Tourists' day out in Melbourne

It has been a long time between drinks. Between moving house, having no internet connection at home and life being pretty hectic generally, the blog hasn't had a lot of love. But never fear, we are still here.

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Having recently hosted my sister and her boyfriend (the tourists) over the long weekend, I thought I'd share our Sunday shenanigans.

For breakfast I couldn't go past my favourite brunch destination, Dead Man Espresso. It was the perfect setting for quick catch up with one of Michelle's Melbourne-based friends and as usual, the food, beverages and service was great.

Herb and potato rosti w poached egg, avocado and smoked salmon

I wanted the tourists to see parts of Melbourne that I see and love every day. Melbourne from the ground up. So we hired 'Melbourne bikes' and rode around the picturesque inner suburban streets before heading to Federation Square for one of Melbourne's more modern attractions, ACMI - Australian Centre for the Moving Image.

While the Game Masters exhibitions hasn't commenced yet, we enjoyed testing out a few games at the Best of the Independent Games Festival 2012 - and it was free. (If Fingle is ever available on iPhones, please let us know.)

Now I am not great in the city on weekends. It is full of out-of-towners/tourists and I am normally happy to avoid the prams, wanderers and happy-snappers. So I was completely at a loss as to where we should head for lunch on a Sunday. I had originally planned on visiting South Wharf Promenade, but my tourists didn't like the idea of travelling some more before eating. Luckily, we stumbled across Trunk Diner and managed to grab a seat before they closed for a Jazz Festival gig.

Despite our lunch being somewhat rushed, the partly deconstructed Wagyu burger was agreeable and I will definitely keep Trunk Diner in mind if I'm ever out and about in the CBD during the weekend again. But something was missing, all three of us had one spot still to fill... our sweet spot!

And nothing can fill a sweet spot like a Max Brenner chocolate Lick (dark chocolate for me). Ok, so a lot of things can fill a sweet spot, but in that very moment, our chocolate Licks were perfect.

By now we were in a daze from all the food and activity. We managed to wander through a few shops before sinking into three seats on the tram home, happily entertaining the thought that a rest/nap is more than acceptable on a Sunday.

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Feeling rested and ready for more action, we made our way to Old Kingdom in Collingwood. Now this isn't the most impressive of restaurants, it isn't even one of Melbourne's most talked about restaurants, but the Peking duck is fantastic. It is a messy, slightly hectic but wonderfully entertaining experience. (I recommend giving your duck order when you book/call ahead.)

Three courses of scrumptious duck later, it was time to cap off the day with a little entertainment. Ooops did I say little? There is nothing little about the IMAX at the Melbourne Museum. Donning the ever-so-attractive 3D glasses, we settled in for a screening of Prometheus.

While it wasn't my favourite kind of movie, we most certainly had one of my favourite kind of days. Can't wait to hang with you kids again!

- Dani


Summary
Dead Man Espresso - 35 Market St, South Melbourne VIC 3205
ACMI - Federation Square, Flinders St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Trunk Diner - 275 Exhibition St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Max Brenner - 25-27 Red Cape Lane, Level 2, QV Square, 210 Lonsdale St, Melbourne VIC 3000
Old Kingdom - 197 Smith St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
IMAX Melbourne - Rathdowne St, Carlton VIC 3053