Welcome to sunny Fitzroy!

So its been quite a while since we've updated our blog. The main reason for this is obviously because this leg of our journey isn't as unique on a day to day basis as the last leg. If we were to update the blog here as often as we were doing in Asia then it wouldn't be much different than if we had a blog about our day to day lives when we were home. And who would want to read that eh?

The streets of Collingwood

So the main aim of this entry is more so just to share pictures with you guys. Try and give you all an idea of the city we've been calling home recently. Let you see the things we see as we go about the city to and from work, home, bar etc.

Outside our apartment

Inside our apartment

Melbourne really is a big, beautiful city and is full of endless interesting nooks and crannies. Its a great place to get lost with a camera when in a creative mood. From the polished shine of the sky scrapers in the Central Business District (CBD), to the grungy bohemian community of Fitzroy and Collingwood, to the touristy driven beach of St. Kilda.

We reside in Collingwood but spend most of our nights in and around Fitzroy. Working in South Melbourne I have to commute through the CBD daily. Sometimes its better to walk rather than take the tram. There's something new to discover every time. Especially when your an avid fan of street art like myself.

Being one of the graffiti capitals of the world, Melbourne streets are covered in amazing art. Some commissioned, some illegal, some professional, some amateur, but fundamentally all art. The back streets of Fitzroy were my first stomping ground and man oh man do they deliver. A lot of the pieces around this area can be found on the sides of peoples houses. These big murals take a long time to complete. So either the owner of the house is the artist or they work something out before hand, or not.

Big pieces can be harder to find in and around the CBD. But then there's always Hosier Lane, which can be found across Flinders Street opposite Federation Square. World famous Hosier Lane is like a graffiti wonderland. Barely an inch of untouched wall space survives. From simple tags done by teenagers to actual Banksy pieces.

Deb at work on the Street

Hosier Lane

Banksy for those of you who don't know is probably the worlds most famous graffiti artist. Still completely anonymous his art is either worth thousands if not priceless. I mean the guy has even gratified the west bank barrier in Gaza. Funnily enough one of his trademark rat stencils in Hosier Lane was accidentally painted over by a council worker recently. Something which made the news and called for a public apology. Its this kind of respect for street art here that results in the high level of quality artists who live and paint here.

Great graffiti artists local to Melbourne include Ghost Patrol, Deb and Everfresh among others. And their work is so much fun to see on a daily basis. When the weather gets bad here, the city can get drab just like any other. But with beautiful, fun and colourful art everywhere and free for everyone to enjoy, winter seems that little bit easier to deal with.

The CBD is a great part of Melbourne, laid out in a grid formation similar to an American city. It's tall high rises can be intimidating at first for someone not used to it. But eventually it becomes second nature and is really easy to navigate. Choc-a-Bloc with bars, clubs, markets, museums etc. Our favourite being the ACMI in Federation square where they've recently had such weird exhibitions as the art collection of Denis Hopper. Currently they have a Tim Burton one which should be interesting.

Eureka Tower

Crown Casino

Flinder's Street Train Station

St. Paul's Cathedral

As for now we continue for the next short while with the steady ebb and flow of city life. I'm still working away at my cafe 5 days a week and then in the cocktail bar on the weekends. Changes include Tammy leaving Panama (The cocktail bar I still work in on Saturdays) and moving to a great little bar called Kent St. where I'm now also DJin on Friday nights! A great little bar with a great little community of regulars who we've fit right in with, if only just a little too late. To quote Tim "You guys are proper Kent St. kids, where the hell have you been hiding?". Oh and not to forget good old Kev has caught up with us in Melbourne after a 6 month hiatus on a farm in Western Australia and is now comfortably taking residence on our sofa.


Alas cool bar aside, we're nearly done here in Australia. Just a few more weeks to go. We've so far managed one excursion out of Melbourne to Wilsons Prom where we visited a national park and spoiled ourselves in wine country. We've flights booked to visit Tasmania in a couple of weeks and also have plans to take a road trip to the infamous red centre and hopefully make it to Uluru to see Ayers Rock and maybe push through to Alice Springs for a cold one with some sun dried boggins. Tales of all three adventures will be in our next post and will probably momentarily return our little blog here to its former glory of Same Planet, Different World.