First impressions

On first impressions, Melbourne reminds me of Vancouver. The roads are wide and open, the centre of the city has both tourists and locals mingling continuously and everything appears to be very people-friendly. The parks and streets are all clean and wide, and there seems to be endless space – even living close to the centre of Melbourne wouldn’t be as claustrophobic as living anywhere in London – or anywhere inside the M25!

 

The price of petrol, 114.9, is incredible compared to the prices in the south-east of England; but public transport is so extensive that it really just becomes choice whether to drive, catch a tram or bus, or even to walk on the wide, clean, flat pavements! Although I have been in a car very little the past few days, the driving style is noticeably different. With wider roads, you’d expect it to be much more relaxed, but drivers are more assertive, although for the most part, polite.

 

My house is beautiful. Although relatively old, it is well kept with high ceilings in all the rooms, bright and clear lighting, and – something I have missed considerably – a tiled bathroom! I never did understand the carpeted bathrooms in England. We have a separate laundry room, a paved small garden (a sacrifice we make for being close to the city) and even a cat hole in the bathroom. (There is a cat flap, but without the flap, hence a cat hole.) The house is quite large considering it’s location, and despite comments from my house mates about it being on the small side, I am pretty sure it’s larger than my family home in England, even taking into account the extra bedroom. The other thing I’ve noticed so far, is the fly-screen on the front door; there was simply no use for them in England.

 

Although still recovering from jetlag, I’ve been for a walk to the city and had my first Australian barbeque (with noticeably better meat than found in Tesco). By calendar, it is the beginning of spring, and daily it reaches approximately 20 degrees, so similar to what I was experiencing in the current English anti-summer. However, with colder nights, no central heating and considerable jetlag, I am feeling the cold much more that I ought to be! There’s also quite a breeze coming through sometimes, which makes it seem even colder.

 

The internet has just been set up in the house (literally, now), but having forgotten my adaptor, this laptop is just about to run out of battery (while I’ve drafted this entry). So, hopefully I shall obtain an adaptor today, and will be uploading this and probably many other entries in the near future!