The first days in Melbourne

We made it! Finally arrived in Melbourne. 22 hours flight later and 33 hours total travel time from London to Melbourne.

First, put the carry-on luggage in the backpack - you don't want to walk around all day with 2 backpacks, then exchanged the remaining euros for Australian dollars and bought a public transport card. We didn't want to invest the $19 for the Skybus, which would have taken us directly from the airport to the hostel in half an hour. A lady at the information desk sold us the ticket and drew us the route on a city map. Anyone using public transport in Melbourne needs a kind of chip card to log in when boarding and log out when disembarking. So you only get charged for the distance you travel. Another small highlight: In the city center, you can even use buses and trains for free.

But we got off the first bus too early despite having a card. So back on the next bus. Then we stopped for a sharp lunch at a shopping center. Here we bought drinks, SIM cards, and a swimming trunks for Kenny - because they somehow got left behind in Germany. :D The money Kenny saved because the swimming trunks were reduced, he immediately spent on Krissi's sunscreen again - $15.

In the late afternoon, we finally reached our hostel in St. Kilda - The RITZ for Backpackers. We were warmly received and both fell into bed and slept. After the long journey from the airport to the hostel, we were both obviously very tired and jetlag also played its part. Since we went to bed so early, we naturally couldn't sleep anymore in the middle of the night and spent a few hours in the dark with the dear internet.

At 8:30 am on Sunday, it was time to get up for breakfast. Here in hostel, there is pancake batter for self-made pancakes every morning. Very salty on Sundays :D Unfortunately, Kenny got a migraine, so we stayed in bed until the afternoon - the weather was rather rainy anyway. Later we went on a tour to the beach and through the surrounding city. Then we went in search of something to eat. We were both super hungry, but very picky. So in the end we ended up at Subway - not very satisfying.

Back at the hostel, Krissi wanted to attend a movie night with other backpackers. But the movie didn't play properly. Kenny stayed in the room from the beginning - the boring one :p

After only sleeping until 5:30 am again that night, we got up at 8:30 am. First stop reception - we just wanted to ask if it might be possible to book a few more nights, until March 22nd. The receptionist told us that our room would only be available for one more night and that we would probably also have a hard time finding another place elsewhere, as the Grand Prix will take place in Melbourne next weekend. At that moment, we didn't consider it so critical...

First, we went to the Free Walking City Tour. Evan took us around Melbourne for 2.5 hours. He was super motivated, friendly, and we got to know Melbourne and also the history of Australia a bit better. We heard stories about the Robin Hood of Melbourne, about angry citizens because of the architecture, and about the progressive cooling methods of the new Federation Squares.

After the tour, we had a delicious meal in Chinatown, took a look around the city, and rode share bikes on a huge detour along the beach back to our hostel.

On this way, we were actually at the beach for the first time and finally had our feet in the water. Hopefully, we can spend a whole day at the beach tomorrow.

In the meantime, Kenny has already inquired with the first dealer about a car, and we both now have an activated Australian SIM card. ;)

Problem: Overnight stays next weekend. Back at the hostel, we wanted to at least book the one extra night, but it was no longer possible. So we searched through booking.com and other providers, but only found super expensive offers. Then a glimmer of hope - Kenny found great rooms at great prices. Shortly before booking, we noticed - unfortunately on the wrong date. Luckily, Krissi still discovered a room on airbnb - a bit out of the way, but at least a roof over our heads. :D