Justus In The World

Here are a few thoughts from the first week spent in Melbourne, my new home in the southern hemisphere where it's currently a hot summer and the life is golden.

Melbourne is a large city with a small city vibe.  Everyone loves it here and knows most of the suburbs and feels that a 30 minute bike ride is just fine and almost normal.  Pretty flat out, so it's easy traveling, and people are fine with going wherever to hang out with people.  The tricky part is finding the right street as Melbourne likes to use the same street names all over.  And the street names are often the same as other cities or suburbs.  For instance, the main street in Fitzroy is called Brunswick, which happens to be one of the big suburbs just above Fitzroy.  There is also a Fitzroy St in Fitzroy, and a Victoria Street in almost every suburb.  I've been to the wrong address just once because of being given the wrong address, going to Berkeley St instead of Barkley street, although there are multiple of both.  Just learning my way around and enjoying it.

Melbourne is famous for its weather and so far, I've been treated to fine examples of the good/bad and in between.  To go from 41 degrees Celsius (over 100 Fahrenheit) this past Sunday to mid 20s the next day (70s) is just standard business down here.  But mostly, it's been great summer weather and I'm definitely enjoying being able to wear different clothes than the jeans, pullover and jacket from the last couple months of travels through winter in Europe and Morocco. 

There is always something fun going on in this city.  Too many good options and I'm meeting some amazing people out there.  Highlights include watching The Princess Bride out in the park with over 100 people, exploring new cafes and trying out the coffee roasteries, live music all the time and of course watching my Seahawks win the Super Bowl on Monday morning.

Amazing Chicken & Waffles

12th Man and an upset Peyton Manning

I've cheered for the Seahawks since moving to Portland in 2002, since both my LA teams left me by the time I was 11.  It's been a great last few years with Pete Carroll taking over and getting the team on the right track.  I watched the Super Bowl with several other travelers at a bar, cheering loudly from the beginning, a 10:30am Monday morning kickoff.  Amazingly fun as a Seahawks fan to watch them play great football on both sides.  I was mighty happy, even more so when I ordered Chicken & Waffles, which brought back good memories of southern US food.  Amazing start to the day!

Hope all is well with everyone.  I'm not exactly a tourist/traveler any more, so the blog might not be updated as often, but never fear, the adventures continue and the life is golden.