Melbourne is known for it’s cafe culture and laneways so it was a coffee shop in a laneway where we decided to have breakfast. On the walk over, Vanessa, Danielle and I stopped in at Max Brenners to get a hot chocolate since none of us can walk past that store without buying something. We decided that on the way back we’d make some non liquid purchases and chased to catch up with the crew that had gone ahead.
It was kind of chilly in the laneway but it was somehow relaxing even with all the people and cafe staff running around. We took up two tables and since I’d already eaten my Tony Ferguson shake I just had a coffee. Our table had an animated discussion about dinner plates and the fact that I had been shopping for some for over two years. Since the food took so long to come out and check out time was nearing I decided to take off on my own and do some last minute shopping. Of course that involved looking at dinner plates in David Jones but once again I didn’t find anything that worked for me. In fact the last time I bought a dinner set was when the first Big Brother in Australia was shown because we saw the mugs on tv!
Cutting through David Jones I ended up in Melbourne Central where I found a lot of the sneaker stores I’d google earthed but luckily they had nothing that caught my eye. I also found a different Max Brenner store to the one we’d bought hot chocolate from so I picked up some gifts for the folks at home. My best purchase for myself was the candied apple cinnamon white chocolate – just like an apple pie but the size of a peanut. $18 for not much but so satisfying you only really need one a day. The store had a bunch of chocolate vats that had pipes leading to the hot chocolate machines. I asked if they really worked and the staff exchanged a look and said no. I could tell that they get asked that question a lot and made a comment to that effect. They said they sometimes said yes, sometimes said no. Either way it looked cool.
Nearing 11am I walked up the street to make it to the hotel just as the taxi arrived. It was great timing and I was surprised to see everyone there too – before me! We piled in to the taxi – I was impressed because it fit all 9 of us and the luggage. The driver took us the back way to the airport which was picturesque if not a little worrying since we didn’t go on the freeway once. The fare was reasonable when split between the group.
The airport and flight was the usual uneventful flying experience and before we knew it we were standing in arrivals saying goodbye to the group. Vanessa went first since Cameron was kind enough to pick her up while the rest of us waited for Andrews Airport Parking to pick us up. The first group left when the first van arrived which left me, Danielle, Bood and Mel to be the last to go. Danielle’s car was happily waiting for us when we got to the carpark so within minutes were on our final ride for the trip. Sensing that none of us really wanted it to end and also being starved we decided to stop in at McDonalds for a cheeseburger and summation. We all generally agreed that we had a great time and the main thing I learned was that in a big group you should decide on the restaurant you are going to eat at before you go to dinner.
I actually suffered a little post holiday depression since I enjoyed this holiday so much and I’d be glad to do something similar again. Good times – especially when I relived the experience eating the chocolate for weeks afterwards:
For more photos, check out the Day 5 Photo Gallery.