interesting covered outdoor exhibit on forests and the life within them. I also happened to be a school-tour day with young elementary students, so I got through the dinosaur and animal exhibits fairly quickly, as I am on vacation and quite happy I don't have to be a school chaperone.
I finished my museum tour with a trip to the cafe and got a turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce and fresh chips (fries) for take away to the park just outside. It rained while I was visiting the museum so I didn't sit on any of the park benches, bit I walked around pecking at the chips until I found myself back across the street and at my hostel.
It's early evening now, getting dark, and is quite chilly outside, so I might stay in until its time to check out later and grab a taxi to Southern Cross Station and then the 24hr SkyBus to the airport from there in the wee hours of the morning.
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