Meng's Travels 2012: Melbourne

We drove from Adelaide to Melbourne in about 8-9 hours, a distance of almost 800 km. Most of the journey was through farmland. We checked into the Urban Center Hostel, which I found on the internet. This hostel is similar to the ones I stayed in my travels through Europe last year. The four of us stayed in a private room with 2 bunk beds and a private bathroom. It costs about A$30 per person. It comes with breakfast - cereal, toast, orange juice and coffee or tea. They have a big kitchen where a lot of the residents cook their own meals. There are a few refrigerators where they can store their perishable groceries. Most of the residents are young, probably in their 20s'. The nice thing about this hostel is it's very close to the Central Business District (CBD). It's about a 5 minute walk and we are on the bank of the Yarra River, which runs through the CBD.
On the first day we joined a "free" walking tour. I did many of these in Europe and it's a great way to know the city. Unfortunately, half-way through the tour we lost our group. So we decided to take the free tourist bus that goes around the city to the various tourist attractions. The trip takes about 1 1/2 hours and the driver gives a commentary on each site. You can hop on and off the bus. In some European cities, this tour would have costs about $30. Melbourne also has a free tram that goes around the city center. This is another nice way to see another part of the city. On top of this they have several volunteers at street corners ready to help tourists with information about the city. There are also a couple of Information Centers where you can pick up literature on tours.
On the second day we were ready to go to the various places of interest around the city but it rained on and off all day. So we decided to go to the Queen Victoria Market, which is kind of like a Central Market. One section of the market sells clothes, shoes, souvenirs, etc. Another section sells meat and another sell produce. It is a very big and interesting market. A lot of local residents shop there.
Since it continued to rain all day, we couldn't do anything outside. Guess what we did? We went to Costco. This is a big deal for Melbourne and it's the only Costco here. It looks exactly like a Costco in the US but some of the things for sale are a little different. I think whenever they can get something local, they get the local version. Like a Costco on a Saturday or Sunday, it was crowded. One thing I miss is the samples. I only saw one sample stand. My friends bought some stuff, including a frozen seafood pizza for dinner. I don't think I've seen one in the US. It has shrimp, squid and mussels for toppings. When we ate the pizza in the hostel, we had quite a few envious stares. Yum...it was good.