3. Food and Wine for the Soul

Ya’ll know I had to mention this one. I couldn’t imagine a life without taste buds. Australia has much to offer in cuisine. Many people from all corners of the world have made this country their home and as a result it has food from the various countries. Indian, Moroccan, Filipino, Korean, Chinese, American, Irish, etc. etc., name it they have it. For such a small city, in comparison to some of ours in the states, they have made little districts a cultural hub. There are many Italian restaurants in Carlton, Chinese restaurants in Chinatown of the Central Business District (CBD), American influence is heavy as there are Micky D’s, a 7-11, KFC, Hungry Jack’s (aka Burger King) near every corner and Irish Pub’s scattered around. But the best part of all the places to eat is that many are not chain restaurants. Family restaurants are prevalent and owners work in the places they have built. They are all very personable unlike a lot of the places we have in VA. Don’t get me wrong, I love some of the chains we have like BRAVO’s, Cheesecake Factory, and P.F. Chang’s but there’s something about the owner putting their own hands to work. The staff knows the regulars and relationships quickly form. I’ve had the privilege of eating at one of the top restaurants in Melbourne if not in the country called Rock Pool. The lobster as my entrée, steak for my main (grain fed) along with side dishes to share with the group, and mango sorbet as dessert. After all the courses and wine, I don’t think I could have fit anything else inside of me. A very satisfactory experience and delicious food! Although the food and wine selection was excellent and their steaks phenomenal, I still feel that there are better places in Melbourne that you can get more “personal” service and beautiful food. It is a bit overrated for what it is and the price (Rhett will kill me after saying this). But I will say it was a great and unique experience, plus the company was delightful and entertaining. After trying out all the hospitality styles Oz has to offer, I like the small, funky, cozy, little pubs, café, restaurant, and bars offering a smaller distinct menu. Lucky for me, Melbourne has many of these on hand. The most exciting part and one of the reasons I LOVE Melbourne is you have to discover them hidden and tucked away in the laneways, small streets of the city or even on the outskirts of the CBD in St. Kilda, Brunswick, Richmond, or South Melbourne to name a few. Some of my favorite little spots are the Shanghai Dumpling House located on Tattersall’s Lane, Sister Bella in the alleyway of Drewery Lane, and this Italian place, (which I can’t remember the name of, but our amazing server Marcel is all I can remember) and this Fish and Chip shop called D'lish Fish, across from where I work in Port Melbourne (sshhhh…don’t tell them I like it better than ours). The selection of places to have a catch up with a friend or have a date is endless and thrilling to discover. 

Next on the list is the Vino!  Well to start, I never was a fan before I came to Australia, but as they say it is an acquired taste. I think now my tastes have sophisticated and have gained appreciation thanks to my friend Rhett. I especially didn’t like red wine because usually I was very put off by the smell alone. He insisted I try this one he ordered…and with reluctance I did. I have never been so surprised, but I loved it! I think I could have drunk the bottle all to myself. It was Reyes Chateauneuf-du-pape 1995. Fancy smancy name, right? At $400 a bottle at the bar called Siglo, I couldn't go wrong and what an introduction to mouth-watering red wine. Rhett has spoiled me and given me a taste of some of the best bottles since he's a connoisseur of wine and champagne alike. Ever since then, I’ve been trying a glass of wine with dinner, lunch or when I’m out. Not only is it cheaper, but better for me anyway. As a result, I’m a bit more knowledgeable of which types go with certain dishes and that white wine should come first, then red, and if you have room at the end of the meal, a delectable dessert wine. Australia has so many wines to offer that I'd find it hard to believe you couldn't find a bottle to suit your taste. Many of the wine are muy delicioso! There were several wineries in the Margaret River area is Western Australia but unfortunately I didn’t get an opportunity to stop at one of them while I was in that region earlier in September. Rest assured I will be back to do just that…and naturally score some surf as well. Before I leave I hope to get to visit Adelaide, as it’s known for as the wine country of Australia and well...it’s similar to my namesake. I look forward to bringing several bottles home and later try some of our own wine in VA. Perhaps take a wine tour of the Williamsburg Winery, the Napa Valley in CA, or just try more wine period. I’m excited about this new found interest in vino and hope to convince some of my other friends back home that a beer is just not that great tasting anymore. Lol.

2. Music is in the air

Some of us like to jam to music in the shower, in the privacy of our bedrooms, in our cars or for the brave and bold…on the dance floor. Melbournians on the other hand, love to jam to music on the streets, on the trains and on the trams. I didn’t make it a habit to carry my ishuffle or now my itouch on me because I liked to listen to everything else that’s going on around me and take it all in. The city noise, the tapping of heels and boots against the pavement, people’s random conversations, cars honking, trains running through the tracks, and trams passing by. You really get a sense of the city when you take a minute and listen. Asides from wanting to listen to my surroundings, sometimes I didn’t even have to listen to my own mp3 player because the person right next to me had their music blaring loud enough for you and everyone else to hear. But what I love about Melbourne is wherever you happened to be; you can always hear LIVE music. You can hear it on the crowded streets, in the alleyways, across restaurants near the river, or even on the rooftops. Melbourne never fails to entertain the masses with streets acts performing every night of the week. 

Recently, I was waiting to meet my friend Kieran’s mate on the corner of Swanston and Londsdale and a group of guys were marching down the street playing drums, trumpets, the saxophone, trombone, and they even had an announcer with them like the circus was coming through town. It was so random, but grand at the same time. There’s also this artist named Ben, who’s been playing across this restaurant called, World Bar, for over 5 years now and he is just amazing! One evening I was walking with my friend Rhett back to his car and heard this Coldplay song, or at least that’s what I remember. In any case, at first I thought it was the restaurant blaring the music but when I turned around this guy with only a guitar, an amp and mic was singing the song. He sounded just like him if not better. He did a few other cover songs and some were better than the originals, which is an unbelievable feat in my book. I was so mesmerized I had to stop, sit on the edge of the platform, freeze my tush, and even paid him a few dollars to play one of my requests. I wish I could have taken him home and have him played until I fell asleep every night.  

I sure am going to miss walking around the city and being able to listen to free live music.

 

Continuing on...

Not only do they have music floating around every direction, they have many big names come to town. But it’s not cheap and usually by the time I finally heard of the show coming, it was already sold out (I think I was too busy working to even have the time to look for a show). Melbourne advertises upcoming music talents on posters on main streets and alleyways (another form of art that decorated the city). They’d advertise several months in advance, especially music festivals that sold out quickly. I don’t know how because most of the shows are over $100, if not much more depending on the artist or festival. I can understand why the festivals would be so expensive because there are multiple artists playing, but still out of my budget. And although I missed some of my favorite artists come to town, like Anberlin, Jack Johnson, and Donovan Frankenreiter, I did have the opportunity to attend one of the largest music events they have here in Melbourne called the St. Kilda Festival. Local Australian artists play at different venues during the week and on the big Festival Sunday, several stages are scattered throughout the St. Kilda area where people mosey around to check out all the artists, acts, and of course food ;) Many of the streets are blocked off because close to half a million people can attend in one day. And after attending, I was so glad I didn’t work in any of the restaurants, cafes, bars, etc. in St. Kilda. One word…madness! It was a great day spent with friends.

 

Among the endless bars and music venues scattered about Melbourne, I had an opportunity to see this one act my friend John asked me to go to in Richmond. He didn’t tell me who was playing and I guess I failed to ask because in my definition a live act is simply great, especially when you don’t know whom. You don’t have any expectations but the freedom to accept anything that comes your way. I must say it’s one of the best acts I had EVER seen. It was weird, unique, abstract, entertaining and just amazing! I could have watched him for hours. The artist made his own instrument, which I wish I had a picture of it to show you because it was really cool. It was made of pipes, flanges, two strings, buttons, and a few other distinctive details. Two other venues worth mentioning if you do decide to visit Melbourne is the Espy and Prince of Wales located in St. Kilda and Cherry Bar located in the CBD down an alleyway called ACDC lane (pretty neat name for the alley). They have artists play every night. One cool thing about the Espy and Prince of Wales is they paint their schedule of upcoming shows on the side of the building. Oh and I almost forgot about this hidden little garden bar behind a record store called Pure Pop (also located in St. Kilda). During a Saturday or Sunday afternoon in the summer there are live bands that play. I missed my opportunity to see a show this time around as I worked basically every weekend :( I did however manage to get a few friends and myself there during the week for a pot or two of cider.  

Lastly, I do have to complain about how the speakers are super LOUD at any venue. I thought the music was loud at the NORVA…let me just say it can't touch the deafening affects of the venues in Australia. Some doctorly advice, bring good earplugs! Otherwise a great time with friends or just your lonesome because you're sure to make a friend along the way.  

    Guitarist down an alleyway while checking out the street art as well.

 

A street act performing in the middle of the afternoon down the busy shopping centre on Bourke Street.

1. Art is Everywhere!

Before I came to Australia, my ignorant perception of the country was the “Outback.”  Kangaroos, the dessert, and rural areas of non-inhabited places, what some would call in the middle of nowhere.  But as I traveled the east coast of Australia, this was far from the truth.  This country is filled with lights, city noise, like cars honking and loads of people walking around town…it was full of life!  One of the cities I visited was Melbourne, located on the far southeastern side of the country in the state of Victoria.  I heard many good things about the place before coming from other travelers, but was I in for a treat.  One of the first few days here, I took advantage of a free group Mosey around the city with Lee, subbing in for Miss Molly…the events guru of my hostel, Habitat.  He did a fine job for his first tour of the city.  He took us to various cites, down dirty secret alleyways only a true Melbournian would know, on rooftop bars that overlooked the city and also spoke a little of the city’s architectural history.  I instantly fell in love with Melbourne during this tour.  As you know, I majored in art.  And let me tell you this city has lots of it.  The graffiti art is everywhere!  I love how many of them are down alleyways.  You would never walk down alleys back in Norfolk, VA.  Something horrible could happen if you did that.  It’s such a creative way of making some dirty and ordinary space into something beautiful.  The graffiti was displayed in some rented spaces and others commissioned by the city itself, which is great support for the starving artist.   There are large-scale sculptures in the middle of inconspicuous spots in the city and I later found some that were located on random parts of the highway when I took drives outside of the city.  Even the walls that partitioned the highway from the countryside were not just plain concrete walls, but in random parts of the wall were colorful glass or plexiglass panes.  The city’s layout, the architecture, the display of shops and department stores, and just everything about this city were screaming creative execution.  I <3 Melbourne and have been here for almost 9 months!  It’s going to be hard to leave this city.

 

 

 

 

10 Reasons I should stay in OZ...or not?

So I've been here for several months and what better way to capture my adventures and the country than to describe reasons why I love this place and why I should stay. There are many pro's but there are a few cons too. Perhaps you can help me decide where I should go from here. So in the next several entries I will be including stories, reasons, pictures and ways I love OZ. And from there you can help me decide my next step as my working visa ends in the beginning of August.

P.S. While I'm looking at flights home....cheapest flights are leaning towards stops to Indo/Bali or Hawaii on the way back ;D  

I'd appreciate some feed back.  

Much love

~A

Hospitality biz...respected?

As many of us have worked or should work at least once in the hospitality business, often times the employees are not respected enough for the skills brought to the table.  Many think it’s not that difficult to take an order, put it into the micros system correctly and ensure your guests get the best customer service you’d like to receive when you yourself is out for lunch, dinner or whatever occasion.  Yet most people forget servers have to deal with the frequent unsatisfied customer who can never be satisfied with whatever you do.  Now when I worked in the industry several years ago a waiter would get $2.13 an hour plus tips.  It seems crazy to me now that I ever accepted to work for this amount of money, but that’s just the way things were.  And getting gypped out of tips is as if you were working in a sweatshop, getting paid pennies to work in harsh conditions ie: getting insulted, disrespected and yelled at with little to no break.  Just a slave to provide whatever whim the guest wanted.

Before leaving the States I had a respectable job as the production coordinator and later the design coordinator.  Fancy titles eh.  In the end, as much as I loved the people I worked with, enjoyed the camaraderie, and respected the work we did, it just didn’t fit me.  Simply, my heart and passion was somewhere else.  It took 4 years to make me finally realize this and have enough guts to quit despite the rising numbers in unemployment and no job prospect in line.  But with no regret, I packed my bags and left for an adventure of a lifetime to Australia (as I stated earlier in my first blog entry).

When I left home I never thought I’d be working in the hospitality business again because it wasn’t as satisfying as some people gloried the pay.  Yes on occasion it was worth it, but if you worked at the chain restaurant I did, it was no piece of cake.  The ghetto walked in and you just rolled your eyes hoping they wouldn’t sit in your section.  Harsh but true reality is that they would barely tip if at all.  And for they're FYI...NO 10%-15% is no longer the minimum!!!  But my work ethics required me to give the same service as anyone that walked in.   Yet nothing seemed to phase these people, that no tip was almost like stealing.

Before I left for Australia, I didn’t know if I was going to stay longer than 3 months much less stay as long as I have (almost 9 months and counting :D).  I looked for jobs for a while and received phone calls, but many dismissed me as soon as I said I had a working visa, for the rule is you can’t work for one employer for more than 6 months unless you get sponsored through that company.  They were looking for someone more permanent. Super lame!  Little did I know that there were loop holes around this little rule.  But in any case, I took a job working in the hospitality biz in Melbourne thinking I’d just do this for awhile until I found something better.  I applied to more jobs and even at the temp agencies.  Come to find out, people in Australia actually valued good service.  I got paid the same working as a waitress as I did doing secretary/receptionist roles.  I could not believe it!  And when I evaluate the situation, I could be sitting in front of a computer all day being bored out of my mind or interact with people all day and enjoy the crazy weather Melbourne had to offer.  I even thought deeper and in the future I could be the head honcho of some corporate company, stressed, not have the free time for the things I loved and getting paid insane amount of money or I could work at a job that did not pay as well nor get the same respect as the corporate job, but be happier.  Now which would you choose?  The happy yet poor or the wealthy and respected?  Well it’s a hard compromise because we want it all, but at the end of the day I think we need to take a minute and think do I “love the life I live and live the life I love” as Mr. Marley put it. 

As I wake up at the break of dawn, against my bodies will and mental battle of “I need to be at work on time,” I get to work and see this view at 6:45am.  

Hardly seems like a compromise, does it?  Because for a moment, God makes me realize this is exactly where I need to be right now.  And on a side note...the next morning, the sky looked even better!  So for those of you working the 9 to 5 grind and are unhappy...think about what you could be doing with your life that is more fulfilling.

Til the next time...

They charge for WHAT!?

So someone asked me yesterday if I missed home.  I said not really…but let me clarify.  I do miss my friends and family but I don’t really miss the place.  Yes I love the familiarity and the food, but there’s so much more to experience that’s new and exciting.  But the one thing I did mention was the PRICES!!!  Boy do I miss prices!!  My jaw drops every single time I go out and have to pay for a drink, meal, or even a soda at a neighbourhood 7-Eleven.  It is one thing to pay for an overpriced meal because lets face it, Australia is on the other side of the world and importing goods is just plain expensive and full of tacked on taxes, but it’s another thing to have to pay for condiments.  Say WHAT!?  Yes!!  It’s one of the first things I noticed here when I arrived and tried to get lunch…besides the gorgeous country of course.  I was buying fish and chips, but saw a price sign for tartar sauce and ketchup!?  I can only imagine what this would do to the American people and balance of order if we started charging for ketchup, mayo, or any other condiment we get for free at the fast food restaurants that seem to overtake our daily consumption of calories.  And I know even though you’re a health freak you can’t resist the powerful cravings to have that double bacon cheese burger from Wendy’s or Mickey D’s or if you’re on the West Coast its at an In and Out Burger or Carl’s Jr.  Before you even take a bite out of the burger, most of us add a little extra ketchup and perhaps mayo.  Then you’ve got fries or chicken nuggets to consider…ketchup, BBQ sauce, or the delicious Chick-fil-a Sauce.  Or if you’re not a fan of fast food, but LOVE sushi…what about the soy sauce and the wasabi.  Can you imagine if American’s were charged $.50 or as high as $2.00 for a small container of ketchup or pack of sauce!?   We grab these by the handful without even considering how much they cost.  They’re simply free and take how ever much we want.  I think if the fast food chains of America started charging, 1. The people would either flip out or 2. They would out right stop consuming the condiments. Wonder what our bellies would look like after that trend, eh?  All I know is that my tummy and wallet thanks me for not dishing out the $2 for a bit of ketchup.

Lose Your Inhibition

           It's been a crazy few days perhaps even weeks.  I just moved into a new place and no internet is provided so this is late as usual.  But the other week I went to the evening Victoria Market that happens every Wednesday.  During the day it's just a normal food market filled with the freshest produce this area has to offer, but by night the locals swarm to this market buzzing to check out the live music and the numerous food stands that serve tasty treats throughout the night.  The first time I went I had the opportunity to taste croc, emu and roo and I'll never forget how surprised I was at how tasty those were despite one's first impression.  I also can't forget the cool little craft stands that surround the large market.  From the handmade jewelry, sunny's, eclectic collection of clothing and fudge slices that are just to die for...you could not ask for a more energetic and entertaining evening with your mates. The best part...entrance and entertainment is all FREE!

              As my friend Elaine and I made our way through the hectic crowds, grabbing delicious wraps and a large cup of fresh crisp sangria, we arrived at one of the stages and watched little kids breaking it down.  And if you didn't catch the lingo, "breaking it down" basically means they were on the dance floor and busting the best moves they could.  They were giving the audience quite a laugh with their moves.  The crowd rooted them on and went wild as each of the kids tried to top each other to get approval from the crowd.  You'd think these kids would be older but many were very much under the age of 10.  Some were probably as young as 3 or 4.  An older man in his 60's or 70's even joined them to bust out his own moves.  This moment was priceless!

              I would have to give them mad respect for their confidence to do what they did in front of that many people.  It reminded me of how great it was to be a kid.  To lose all inhibition of your surroundings and just let loose!  I think a lot of people need to let loose more often.  We get so caught up in our work and drama that we forget to have fun sometimes.  You become overwhelmed with this feeling of freedom and peace when you let loose.  And if you think about it...how many of these random people in the crowd (market, bar, or concert) will you run into again!?  Not likely.  So I say kick off your shoes and let the kid inside of you take over...even if it's just for a moment.

Video coming soon :)