A Long Weekend in Melbourne-Anzac Weekend 2015

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RB

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There don’t seem to be a lot of domestic trips reported on the forum so I thought I would post this brief report. We were lucky enough to have a long standing invite to visit friends in Melbourne, so we decided to call in the favours and make a visit. Our time was to coincide with the Anzac centenary service and the AFL blockbuster between Collingwood & Essendon (our hosts are members of the MCG & lifetime fans of Collingwood- we would have to excuse them for that!:))

Our Amex carries the bonus of the free flight with Virgin each year & we were able to span 2 years to get 2 SYD-MEL returns. The complication was we live near PQQ so we ended up with 2 separate bookings- this was to later cause us some time wasting but no great complications. SYD is the nearest starting point for flights using the Amex Plat Edge complimentary flights


PQQ-SYD VA 1186

Nothing of particular note here. It has been 3 months since we had travelled & we noted that QF now have new stairs in place at PQQ. Our VA flight was pretty full, pushed back on time & was smooth- we got very limited viewing of the soaked coast with heavy cloud cover in place but our approach from the north let us see the very bloated & dirty harbour in Sydney. The snack on this sector was a small snack bar apparently developed by the CSIRO that boasts it provides 30% of the suggested daily fibre intake.
The separate bookings meant we had to retrieve our luggage & then bag drop & re-enter SYD-probably wasted 35 minutes in the process. The check-in agent advised that if we got the “right” agent in Melbourne on our return we may be able to have our bags checked all the way through! Our light lunch & drink at Movida in T2 was just Ok with the Spanish cava the highlight.

SYD-MEL VA 854

This flight was chockers. Priority boarding seemed to work well for all that were entitled to it but I noted that there were many other passengers who ignored/missed the directive of using the back steps for boarding if sitting back from row 15 & there was a subsequent meeting of the masses towards the back. Again we pushed back on time & only had a short wait for take-off. Our row 15 location seemed to result in confusion among the staff of who had received their snack but the meagre looking offering meant I couldn’t be bothered making a fuss.
We were fortunate that our flight had exclusive use of a carousel & we soon had luggage in hand and waited for our lift outside the Parkroyal hotel. The whole pick up process in Melbourne seemed much more organised, less rushed & the traffic was certainly more civil & quiet than our experiences in SYD.WP_20150423_001.jpgQantas stairs in use in PQQ



More to come & I promise the photos will be more interesting!
 
those new QF ramps are great...enables a way more dignified/easier boarding experience for those who have different mobility requirements
 
those new QF ramps are great...enables a way more dignified/easier boarding experience for those who have different mobility requirements

Certainly different - reminds me a little of the "cattle ramps" AA use at LAX for their AeAgle PAX ...
 
Around Melbourne


We have only ever spent time at the airport or in the CBD at conference times, so this was all a new experience for us. Our hosts live in the inner east at it is certainly a very comfortable existence around there.
We enjoyed a great walk around the suburbs early on the Fri morning for some fitness maintenance and took in the various building styles, transport options and the shopping facilities available.
We next ventured out to the Dandenong Ranges. The weather was pretty drab- could only just make out the CBD from the SkyHigh so we opted against lunch there & instead ate at the Olinda Café-focaccias & pizzas did the job. The rest of the afternoon we drove around the Yarra Valley area-some beautiful land to view and hydroponic strawberries to feast on.
Anzac Day had us leaving the house at 4.15am for the dawn service in the city. Even at that hour parking close to the Shrine of Remembrance was at a premium. We walked quickly with the rest of the arrivals and ended up about 70 metres from the front. In the dark & rain it was impossible to see the full extent of the crowd but the ceremony was a great experience. The MC was a good operator, all the speakers were fantastic and the crowd very respectful.
After a brief nap it was back to the city to join the 88,000 crowd for the big AFL battle. This was our 1[SUP]st[/SUP] AFL game in Victoria (only 3 others in Sydney) & what an experience! We were in for a treat with tickets in the members reserved section on Level 4 Bay Q48- great views of the event, a fantastic army band, an excellent presentation of the significance of the day and a fast game (slowed as the conditions took their toll). I am a NRL person but really enjoyed the intensity of the game in pretty trying conditions. The tradition of the shared banner & the absolute quiet during the anthems were noteworthy.
Kaprica restaurant suited us fine for an early dinner. Very small, quiet and with good honest food. The menu is hand written, it is cash only but the various pasta dishes & pizzas were top notch. From there it was home via Fitzroy Messina-a gelato benchmark.

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The CBD is out the back-taken from Dandenong SkyHigh














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Following the early AFL in NZ













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Pretty good spot to watch from! View was actually much closer than appears on this photo














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Army band belting it out-great show














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An impressive innovation for Anzac Day
 
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Sunday was a drive around day- past the various private schools, the poppies display, F1 track and then towards the Mornington Peninsula via Frankston. Our driver rides in the Bay ride so we got great local commentary. Lunch was at Sorrento with soup a popular choice. On to Portsea we again saw the ferry service in action as we wandered around the quarantine station-surprisingly deserted by tourists but enthralling. It was then back past the colourful boatsheds & bathing boxes onto the motorway, into the city and a warm shower.
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MCG has certainly changed since my last visit-1996-97 Tri-Series cricket when there was a blackout




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Great crowd reaction to ceremony

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Post game presentation


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Joy for our hosts



DSC07830.JPGOur view at the Dawn Service
 
Mel-Syd VA 841
No luck in booking our luggage through to PQQ but quickly through to the gate. Another full flight, but mainly leisure travellers. We received the snack this time- an embarrassing 2 finger sandwich made on lifeless white bread with a sliver of tomato & cheese-I think the plastic wrapping was more robust.
On time arrival but then our baggage situation was further stretched when bags were super slow arriving and the rebooking was also slow. Forty five minutes later we were back airside.

SYD-PQQ VA 1191
We pushed back on time but soon returned to the gate for some minor maintenance. There were a few spare seats, a different issue meant tea & coffee was unavailable and the apology for the 1 hr delay that pushed us back past a 5pm take off did not extend to a free beer being available!:)


A great weekend that was enhanced by our hosts sharing their love and knowledge of their city.

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Queenscliff-Sorrento ferry at work


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Part of the disinfecting section at the quarantine station
 
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