I just had a great weekend in Melbourne. I enjoyed the architecture and landscaping of the city and the way the city seems to have pride in itself. Sydney seems to have a sharper edge to it, but the buildings seem to blend a traditional style with a contemporary one. It seems to be a blend of Boston, D.C., and a European city. I quite liked it.
On the first day, Maryann collected me at the airport and then I met her husband, Rodney. Maryann is a professor at Monash University and Rodney is one of the principal founders of Tract, a landscape engineer. His work is seen all over Australia. We went to Romeo’s for an Italian dinner where we met their sons, Adam and Bennett, and their girlfriends.
On the next morning, I walked my 10,000 steps by leaving Toorak via William Street and following Alexandra to the athletic domes. It was quite a compelling cityscape at which to marvel as one walks along the esplanade. I could not resist the Botanical Gardens. When I finished the walk, we went into town by bus and tram. We looped the CBD (Central Business District) and visited some of the main sites of Melbourne. We went by the regal Parliament House, the Catholic Cathedral, and then went into a Sofitel hotel (Telstra building) where we could get a bird’s eye view of the city.
We then took the tram to the Docklands and walked along the areas of new construction. We passed by Channel 7’s offices right in front of the new sports stadium. The area is newly developed and will soon be connected with the new and popular Harbourtown shopping area. At one of the local restaurants, we had the tastiest coffee, coffixx, which was like drinking a meal. Mmmm. To top off a great day, Maryanne cooked a tasty lamb meal that complement our consumption of red wine very well.
The following morning we went to Mass at St. Peter’s in Toorak. Fr. Brendan Hayes studies at Weston Jesuit so we knew a lot of the same people. After coffee, we set out for their Wye River estate on the Great Ocean Road. We stopped at Freshwater Café that makes original desserts and homemade meat pies.
As we passed Anglesea, where the Jesuits I later learned have a villa, we spotted a pack of at least 20 kangaroos grazing on the bluff. We passed through the hopping town of Lorne. Since it was the Queen’s Birthday holiday, many families spent their weekend at the coastal towns.
I was amazed at the nearness of the koalas in the gum trees at their house at Wye River. They are difficult to spot unless your eye is trained to see them, but they make this most incredible noise. It sounds as if motorcycles are revving their engines a few miles away, but it is the koalas keeping in touch with the others who are nearby.
After sipping some Sevenhill Fine Tawny Port, we went to the local pub for a meal, and returned home for some more port as we watched the 1997 classic film, “Castle.”
The next morning, Rodney cooked a deliciously-prepared French style eggs with bacon and we headed back to Melbourne via Torquay, the surfing capital of Australia. On the drive back, we were initially elated then very worried about the Boston Celtics. They were playing Game 5 of the NBA Championship and were leading by twelve with three minutes to play. We called their son Bennett to check the score and he said he would call when the game was finished. We waited half an hour for those three minutes to be played and we hadn’t heard an update. Finally, we had to call and Bennett said the game just finished with the Celtics winning by six points. Kobe had an amazing game, but Pierce put the team on his shoulders. The Celtics can win it all next game – quite an amazing feat. Maryann recorded the game so we decided to watch it when we returned home. We fast-forwarded through all the commercials and we were riveted as the game wound down to two minutes. At that moment, the recording finished and we were stunned. We felt cheated, but the Celtics won and all was right in the universe.
From there we drove to Xavier Catholic School in Hawthorne/Kew and saw where Bob Stewarts clothing is located. We drove to Richmond, a tony suburb, and we saw a plaque that denoted where Mother Mary MacKillop once lived. At that point it was time for me to return to Sydney. I blessed the house (and earlier on, the house on Wye River) and I had to leave some good friends. I had such a pleasant time and it seems as if Maryann and Rodney have been my friends for a long, long time. They at least will be. And yet, I also enjoyed returning home to Canisius College in Pymble.
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