November got off to a fun start. Ly, Leesa, Sue Mae and I participated in Stampede Melbourne, a 10km mud obstacle course.
I rolled my ankle, got electrocuted and lost a ring that I had worn since the age of 17 but that didn’t stop it from being a fun experience.
I wanted to do Tough Mudder next year but after doing the Stampede, I’ve decided the Tough Mudder may not be my thing.
Shortly after, some of my favourite girls came to visit. I see them every time I go back to Perth but this is the first time they’ve been to visit me in Melbourne and seen my new life here.
They arrived late on Thursday night and left on Monday evening and boy, did we make the most of it. The weekend was about eating, shopping and spending time together.
It’s just wonderful to know that 15 years later, our friendship is still going strong.
Naturally it helps that they share my love of food and wine!
We spent quality time together drinking, catching up, reminiscing and laughing.
Did I mention eating?
November 15th marks my one year anniversary at Robert Walters. My wonderful colleagues bought me a fancy french cake
Later that month, Isabella and I flew to Hobart on some cheap flights we got as part of Jetstar’s birthday sale.
It was our first trip to Tasmania and a welcome getaway from a stressful couple of weeks at work. One of our first stop was a distillery where we sampled some vodka and whiskey.
Tasmania’s weather is supposed to be colder and more temperamental than Melbourne’s weather but we were lucky that weekend.
We had perfect weather for walking around, exploring the town and eating lunch alfresco.
The food did not disappoint. Since Tassie is well known for its seafood, we took every opportunity to order it.
Hobart has a cute little town centre. Isabella found us a hotel in the historical Battery Point, a 5 minute walk away from Salamanca square.
It was quite bustling there on a Saturday morning/ afternoon, with everyone coming out to peruse the famous Salamanca markets.
I wasn’t planning on purchasing anything but when faced with so many wonderful homemade goodies, I could not resist.
Lunch was delectable. We had a few tasting plates at a restaurant called the Grapevine, and washed it down with a nice bottle of Tasmasnia Pinor Noir.
We explored Battery Point and the harbour before settling on dinner at Rockwell Bar and Grill which was near the Salamanca marketplace.
While they were supposedly good for steak, we decided to stick to oysters, lobster pate, roast pork belly and a calamari salad, once again, washed down with a nice drop of pinot.
Far from being finished, we headed to a local pub and had another bottle of wine, complete with a cheese platter.
The next morning, rather than waking up full, we found ourselves at a cute breakfast house in Battery Point where we had a hearty breakfast.
We caught a ferry to MONA, the Museum of Old and New Art.
The MONA is an art museum located within the Moorilla winery estate.
It is the largest privately funded museum in Australia and has an extensive selection of art from the David Walsh collection.
He describes the museum as a ‘subversive adult Disneyland’ and it really felt like that.
The museum is fantastic, my favourite of all that I’ve been to. It’s not just an art museum, it’s a sensory fun experience.
The building is cleverly and unusually designed. While there are some works with big name artists like Sidney Nolan, the collector was clearly aiming for art that makes a statement.
Entry is $20 for non residents of Tasmania with no limit to the time you spend in there.
Ipods are provided with a program designed for MONA. It uses GPS to locate the artwork nearest your location and then provides you with information on it. It’s very hi -tech!
Visitors can ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ a piece of artwork and see how many other visitors have done the same.
To top off a great afternoon, we headed to the attached winery for some oysters, cheese and pinot noir.
I finished November off with a fun Colour Run.
It’s a 5km run where everyone wears as much white as possible and at every km, volunteers throw a different colour at them.
