A Night Away in our Own City

We have just returned home after a very decadent twenty four hours away just in Melbourne, our own city.

Aiming for a quick break, we checked into a city hotel yesterday and had a very leisurely time strolling through the city. We did a little shopping but the biggest attraction was the Myer Store Christmas Windows. Myer have been dressing their windows fronting Bourke Street with a Christmas theme since 1956.

This year, the windows are based around a children’s book by the American author and Illustrator Jan Brett. In the story, they main character is looking for friends and happens across a bakery, where he dances and prances in front of a sugar cookie girl, trying to make friends. But she just stares and doesn’t say a word, like all the other sweet treats he tries to meet. Discouraged, the Gingerbread Baby runs home, chased by a long line of hungry creatures , where a surprise awaits him – many gingerbread friends that fill a giant fold-out page.

It was hard to take good pictures with the crowds and all the reflections. but this is my best shot at the first window.

IMG 0908

At dinner, we were able to enjoy a very pleasant meal and a glass, or two ,of wine without any of the worries about having to drive home. We only had to find the lift to the 11th floor!

This morning, we caught a couple of trams to the tall Eureka Tower (Melbourne’s tallest building at 297 metres). This is the second tallest building in Australia. The sky deck observation floor on the 88th floor offers 360 degree views of the city and across the suburbs. It is a little daunting with its floor ceiling windows, but the views on a clear day are fantastic. It is possible to go out on to the open air terrace on calm days and be able to take photos without reflections from the glass.

P1000422

P1000467

P1000439

P1000456

Bruce

Bruce is a keen traveller and photographer. This web site describes his travel and family interests

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Every Day Life

We’ve Seen Works by the World’s Top Selling Female Artist

The National Gallery of Victoria is currently holding an exhibition of the works of a famous Japanese artist. We gained a large dose of ‘culcha’ when we visited her exhibition today. It is so large that it takes up the whole ground floor of the gallery and is presented in two parts. Yayoi Kusama is […]

Read More
Every Day Life

Coffee Encounters

One of my enduring memories of my service in Vietnam is that of being in a convoy way out in the boondocks resupplying a forward operation. There in the middle of nowhere, and in a potentially dangerous location, was an Australian Salvation Army Officer and his Landrover ready to serve us a cup of hot […]

Read More
Every Day Life New Zealand

Over the Haast Pass to NZ’s West Coast

We had about 275 kilometres to travel today but we were not rushed and today’s drive felt very comfortable and relaxed. Perhaps it was the coffee in Wanaka that we waited 20 minutes to get. The young barista in the cafe was working hard and she had our coffees up as fast as she could […]

Read More