To Australia

To Melbourne, Australia -- January 14-15

After three and a half months, this would be our last day in Asia! Because our flight didn’t leave until 5 p.m. though, Jeff offered to take us to a nearby temple.  Dex and Kylie were content to stay at home with Claire, so it was just the three of us. The temple was fun to see, but it was also fun to have more time with Jeff. Among other things, he explained the unique naming convention in Bali. First names correspond directly to birth order, i.e., one pair of names (male and female) for the first born child, another for the second born, etc., etc. This makes for a very limited palette. I can only image what fun it must be in a classroom with four Pootu's and five Kadek's. (Apparently the last names are appended avoiding such confusion).

Not a swastica but an ancient religious symbol

Before we knew it, it was time to say goodbye to our gracious hosts. Amy accompanied us to the airport as the Hagin's would be blessed with yet another set of guests arriving from the US just as we were leaving. Fortunately, we’re getting pretty used to long trips, which was good news given the three hour flight to Kuala Lumpur, two hour layover, and six hour flight to Melbourne. Kylie, who had come down with a fever the night before, thankfully was able to use the seat next to her and Meg as a pillow for most of the trip to actually get some sleep. Me, not so much.

We landed the next morning in Melbourne, greeted with beautiful weather -- 70 degrees and clear blue skies. Meg had managed to arrange some fancy accommodations at the Docklands, courtesy of credit card points. The area is an upscale neighborhood with a dozen high rise housing complexes right on the water front and adjacent to Etihad stadium and the business district.

Since our room wasn't ready, we dropped off our bags at the rental office and hopped onto the free tram into downtown. What a change from Asia. Everything was clean, organized and modern. First item up for business was finding some food. We opted for pancakes on Bourke street and got our first taste of sticker shock. Meg and I split the breakfast special for $30!

We spent the next few hours wandering over to the river, Federation Square, and the river front area by the Rod Laver tennis stadium, all set for the start of the Australian Open tomorrow. When we realized the Australian tournament would start when we were actually here, we made Melbourne our first stop. At home, we almost always have the major tennis tournaments playing in the background. Tomorrow, however, would be the real thing!