Day 3 

Day 3 was our second day of our hop on hop off bus tour. One of the tour stops was at Queen Victoria market, which if you read my previous post, you will know that this was a short walk away from our hotel, and we had a previously unsuccessful trip there. So we decided that we would start our city tour from there and leave a bit earlier so we had time to check out the market beforehand.

It was closed. Again. Excellent. 

*Another note to future travellers, Queen Victoria Market is not open on a Monday* 

So we jumped on the bus (which being cruise ship day was very busy) and headed to our first stop. Melbourne Zoo. We were a little naive with the zoo, we thought we could go there and hold a koala, which was at the top of our trip wish list, and maybe even the only reason I came to Australia?Although the zoo does have an 'Australian animals' section. We could not see any koalas in their section, I'm pretty sure I was just looking at trees, and as for the the kangaroos, they were hiding at the back in the shade because they handle the sun worse than me. I did see a wombat though, but honestly who gets excited by a wombat? 

We did also see animals such as monkeys and lions, but to be fair, I could see them at Bristol Zoo, 1 hr away from home, so we didn't spend too much time there.
Disclaimer: The zoo is probably actually really fun, but I don't really like animals so I am just being a misery. 

Back on the bus, and this time we didn't even have a seat as it was so busy, and I had the pleasure of listening to the American tourists from the cruise moaning that they they didn't have a seat. Lucky me. Also we were starving, and conveniently heard the bus driver recommending Lygon Street, which is known as the Little Italy of Melbourne. Being a couple of Italian lovers we decided to check it out for lunch. We chose a restaurant called Tiamo, it was pretty busy but smelt amazing so I was sold. They managed to squeeze us in, and I'm so glad they did, because the food was delicious. I had a chilli and bacon spaghetti dish and it was SO good. We also had a raspberry lemonade which was also really tasty. Before we got back on the bus, we had a little wander around Lygon Street. There were lots of good looking restaurants, and a small selection of boutiques. Another pretty area of Melbourne that I would definitely recommend. 

We decided our next stop would be the Eureka Skydeck. This took us to floor 88 and supposedly the highest viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere (although we went on a tour boat later in the trip and they seemed to contradict this information). There views were incredible. Of course this was complimented by the amazing weather. You could see all of the city below, as well as the beaches and coastline. There was even a small area where you could stand outside. Being someone that doesn't love heights, this did turn my legs to jelly. I think I prefer to be behind the glass! There was also an option to pay extra and go and stand in a glass cube that sticks out the side of the building. I felt that was more something I preferred to watch others do. 

I would love to go back and visit the Skydeck at night, as I think the views would be equally as fabulous. Unfortunately Hollie and I had some troubles staying awake at night so that was never going to happen. 

Another attraction we decided to visit was the Melbourne Star observation wheel - this is like a smaller version of the London Eye. However, when we arrived on the bus, it seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, almost seemed to be in an industrial estate, and we were unsure how we would have any good views from this location. So we decided to give that one a miss. I later discussed this with a friend that used to live in Melbourne, and she completely agreed and said it was a strange location and wouldn't recommend it - so I'm glad we made that decision.

Instead, we decided to sit through the whole city bus tour again, as we had been on such busy buses all day, we hadn't heard any of the commentary. Luckily the cruise ship had departed so it was nice and quiet, and a very relaxing and informative trip. So relaxing that the bus driver forgot we were on board and almost took us back to the St Kilda depot as he didn't notice us trying to get off!

Day 4 

Our final attempt at Queen Victoria Market and it was finally open! It was so big, and much better than the market in St Kilda. The market sold a variety of different things, clothes, jewellery, luggage, Ugg boots etc and was where we bought our Melbourne souvenirs as they had a great selection and they were so much cheaper than the shops (sorry Mum, I've got so many fridge magnets)! The market also had a huge food section, and had I had more money I could have spent a lot! I found out after our visit that they actually do a food tour here which I will be doing if I ever return. 

We headed back to the hotel to freshen up and do some laundry, and this is when we had the dreaded power cut. It was actually a bit unnerving being so high up, and not really knowing what was going on (there was a point where I did have my face pressed against the window just checking people weren't running out the building below), so we decided to head to the park to get some sun for a while hoping it would be fixed shortly. When I say get some sun, obviously I hid in the shade whilst Hollie laid out in the middle of the park. On the way out of the hotel, we bumped into some staff who told us that it was just a power cut and shouldn't be too long. However when we got back, it was not fixed and we were still unable to use the lift. 12 flights of steps later and I was, for the second time on this trip, almost dead. 

Our afternoon activity was a boat trip down the River Yara, this was another guided tour. We chose the Docklands route as this was through the city. It was another beautiful relaxing trip. Docklands is an amazing and modern area full of very expensive/dreamy looking properties both apartment blocks and houses. There were also some very expensive looking yachts. It was basically my dream place to live, so if anyone wants to fund that...?

End of blog.
 (Just clarifying for my friend, JP, who commented that part one ended too abruptly - sorry if anyone else felt the same way)

We chose to spend our first day of our bus ticket exploring St Kilda as we had seen an advert for the Esplanade market which is held every Sunday. The market was more of an arty market, and although the artwork was very good and nice to look at – it was very much out of our price range and not really what we were looking for in a market. Also I think airport security may have had an issue with me trying to get a didgeridoo through. 

There was also a couple of food stands at the end which smelt delicious. 

We walked to the end and then walked back along the beach. It was a fairly busy beach, as it was a very hot day! Along the beachfront there are a selection of restaurants. 

St Kilda is also home to Melbourne’s Luna Park, and was full of tourists like myself taking photos at the iconic entrance.  

We spent about an hour walking around St Kilda, and then hopped back on the bus in search of a lunch spot. We headed to Bay Street which was a couple of stops later, and found a bar to get a burger and chips. The first of many burgers. The street was had a big selection of food establishments. 

After a further journey on the bus, we were back in Federation Square. We spotted a lot of tourists loitering in nearby alleyways, so we decided to see what they were looking at. The alleyways were covered with graffiti and some of it was very impressive artwork. There was even an artist there 'graffiti-ing' whilst we strolled through. If I had longer in Melbourne (and it wasn't so hot) I would love to do a street art tour. There are many walking tours available throughout the city which all look really interesting and have great reviews. 

Our final stop of the day was H&M where I finally got myself a much needed handbag - yay! H&M in Melbourne is their Australian flagship store, and  is probably the prettiest H&M store I have ever seen. The building it is has a very historic appearance. It is located in Melbourne GPO which is right next to Bourke Street Mall. 

To end the day we headed back to the hotel, and were probably asleep by about 8pm - living the wild life. 

You know those moments in life, when you just sit and think - of course this happened to me. That basically happened continuously on my journey to Australia. 

It started nicely. We stopped in a nice American Diner on the 303 and ate hotdogs and drank coffee. I was nervous but excited. 

We arrived at Heathrow, London at around 3pm - a nice 5 hours early because I thought I was super organised. As I got out the car, I got that horrible sinking feeling in my stomach as I realised I had forgotten my handbag. It's not quite as bad as it sounds. My passport and money were all in my hand luggage - my handbag just contained my phone charger, physio kit, and the bigger problem - my driving licence. 

*Cue the airport melt down*

Normally it wouldn't really be a problem, however with a camper van rental a week away, a driving licence is quite important. Instantly my trip had started badly. I was SO annoyed with myself. I had been planning this all year, and writing packing lists for months and I still forget something so important. 

Hollie - my travelling partner, arrived at about 5.30pm and as my luggage was checked in at 0.6kg below the limit - result, we said our family goodbyes (obviously a bit more crying at this point - this was actually just me. Crying. Again.) and headed into the departure lounge in the search of a new handbag. 

Apparently Heathrow Terminal 4 only caters for the rich though, and my £50 budget could have potentially bought me a zip. I genuinely found a bag that was perfect, and it was priced at £49.99 and as I was heading to the counter to make a purchase I realised I would literally just be buying the keyring attached to it. (Note: Don't worry, I got a handbag in Melbourne).

As we boarded the plane, all was good. Our seats were good - well they weren't first class or anything, but good for economy. We headed off on time, and were told our flight time would be shorter than expected - excellent start. 

The first journey seemed really draining. I'm not sure if this is because I was already emotionally ruined, or because we were flying at night. I watched Four Weddings and a Funeral - because at 26 years old I hadn't actually seen it. And as the tiredness kicked in, this turned into Friends episodes because I completely didn't need to concentrate on them. 

I started to feel a bit weird as we landed at Abu Dhabi airport, but I put it down to tiredness - it probably was genuinely tiredness but who knows. About an hour into the flight mid-snooze I suddenly woke up with horrendous stomach ache feeling like I was about to be sick, and I was dripping with sweat (sorry for the gory deets) I headed to the back to ask the cabin crew for some water and they looked at me like I was an alien. To be fair, I had my eye mask on top of my head so my hair was sticking upright, and I possibly looked like I was melting. They gave me a huge bottle of water and told me that if I was ill they would have to 'report me to Australia'. Cool. Was I about to end up in quarantine with the dogs? 

So I went back to my seat and basically died for 7 hours.

When I woke up I had somehow made a miraculous recovery (well, that's what I told the cabin crew). I ate some vanilla bread and watched Three Billboards (which was actually pretty good - disappointing ending though). I got a bit stroppy because the kids behind me were constantly crying and kicking my seat - but all was fine. Another 5 hours had passed - this time with the help of Meredith Grey, and finally we had arrived in Melbourne. 

This was really great, until my brand new suitcase finally turned up broken, with a massive crack and a nice dent in it. 

.......

Shout out to Etihad/Heathrow/Abu Dhabi for their top notch baggage handling.

The happy ending of this story is that when we arrived at our hotel (1 bus and a 20 min uphill walk with a 22.4kg case), 6 hours early, the guy took one look at me, and let us check in early. 

I went straight to bed.

San Miguel de Salinas is a small Spanish town very near to the Torrevieja. (Apparently its not the place where the beer is from, I checked.)

One of the really cool things about this place, is that some of the residents live in cave houses in the centre of the town. According to the restaurant website (yeah, i do my research) the caves were used as homes back in the 1500's due to the lack of materials in the area to build proper homes. Admittedly it it's not very picturesque. In fact it all looks a bit run down from the outside. But that's kind of what makes the town pretty. It has character. 

One of the caves has been converted into a restaurant. With the very imaginative name of Las Cuevas. Which if you can't guess, translates to 'The Caves'. 

The place is beautifully decorated, and the staff were very friendly. Although the town seems very traditionally Spanish, they spoke good English, and the menus are translated into a few different languages. 

There is two sections to Las Cuevas. The restaurant and the Tapas Bar. We went to the Tapas Bar, although to me, it was still a restaurant. 

The menu was excellent, and I struggled to pick. There had a selection of 'Special Dishes', which were meals for those who may not want Tapas. My Tapas experience had previously only been '3 for £10' ready meals from Tesco, so I was keen to give it a go. I ended up picking 5 dishes, because someones got to be the pig. The waitress did even say 'wow, you're hungry' whilst I was ordering. Awkward. 

When we arrived they put a sampler on the table for us when they delivered our drinks. I'm not 100% sure what she said, as I was pretty lost in the menu trying to get my choice of 10 dishes down to something a little more acceptable/affordable. I believe it was some kind of seafood salad. Whatever it was it was yummy, and did not help me with my menu situation. 

Eventually I decided on meatballs, ravioli, a mushroom dish, nachos, and my experiment of the night, octopus! I was pretty much in food heaven. Each dish was delicious, and I can confirm I am a fan of octopus. They were all pretty much 1 person sized dishes, although the mushrooms and the nacho's could have been shared (if you're not a little piglet like myself). 

The prices average at around €4-5 per dish, which I thought was very reasonable. 

The evening was my favourite meal of the whole holiday, and I would love to go back and try some more of the dishes. I would definitely recommend it to any one who may be visiting the area. 

We did book a table, however there were plenty available. Saying this however, there was a fiesta taking place in San Miguel on this evening, so this may have affected the amount of diners that evening. It may normally be packed.