Best city in the world - Melbourne, Australia

We'd talked for months, even before we knew Mum was sick, about going somewhere in the July school hols, after my intense 6 months at university without a break. Nothing was actually booked though as when Mum got sick, we knew no time frames for doing anything and I wasn't leaving the city.

But then, Mum died a lot quicker than any of us imagined and we found ourselves booking a trip a couple of weeks before the July hols. It was a trip to my favourite city in the world - to Melbourne, Australia. The place that i dearly, dearly love - the one that 15 years on from living there, I still think, why did we return back to NZ...

It does not matter how many times I go, there is always some thing new to see, The feel of the place. The vibrancy. The food. The art. The alleyways. The volume of people to tiny little Auckland. The incredible bookshops. The Museums. The just walking and walking and walking. The neighbourhoods.

Um... Aldi, Readings, Muji, Uniqlo ( ha!!!). Big W for books..............

We hired a bike down at the Docklands and zipped around for a few hours - a rather neat way of seeing a part of the city I was not really that familiar with - standing under the Bolte Bridge is something else!

We met with an old mate of mine on a rooftop bar on the Friday night - fabulous fun, then went into the wrong restaurant and never clicked until we looked at the menu... quite funny.

The rest of the weekend was just spent exploring - not really leaving the city proper as there is so much to see... waiting for the eldest to arrive.

We left two teens behind as Australia is not cool enough for them it seems ... the only kids I know who turn down a trip to Oz (well they inform me they aren't really interested in their own country either anymore... they are pretty well travelled really...!). I find that bizarre overall, but hey, it is a lot cheaper travelling with 3 than 5...

Here's the city... photo overload....

We then spent a few days over in Tasmania too - it was so fabulous as well.

I've actually had the husband mutter a few times this week... "maybe we should move back...."