Everything all at once

Tom and I left Portland on Monday evening, July 31st. We had a brief layover in SFO before the 16-hour overnight flight to Melbourne. Upgrading our seats was the right call! While the total travel time was only 20 hours, crossing the international date line caused us to land Wednesday morning.

Flinders Street Train Station

We collected our luggage and caught an Uber to our temporary apartment in Docklands. Adorned with modern art sculptures and high-rises, Docklands is a contemporary waterfront dining and retail hub adjacent to downtown. 

Victoria Harbor

Tom is practicing renewable energy transactional law at Vestas. He has a short commute to the bustling Central Business District (CBD). While he's at work, I am orienting myself to our new city. I've set out each day to explore new areas in search of a quiet spot to live.

Apart from a visit in 2019, we chose Melbourne sight unseen. Compared to Portland, Melbourne is big and cosmopolitan; it's more city shock than culture shock. The city center is compact with narrow laneways covered in street art. In terms of public transportation, trains, trams, and busses provide access to the metro area. Bakeries and speciality shops on every corner inspire you to buy local. Winters are mild but the days are short, so it still feels like winter.

I've quickly learned that everyone has an opinion on where we should live--their neighborhood. Especially apparent is the long-standing rivalry between the neighborhoods north and south of the Yarra River. Historically, affluent families settled in the southeast and working class immigrants settled northwest. As a result, the grungy northside has culture and hipsters while the southside has beaches and BMWs. 

In the north, the Carlton neighborhood, or "Little Italy," is lined with old-school trattorias and pizzerias. Next door is trendy Fitzroy with eclectic bars, buzzy eateries, and street art. Tom and I would likely land here if we were a few years younger.

Moving east, Collingwood, Abbotsford, and Clifton Hill are leafy but close to town; currently the region we are targeting. 

The west side is harder to access due to the Maribyrnong River, but Yaraville and Seddon are quiet, family suburbs.

Finally, the southeast bayside district includes St. Kilda, Elwood, and Brighton, the latter of which is highly sought-after with its colorful beachside bathing boxes. Even though Melbourne's beaches are not spectacular (or appropriate for surfing), I still like the idea of living on the water. The Bay Trail pedestrian path is what I imagine southern California living to be.

The city has a lot of open-air markets and green spaces with massive old trees. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Carlton Gardens, and Fitzroy Gardens are the best!

 

Melbourne is a foodie city and vegan friendly; I immediately started a growing list of places to check out. Here is a list of favorites so far:

• Cirelli & Co - Italian, Brunswick East
  
• A1 Bakery - Lebanese, Brunswick
• Soul Sisters Cafe - Plant-based, Camberwell
• Naked for Satan - Rooftop, Fitzroy
• Munich Brauhaus - German, South Wharf
  

 

Our first week abroad was challenging. Everything is different, which is fun when traveling but overwhelming when moving to a new place. During college, I spent a semester in Spain and instantly fell in love with the city of Granada. My Spanish friends told me that vacationing somewhere is different from living there. They were right. I feel anxious to find a job and apartment, and I am homesick for Portland, Louie cat, and summer. That being said, this is the third time that I have uprooted my life, so I am trying to navigate the transition with grace, humility, and gratitude, and recall the sense of initial unease that comes before the calm. Change takes time.

The land down under

Australia is the oldest, flattest, and driest inhabited continent. It is not just one big island; there are more than 8,000 islands within its borders! The vast mainland includes a wide variety of landscapes and climates; the outback desert in the center, tropical rainforests in the northeast, tropical savannas in the north, and mountain ranges in the southeast. Most of the population lives along the temperate southeastern coastline. Canberra is the nation's capital, but the financial center is Sydney. Australia is surrounded by three oceans: Indian, Pacific, and Southern. 

The aboriginal population was first to inhabit the country 30,000 years ago. European discovery and settlement began in 1770. Gold was discovered in the 1850s, which attracted people from all over the world. Today, Australia is ethnically diverse and multicultural. The nation is part of the British commonwealth, which is reflected in the naming of things, and by driving on the left side of the road. Australia ranks amongst the highest in the world for quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, civil liberties, and political rights.

Melbourne ("Melbin") is the capital of the state of Victoria. It is located on Port Phillip Bay on the southeast coast. The sprawling city is slightly smaller than Sydney (population 5 million), but growing fast. Melbourne is a cultural hub for art, food, and sport, but Sydney is more expensive and has better beaches and weather. Sydney is similar to LA, whereas Melbourne is akin to a European city.