St Kilda via Northcote
Sipped pour over which was delicious at Market Lane [insert hallelujah chorus here], it was called 'Mariano' it's a farm in Brazil and tastes just as exotic as it sounds. The card I received said it tasted like soft orange acid (ity) with roasty hazelnut and milk chocolate to which I heartily agree and can testify to. Sat at the only dirty table which I can only assume was seriously annoying. I know I will be happy if only I could be a Pharan local and not a Sydney pretender. Wandered through design space on Chapel Street. Was greeted with an all too familiar delight of seeing places, spaces and florists I adored and stood in admiration of not six months ago. Learnt how to drive and make friends with trams. Read about Elzéard Bouffier and marveled in awe at who he was and how he lived. Had a coffee at a quirky and rustic espresso bar called Penny Farthing. Yum but made that amateur mistake of ordering at the counter when actually, it's table service... 'Dayum'. Today is perfect. The wind is light, it's sunny this afternoon but it was cloudy this morning, it's like a warm surprise hug at the end of the day. I haven't had a human conversation for a whole 24 hours, except to say, 'long black, pour over - ooh yes the Brazilian one'. Words I think, I could live by. I bought a pack of little moleskins and I'm going to write down all the little delights I experience. The first may have to be sitting in the presence of that barista/
man who knows his shit at market lane. Cue trumpets. Oh yes. I also saw a shop called scrounge and immediately was forced to enter simply on the basis that it's a great word and I love a subtle command. I scrounged a pair of pre-loved nikes. They will be very nice to run around in. $5 for some leggy mileage in melbs. Yes, thank you all the more because my runners are sneaking around some 877kms away. Oh, so now I'm in a botanic garden in St. Kilda, my previous reference to the sun hugging me is referring to this moment. On a garden bench. Putting my feet up all over it and admiring roses. Smelling them from 2 meters away if you will. This garden is open from dawn til dusk. I only wish I had brought something to get me through til then, alas my book is finished and my phone battery is almost dead which is basically synonymous with literal death.
I finished today with seeking the coast I had heard about, via many many wrong turns which to my absolute delight lead me up and down many a tree lined street. After finally scrounging (thank you small shop in Northcote this morning for reviving this gem of a word back into my immediate vocabulary) a car park I shoved some hands into pockets of a denim jacket which surprisingly had about zero thermal properties for a breezy coastline walk, and pretty much looked ridiculous with my outfit of the day, and went for an explore along a lovely and well defined bitumen walking path, complete with what I can only assume was the equivalent to a walking slow and looking at things for ages lane and a brisk to wild running lane. Surely these could be the only categories for a divided human path, for there was a separate bike path. I walked across a beautiful expanse of plush grass, up a hill, all with the backdrop of one of the most impressive sunsets I've seen. It was uninterrupted and just, magnificent. The way the sun was pouring streaking through the clouds was nothing short of breathtaking. I walked back down the hill and the wind made my hair all crazy, which in movies is incredibly charming and picturesque but in real life it's horrible, annoying and most unflattering. I fixed the nuisance of my hair at a small rock I found to view the entirety of the sunset privately, off the advanced path catering for the many types of human on foot modes of travel. This was lovely. And also very cold. But I didn't mind chattering my teeth in exchange for a wonderful sunset. As I moseyed on back to my little car, I touched some plants, which, yep, feel exactly the same as they do in New South Wales. A notable observation. As I drove the roller coaster of Melbournes Luna Park caught my eye, I utilized my favourite road feature of Melbourne; the u-turn bay placed deliberately what seems to be every 20 meters of road (the best gift to naturally sporadic drivers such as myself) and slipped back to see it for reals. I even hopped out of my car and walked up to that very famous yet almost disconcerting face. Looks... Yep, pretty much exactly the same as what it does on my Instagram feed. Tick.
I drove home. Happily. And pretty surprised at my own unplanned adventure today.