Shopping Day

Chad at the entrance of Luna Park.

Today we went to the markets. First the Maker's markets, then the Vic Markets, next the St. Kilda markets. At the St. Kilda Markets we went to Luna Park. I went on some pretty cool rides. After that we ate and went home.

Weather: It was warm and sunny.


Pam/Mom says:

Yes, it was a tortorous day for Chad. Lots of shopping to be done. The Maker's Mkts were great - lots of quality crafts and some with an Australian theme. Vic Markets not so great. Endless rows of merchandise in no apparent order w/treasures mixed in, if you had the patience. We didn't, it was hot & crowded. So after lunch we headed out to St. Kilda's Mkts., they were great, too. I'm regretting not buying more & getting there earlier to see more of the booths. St. Kilda's is a beach area & it was packed b/c it was a beautiful day. We took Chad to Luna Park which is a small amusement park. It was here I discovered my favorite Australian word, "Fairy Floss" which is cotton candy. I think it is such a more magical word to describe eating pure sugar. I vow to use it from this day forward. We then headed to dinner which was a trial in itself. Amanda wanted Mexican, but we couldn't find the restaurant she knew of. The nearby Mexican restaurant was not basic enough for Chad. So we decided to pop into a book store & look up some reviews. We chose a spot nearby & immediately left upon seeing brains on the menu. So we picked a nice Italian spot down the street. Then I bought some delicious pastries to take back for dessert & breakfast. The place used lots of rhubarb and it was all good.

A word on food in Australia, it's not very different from here. It definitely has an English & Asian influence. But oddly, no oatmeal for breakfast. Sometimes, they'd serve cold muesli in milk that had been soaking for awhile - very unappealing. They have meat pies and sausage rolls for take away that are quite good. They have plenty of coffee shops, but no 1 carries their coffee around. I think they must just down the scalding liquid right in the shop. And the apples are all very small. The chocolate is excellent and plentiful. Pavlova was created in Australia.

Politics: It was quite surreal to be away from home for such a huge election. We went to bed on Tues night & the 1st American poll hadn't even closed yet. I've traveled a bit and I was usually chagrinned at how much other people know about US politics and I often couldn't name their president, prime minister, king, etc or even the type of leader. And in the past, many had an opinion regarding Americans. But, this was unbelievable. People were as fascinated/obsessed as Americans were. At the time of the election, we were still in Sydney & we ate breakfast & dinner there in the Exec Lounge. Many of the conversations there were all about McCain & Obama. One man actually told me, he thought the Obama/Clinton primary was more interesting and a better race. I was astounded. Who follows other countries' primaries?! People would actually offer me their opinion on the election, once they realized I was American. I missed both the acceptance & concession speeches, but plan on YouTubing them.