Melbourne 1

Busy day. We arrived in Melbourne and went to the Queen Victoria Markets. I wouldn't have chosen it, but we did get lunch and I bought some new jumpers. Then we went to a place that did optical illusions. You just stood in a certain part of the room in front of a picture while someone else took a photo from a designated point. No photo shopping. It was very clever (as you can see from one of the many examples I have posted). After this, the boys and I went and played snooker for a couple of hours while the girls did something else. We ended up at a nice place in Fitzroy on the advice of my friend Micheal. One of the best things about snooker/pool halls is their atmosphere (dark and quiet), which was just what I needed after all the running around. Not that we were done. After dinner we went to the Australian Open tennis. We saw a mixed doubles match featuring a couple of Australians (Gadecki and Peers) who won, and then a junior match featuring Lleyton Hewitt's son, who also won. It was interesting to observe what a different demographic it is from the sports we usually attend. Obviously a much higher demographic than league or soccer. More similar to the members at the scg, but much much softer and happier in tone, (possible because instead of being 90% male it is 60% female). For example, we had a group of girls in front of us who periodically broke into song: "If you're Aussie and you know it clap your hands.....". Anyway, it is a good day out and I'd like to go again when it isn't a rushed last minute idea. Fortunately Melbourne is a bit more relaxed than Sydney. Not quite as much traffic, and parking is much cheaper and easier. Now we've left, and have just arrived at Phillip Island for a few days.