14 Dec 2008, 12nn - Melbourne

We got to Melbourne at noon. A quick hop on the Skybus and we are in Spencer Street/Southern Cross Train Station.

Weather is very different here. The sun is hot, but the wind is cold. It looks like a typical bright noon day in Singapore, but the wind is so cold, I am hiding behind pillars.

We took a tram to YT's house, and immediately got lost. In fact, we knocked on the wrong door, on the wrong street. So auspicious, right?

YT's house is, well, small. Okay, better described as narrow. Much like a typical old townhouse. It looks like a typical bachelor pad too.

14 Dec 2008, 3pm - Melbourne City

Federation Square from Rialto Observation Tower

After settling down, we went hunting for rental car companies. The plan is to drive to Grampians and the Great Ocean Road for the next 5 days. Sounds fun, right?

The friendly folks at the Melbourne Visitor Centre (at Federation Square) directed us to Franklin Street on the north of CBD. Apparently Melbourne shuts down at 6pm, so we quickly rushed there. Ho and behold, a whole row of rental companies, from Avis to Bargain Wheels. Woohoo~

Alas! No luck though. Somehow, every company either had a server failure ("Sorry, the server is down till later tonight") or do not have the car we want. Oh well, online booking later tonight then.

An interesting cloud formation

A whirlwind tour of Melbourne University later, and the three of us headed home.

14 Dec 2008, 8pm - Melbourne City

Dinner at DOC Pizza

YT and I went to town again for dinner without EU. Apparently, EU had jet-lag or something -- he practically concussed.

We had a walk along Lygon Street (aka pub street). Restaurants and cafes everywhere, but they are all out of our budget. Food is expensive here, a typical meal costs at least AU$7 for breakfast, AU$15 for lunch and AU$20 for dinner.

Being poor students (yes, I'm a "student"), we went somewhere else for dinner. Somewhere meaning an out-of-the-way family Italian restaurant.

Old building beside DOC Pizza

The food is nice. I had pizza! It is not as overwhelmingly cheesy (pun intended) like pizzas found in Singapore. Apparently, pizza is not meant to have so much cheese...

Dusk is approaching, so we quickly collected EU's pizza and headed home. My fingers were freezing by then.