Melbourne Holiday - Shopping

No holiday is complete without some shopping.... so I must share some of our shopping done there ....!

As we were not on tour but free and easy and staying with my siblings, we move around and shop like the locals and not at tourist places.

We somehow like to go to their supermarkets like Coles and look at their products and we did so upon arrival and a few more visits to their different branches to look for specific coffee flavours.....!

We like their Jarrah Coffee and normally take it at least twice a day there especially during winter and we have no problem sleeping even if we took it in the late afternoon or evening. I think the hot coffee went well with the cold there......?

We bought 4 different flavours home and put them in the fridge as it does not like our hot weather and the coffee powder will become clumpy.

We also saw Tim Tam biscuits and since they were on offer and the packaging make them easy to share with friends ( like Kit Kat chocolate bar ) , we bought quite a no. of boxes.

While shopping in Coles, we also came across these coffee capsules that are for our coffee maker and they are 50% cheaper so we bought several boxes of different flavours.

We also like their varieties of cornflakes, muffins and crumpets and we bought them for our breakfast too. 

Then my brother introduced a pack of Macadamia nuts to us and we went looking for it at the Vietnamese shops in Springvale when we went there for our noodles ( we have yet to come across good Vietnamese noodles in Spore, so far ). They are made in Australia. In the big pack are small bars like that of the Tim Tams or Kit Kat chocolate.

When we were at the departure lounge in the Melb - Tullamarine airport, we bought 4 small packets of nougat on offer since we still have some room for them in our hand luggage.

Pamphlets are distributed on every Thu to the homes to publicise their special offers in the coming weekend. We enjoying reading them and that's how we found a pair of boots on offer and went to look for it for Lai Meng.

We found this pair of advertised boots at their outlet in Frankston while shopping with my sister there over the weekend.

I was looking for a SD card wallet and saw this advertisement by Office Works and we went to look for it, including the 16GB Thumb drive as they are cheap even compared to Spore pricing. I am so happy to have found the SD card wallet as I could not find something here that meet my needs and budget...!

Finally, we were also very successful when we went shopping at Direct Factory Outlet (DFO) in Moorabbin. These are typically branded stuff that are sold at a discount.

I bought a light fleece jacket with a hoody, something that I wanted so that I can carry it easily when flying or going out to a cold place like the cinema in Spore.

I also bought this reversible jacket at Giordano in DFO since I like the design and colour and the price was right. I doubt I could get something like this in Spore or not at this price.

Both Lai Meng and my sister bought this pink jacket as it was on sale for A$20 only...!!!

One of the reasons we decided to buy a new jacket each was that we keep wearing the same ones for our holidays and we looked the same in our photos taken in Korea, Japan and Australia. Since the varieties and fashion are plentiful in DFO and the prices were affordable too, we thought it is a good idea to buy some new warm clothing or jackets.

Well, staying with my siblings and living with the locals is definitely different from a holiday tour where u spend most to the time sight-seeing and going to tourist places to shop and eat. Also, living out from the suitcases and sleeping late but waking up early if on holiday tour..... sigh

We have been to Melb so many times ( since Jason was 1 year old, we were flying there almost every year so that he could get to know his cousins there until Year 2000, the change of century, and when he started schooling ) and have seen most of the popular sights, maybe more than once too, so we normally go for free and easy stay esp in Melbourne.

Melbourne City

During our recent holidays in Melbourne, we decided to take a train to the city on our own to have a quick look since we were there 6 years ago.

The transport system now uses a myki system, similar to our MRT travel card, that can be used for train and tram and bus too. We were passed 2 myki cards by a friend who just visited Melb a few weeks ago.

We sought help from the train station to top-up the myki cards and off we went for a day trip to the city.

( Pls note that you are supposed to tap the cards when you entered the station as we forgot to do so and there was no barrier to prevent you from entry...!!! There was a machine for you to tap your card but no turnstile to regulate your entry. We have problem getting out at the station in the city and the staff let us through without checking our cards and said that they should be good and no worries, typical Aussie style. )

We decided to stop at Melb Central station instead of the well known Flinders Station as it was linked to shopping malls and within walking distance to the Victoria Market.

A typical train station in the open, it was a rare sunny but windy day that week so it was an ideal day to go to the city.

The tower and big clock are still there in Melb Central but the Japanese Daimaru has closed their business and taken over by many small shops and food outlets including a food court.

We rushed to Victoria Market as they are closing at 2pm on Tue. Nothing much have changed but a few new stalls operated by Chinese from China selling mobiles accessories. Since we have been to the market a few times during our past visits, we did not really have the thrill to buy souvenirs like items from there but just to re-visit the place only.

Our nephew recommended us to have our lunch at Grill'd restaurant in Melb Central so we gave it a try. The meat in the burgers were good esp the lamb and the fries were huge and very tasty too!

We went to look at the new shopping mall called the Emporium. The malls are all connected by enclosed walkways.

 

 

Found the 1st Uniqlo outlet in Melbourne in Emporium.

 

 

We left the City around 4pm after checking out the shopping malls but we did not have anything in mind to buy as we have bought our new warm jackets at the Direct Factory Outlet (DFO) in Moorabbin, on the way to my sister's home in Pearcedale.

 

( BTW, there is a DFO at the edge of the City too, DFO South Wharf is located at 20 Convention Centre Place in South Wharf , directly next to Melbourne Convention Centre. )

 

 

New Holland Honeyeater Bird

During our visit to the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens in Victoria - Australia, we were lucky to have this New Hollander Honeyeater bird posing for us in the gardens there.

My sister was telling me that when the garden is crowded and children running around, you would not see them.

I was taking photos from a distance with my new zoom lens bought for travel and Lai Meng was taking photos with her iPhone. We got quite a few good photos with our cameras.

This is how far we were from the bird and we have to keep as still as possible so as to let it get used to our presence. I was standing behind my wife and zooming into the bird.

I was very happy with the photos as they came out pretty sharp and I was not using a tripod. The sky was cloudy so it was not really in my favour too.

Melbourne Holiday - Cranbourne Botanic Gardens

We visited the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens on a Sunday, have lunch there first before we explore the gardens.

The garden was established in 1970 and contains one of Victoria's most precious areas of native bushland and is home to an amazing range of plants and animal life.

http://www.visitmelbourne.com/Regions/Melbourne/Activities-and-attractions/Nature-and-wildlife/Parks-and-gardens/Royal-Botanic-Gardens-Cranbourne.aspx for more details

I took about 300+ photos with my DSLR and my wife took about 100+ just with her iPhone camera.... during the few hours there...!!!

Here are some photos, enjoy ...

A bit of drizzle so the hood came out to cover the head

 

 

Looks like the face of owls....?

 

These are called Black Boys....!

The gardens are very near to Pearcedale where we were staying at my younger sister's home for the weekend.

Melbourne Holiday - Sorrento

After the weekend market at Rye, we drove to Sorrento for lunch..... a tourist spot, apparently.

A small little town with trees and car park in the middle of the road.

 

Scenic drive out of Sorrento ....

 

I was taking some photos of the jetty by the beach but these 3 seagulls flew in and posed for me...... lovely...!

 

You can get an idea on how cold the weather was though the sun was out, by looking at this photo of a couple all wrapped up in a blanket and having a picnic by the beach....  Their idea of being romantic on a Saturday afternoon...! The view of the blue sea and sky was lovely though it was cold.......!

 

This map gives you an idea on how far we drove that Sat, from late morning to late afternoon. We started from Pearcedale and drove along the beach to Rye, which is after Rosebud. Then to Sorrento for lunch and drove back to Frankston, along the M11 highway, for some shopping therapy.

Shopping at Frankston and LM bought a pair of boots that was on sale......! I bought a hiking or walking stick from Katmandu too ....! It was warmer in the shopping malls  so we took off our jackets.
It was an enjoyable day ....!!!

Melbourne Holiday - Weekend Market at Rye

My younger sister drove us to Rye to have a look at the weekend market by the beach but though it was quite sunny but the wind was very strong and cold so only 50% of the stalls were put up.

We stopped to have a look at the rough sea below..... it was cold and cloudy then.

This Dog Wash is next to a Car Wash..... so you can give your dog a bath while your car is being washed.......!

This is the weekend market at Rye beach. The 2 ladies at the extreme are Lai Meng and my sister, Wei. I was exploring the beach and turned around to take a photo with my zoom lens at 250mm.

The stall owners would drive their cars or vans and occupy a designated area to showcase their products and sell them.

This woman takes her own photos around the Mornington Peninsula and made them into cards for sale. We bought a few of her cards and asked her to have a photo taken with LM, she was very nice and friendly. Her work is very professional and I bought her cards to inspire me since I myself is keen on photography.

It was sunny but very cold strong winds from the beach so I put on my hoody to cover my head when I saw the locals doing that too.... ha.... ha.....

We bought 2 pots of plants before we left from a woman with Asian background but speaks with a very strong Aussie ascent. She was very nice and friendly too.