Merry Christmas celebrations all over Melbourne

The day, despite being Friday the 13th, starts well. We do not have to eat jam toast; instead, we have breakfast included here at the hotel. In hindsight, it wasn't as delicious as we had imagined, but at least it wasn't jam toast sitting on our plate... so that's already progress :-)

Today we want to take a closer look at Melbourne. We will purposely stroll through the streets of the city, which seem a bit disorganized due to the different architectural styles. Some old houses are squeezed between tall glass palaces and skyscrapers. Everything feels very cramped, and one gets the impression that the city can’t really breathe. It seems quite chaotic to us. The apartment skyscrapers are so close together that neighbors could easily exchange salt or an egg over their balconies... And the sun only reaches the upper floors. All in all – nah, let's skip it... There is nothing iconic that one associates with Melbourne. Ask someone about attractions in Sydney, and everyone immediately thinks of the Opera House or the Harbour Bridge. Ask someone about Melbourne... oh yeah, they have a dirty river and many skyscrapers... and the tennis courts from the Australian Open.

But we don't want to complain; we are just making comparisons. And this city surely has its charm if one takes the time to get to know it...

We walk through Chinatown, which displays only colorful fabric lanterns hanging in a street archway and consists of some Vietnamese and Chinese fast food outlets from which no appetizing smell wafts.

There is also an arts district where graffiti on the walls is advertised for viewing. Yes, they were there, but it didn't seem very artistic, rather like