Travelling MoyJos

I always knew today would be a long day,  as the best flights I could get had me travelling from Melbourne to Sydney then a three hour stop over before a flight from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast, so I was somewhat prepared

• I had packed my bag the night before
• I had spoken to reception to find out what to do as I was checking out earlier than they opened.
• I had worked out by tram and bus times.

I was fairly confident that, although it was going to be a long day, it would be a fairly stress-free one and that’s how it started out..

My alarm woke me at 5 o’clock. I had my shower.  Dropped off my key. Got onto the tram just around the corner to Southern Cross station.Did not have to wait long for the SkyBus  to take me to the airport. And being so early I had a good clear run through security and I was in the Virgin Lounge having a leisurely breakfast of scrambled eggs before my flight was due to take off at 10 o’clock

Sadly, I was unsuccessful in my bid for business class flights home, but I had bought an exit row seat for this flight and economy X for the next and it was an uneventful flight from Melbourne to Sydney

Arriving in Sydney, I did not need to collect my bags as they were being checked through to Sunshine Coast  All I had to do was make my way to the Virgin Lounge for lunch and relax for the next three hours.

I had a lovely lunch consisting of a chicken wrap, then some spicy rice with sausage and a Morracan tagine.  Some cake and crackers and cheese filled the time up nicely.

I also managed to get the previous day’s blog finished and posted.  It was not wasted time 🙂

I made my way to the gate for my 2:20pm flight and we waited and we waited and we waited some more and then we waited even more.  🙁

Finally, we were told there was going to be a gate change and we weren’t going to be taking off until 4:40pm :

After we boarded, and the captain came over the loudspeaker and told us that the plane we were originally due to be flying on had come to Sydney from Ballina.

On arrival, the pilot  that had flown her in had said to our pilot that the plane was a bit ” sketchy” 😱

Our pilot and copilot after checking out the said “sketchiness” of the plane,  decided that they were not going to fly it all the way to the Sunshine Coast and they would have to find another plane.

Even though we were just over two hours late, it was an uneventful flight until it dawned on me that we were late!  and my car was in the car park with an expected exit time of 6:30 PM  looking at my clock as we came over Brisbane. It was already 6:05.

I googled to see what happened if I overstayed my car park time and it appeared that I would be charged an extra 24 hours at the full rate of $69.  Ouch.

As we neared the Sunshine Coast, the pilot said that we should be landing sometime around 6:20 and I thought I might be really really lucky and perhaps be on time but I wasn’t holding out much hope. 🤞

We did in fact, touchdown at 6:18 and by the time the crew had done their paperwork and the doors opened. I was inside the terminal at 6:22.

I still did not hold out much hope that I would be able to get my suitcase and make it to the car in time for 6:30

But you wouldn’t believe it my bag was literally the first bag off the plane and onto the carousel. I grabbed my bag and just about ran (as much as I run 😃 ) to the car.

I threw my bag in the boot, jumped in the car and took off, probably quicker than I should have,  put my card in the boom gate and, low and behold, it was 6:27.

The boom gate opened and I was good to go. I couldn’t have planned it any closer.

From the airport, I had a good run home. M had the kettle on for me when I arrived,

I unpacked my suitcase,  threw a load of washing on, and that was it – my holiday was over.

Where to next?

Today is the day that I actually came to Melbourne for. It’s the day I have my 10:00am ticket for the French Impressionist Exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria as well as a link to the audio tour read by Julia Zemiro.

After an early night last night, I woke up quite early at 4:00 but thankfully managed to get back to sleep until just after 6 o’clock.

After shower and a cup of tea, I headed out towards the NGV. I was way too early so I went for a little bit of a one up Swanston Street and came across Brunetti’s

Well, of course it’s just not Melbourne without a visit to Bernetti’s, so I called in and got myself a raspberry danish and a cup of tea.

It is always a tough decision to choose what to have from Brunetti’s 🙂

Back to the art gallery, it was time to enter the exhibition.

I spent the next two hours happily wandering through the gallery and marvelling at the masterpieces hanging on the walls. This is what I call actual art. I honestly don’t get modern art at all, but these old masters really knew how to capture a moment.

^^ Art?  I think so  or..

Art?  Hmmm. I just don’t get it?  Apparently this is a “Dancing Pumpkin” ??

After , I stopped at the gift shop and purchased the accompanying book for the exhibition.

From the gallery, I walked along the river down Southbank and found a lovely little Italian restaurant and had a fabulous pasta for my lunch.

Then it was time to go back to the room and have a  nap after ringing M.

When I woke up, I made a cup of tea and decided that I did actually need something for dinner so I checked Google to see what was around me. There are lots of Asian restaurants at this end of town, but I didn’t really feel like that.

I did however find Bistro d’Paris just a short tram right away perfect after my French Impressionist day

A perfect meal of Scallops and Duck rounded out a great day

Back to the hotel to pack my bag and an early night ready for my flight home tomorrow.

I woke up this morning with a bit of a sleep in. When I looked at the clock, I was surprised to see that I had slept in until nearly 6 o’clock.

I got up, made a couple of tea, gave M a ring, had a shower, made my breakfast and got myself sorted for the day.

Today is the day that I had booked my Queen Victoria Market Foodie Tour, and I had to be at the market at 10 o’clock.

Thankfully, it was only a short 400 metre or so walk and it was easy enough to find the lady who was conducting the tour.

For the next two hours, we wandered around the markets, learning a lot of the history and the stories behind the stalls, behind the traders, and tasting food as we went along. The market really is quite huge, covering of an area of seven hectares and has been here since 1878.

If ever you’re in Melbourne, I would highly recommend the Queen Victoria Market Foodie tour.   Our guide was very knowledgable, having worked for the tour company for over 23 years, and it was quite it was fun to see the banter that she had with many of the stall owners.

As we walked around, we got taste testings of all sorts of different food. From breads to cheese and jams. To fresh oysters and sashimi salmon.

Finishing off with a fruit tasting and donuts to end the day.

I was certainly very impressed with the quality of the produce at the markets and the incredible low prices. It really was no dearer and often far cheaper than you would buy in the supermarkets.

I can see why Melbourneites love to shop here.

While on the tour, I took note of places where I could come back to and buy provisions for my dinner tonight.

And that’s what I did after the tour.

So for my dinner tonight, I have lamb cutlets with fresh vegetables.

One of the stalls we visited was a spice market, and I could see that they had all sorts of different herbs and spices.

So after I bought my lamb chops, I went back to that stall and spoke to the girl that we had seen earlier.

I told her I had bought  lamb chops and what herb or spice mix would be suitable. And she had, funnily enough, lamb spices. So that’s what I bought

From the spice stand, you could buy all their spices and herbs in whatever quantities you like. And the minimum was just 20 grams.

And that’s what I ended up getting. I had just over 20 grams, so she just charged me the minimum. Which was $1.20.

I can mix it with with some butter and that’s what I’ll cook the lamb chops in

My lamb chops cost me $12 for three beautiful cutlets. I spent $1.20 on a bunch of little heritage heirloom carrots. 20 cents for my three little tiny new potatoes and $2 for some snow peas

My dinner is going to be very tasty tonight.

After my shopping, I took everything back to the hotel, gave M a ring, and just had a little bit of a rest before heading out and just doing some exploring around the city.

Spending the next couple of hours just wandering around and finding amazing sites and historic buildings.

Places like the Block Arcade has been here since 1892, with its mosaic floors and beautiful ceilings, it really was quite amazing.

I also came across China Town.  I saw a man selling freshly roasted chestnuts.  I have never had a chestnut so I asked the man I could try one.   

He was lovely and gave me a fresh hot chestnut from the cooker.  I had to ask him how to eat it :).

You have to remove the skin first, which is quite hard to do, especially when they are HOT.   

The resulting nut is really good though.  Sort of sweet, creamy and “nutty”.   I did not buy any though as he was selling them in 250g and 500g tubs.

Heading back to the hotel. Heading back to my hotel, I got in just before five o’clock.

I certainly was not hot today. 16 and 17 degrees is not the weather to be wearing a woolen coat. So I really did need a shower when I got home.

I cooked my dinner ( it was delicious), gave M a ring, and had a quiet night, ready for the French Impressionists at the National Gallery tomorrow.

Sometimes you do need to improvise :). A metal colendar makes for a good steamer basket 🙂

I did need to cut the chops off the bone to fit them on the tiny plate.

I am all packed and ready to go.

I did not book business class flights and I know you often get the chance to bid for an upgrade.  I put in the lowest bid at $65 and got an email last night to say I had been successful!!  YAY.

(Whether I get an upgrade on the way home is yet to be determined 🙂  )

My flight leaves Maroochydore at 12:40 and arrives in Melbourne at 3:15pm

The weather in Melbourne is not even too bad.  Of course you never can tell in Melbourne, but 15-17 degrees is nice !!

I had a fairly full morning with some tasks at work before I was “allowed” to leave ( I would have been in all sorts of trouble if the wages didn’t get done 😀 )

Jobs done and it was off to the airport.  I left with plenty of time to spare as the motorway can be hit and miss for traffic.  Of course today there was hardly any traffic and I got to the airport with heaps of time to spare.

We boarded on time and I settled into seat 1D, accpeted the “obligitory” glass of sparkling wine and we were ready to go.   The flight attendand said they had seen whales on the way up from Sydney, but we did not see any on our trip.

I had a nice lunch of gnocci with chicken and tomato ragu.  Considering it had been so windy for the past few days, I was pleased to find clear skies and a smooth flight all the way to touchdown.

We duly arrived in Melbourne on time, I did not have to wait for my bag  another benefit of Business Class is that those bags come off first.

Bag collected and I walked outside and straight onto the SkyBus that would take me to Southern Cross Station in the city.

The SkyBus leaves every few minutes and you never have to wait long at all.

From Southern Cross Station, I “google mapped” (can that be a new verb? ) where my hotel was and where a Woolworths was in between. I wanted to buy a bottle of milk and half a dozen eggs for my breakfast

We have often been asked why don’t we go out for breakfast when we are on holidays?   Mostly, apart from the cost, we have found that most cafes don’t open early enough for us.  We are early risers and breakfast for us is usually around 6:00am.  Even on holidays we inevitably wake up early, and it is easy to knock up a cuppa and breakfast and ease into our days.

I was shown a Woollies just 200m away at the station and then I needed to get a tram then a sort 50m walk to the hotel.   It actually was as easy as I have made it sound.   I did ask a YarraTams man if I was on the correct side for the tram (I was  🙂 )

Before I got to the tram, I did need to take off my coat.  I thought this was going to happen, It was about 14 degrees, but with barely a breeze, and I already had a cardigan and t-shirt on so did not need more layers.

I found the hotel with no issues, checked in, had a look at the room, unpacked and headed around the corner to a pub/restaaunt I had seen.

I had a lovely dinner of steak, chips and salad with  a glass of wine.

After dinner, I went back to the hotel, had a shower and a cuppa nd fell into bed after a great day.

Tomorrow is my Queen Victoria Food tasting tour and then???  Who knows?  I am going to just wander around and find something.  🙂