One Year in Melbourne
Happy Wednesday!
Last week was our one year anniversary of moving to Australia. Here is what I wrote when we first moved here! I think I fell in love with Melbourne faster than Tj did. But when he came back from his latest travels he was excited to come home to Melbourne and he realised it really feels like home here. Since it's such a milestone, I asked Tj to work on this post with me.
Tj:
Must admit I was skeptical living in Melbourne after such an incredible experience living in London and Europe. Melbourne felt/looked like Toronto so it didn't feel different and work was chaotic which did not help.
Though, once I got a little settled and started to experience what this city has to offer, it was pretty easy to love with this place. The weather, food, coffee/cafes, entertainment, and endless beaches are just some of the things Aussies are spoiled with over here. Not to mention the surreal beauty of other regions in Australia.
Heading into year 2, Megan and I NEED to explore more of Melbourne and Australia (and hopefully more of Asia). This is what I think about and pressure Megan into doing every day! :)
Megan:
It is so crazy to me that it has already been a year since we moved to Melbourne. We had never even visited this city before we moved here. Tj had never even been to Australia at all. In my mind I have a picture of the world. And I can see Australia, so far from everything else, and I think oh crap, I haven't been off of this island in over a year! LOL.
Honestly though, I feel really lucky that we have the opportunity to live here. Australia is a really great country. The weather is good, the people are lovely, and in a lot of ways, it feels like we are back in Canada. Until I accidentally use the word tuque* and no one has any idea what I am talking about (that actually happened).
It’s hard with the time difference but I always feel a little less lonely because I know if I wake up in the middle of the night I can talk to anyone back home. And I like to think it makes them less lonely too because I’m always up if they need me too :)
Some of our favourite things about living in Melbourne:
Coffee and cafes - Melbourne is full of coffee snobs and Tj is one of them LOL. I love that I can get a good chai latte wherever I go. At work, I try to only buy one once a week as a treat, but at Tj's favourite spot in our neighbourhood they know him by name so I'm guessing he stops there frequently haha.
Restaurants - I thought Toronto had the best variety of food of anywhere we have travelled, but I have to admit that I think Melbourne has Toronto beat. The best part is everywhere seems to have really good vegetarian options so I never have to worry about finding something to eat. Here are some of our favourites.
Visitors! - Big thanks to Lisa, Kristian and Lucie, Shelagh and Evan, Amanda and Phil, Ross, George, Jacob, and Lily and family for hanging out with us! Can’t wait to see who will visit us over the next year :)
Some of our favourite things we’ve done around Melbourne:
The free concert by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra at an outdoor music venue on Valentine's Day
Going to the Australian Open
Watching a professional surfing competition in Torquay and then getting hundreds of dollars in parking tickets
Our first Formula One race at the Australian Grand Prix
2 Cellos concert
Have a great week!
*P.S. I can’t find the proper spelling for tuque so I’m going with French. Tuque? Toque? Touque?
