It has been a very hectic February and March preventing me from travelling earlier - notice that I missed the Autumn Harvest Festival @ Bacchus Marsh again this year.
Firstly I would like to thank Bella Anderson from Merlin Entertainments Group Ltd the company that owns the Legoland Discovery Centre at Chadstone outside of Melbourne for allowing me to visit them and to blog about my visit. I am planning my visit on Monday morning before flying back to Sydney on a Jetstar flight.
Postscript : Due to time restraints and lack of sleep due to an extremely loud snorer in my room I was unable to make it to Chadstone on the 8 am shuttle therefore will not be visiting Legoland this trip to Melbourne but have not ruled out a visit on one of my future trips to Melbourne.
Oh how I hate flying! It is such a drag just to get to the airport ( domestic not even international - don't make a mistake as the domestic and international terminals at Sydney Airport are not connected you need to pay and wait for a private shuttle bus or get back on the train to get to the correct terminal - hoping you have enough credit on your Opal card to get there)!
Saturday 6th April 2019 - this morning I woke up and left home to get to the airport around 6.45 am as I did not know how reliable public transport to the airport was on a weekend. Lucky there was no trackwork this weekend on the Northshore or Airport lines.
I caught the 144 from the closest bus stop from where I live to Chatswood and waited around 10 minutes for a bus to arrive. From Chatswood I took the train to Central station and tranferred onto a train to the Domestic Airport stop.
I arrived at the Domestic Airport just after 8 am however the walk to the Qantas check in/bag drop area was quite a walk up at least 3 sets of escalators.
Then I had trouble scanning my Qantas Frequent Flyer card so had to ask for manual check in assistance from Qantas ground staff who suggested I get a replacement card.
Onto bag drop - 1 bag only ( I didn't really need to check it in as it only weighed 10.2 kg - it could have been my second carry on bag of 10 kg). Trusty old Gravis wheelie bag it is my absolute favourite short haul travel suitcase - I can't believe I lived out of this single suitcase for 28 days!)
Onto security gates where I didn't have to drink or empty my entire water bottle before walking through the screening gates. All clean - so I should be!
Next find the gate as it was too early and not indicated on my boarding pass. Gate 5 boarding at 10.40 am. It is just around 8.30 am by the time I got though security.
Next breakfast - could not find a McDonald's or Hungry Jacks so made do with a spinach cheese and potato pasties heated up from Gloria Jeans.
I take a walk and found a Hungry Jacks as well as a few other food outlets - damn it too late! I eat my pastie and it is not too bad. As I eat I continue with my blog paid my bills and I should prebook my skybus tickets now. Done.
photos attached
This was my Gloria Jeans cheese spinach and potato pastie
Sydney Domestic Airport the walk from gate 5 to gate 12 - loved watching kids run up and down through the Qantas plane tunnel over the main travellator! ( only 1 direction of the travellator was working)
Once landed I claim my suitcase frrom baggage claim carousel 3 as announced on the plane before landing at Melbourne Tullamarine Airport.
Onto an awaiting double decker red Skybus just outside the Domestic terminal - well almost the bus in front was full so I had to wait for the next one to arrive. Hang on I was at the front of the line for the next bus - where did the person in front of me suddenly appear from? Oh he never got on the last bus - that explains it. Maybe he needed an urgent toliet stop.
The skybus was full again but I managed to find a seat. Luggage downstairs seats upstairs. Makes sense as long as you are getting off at the last stop or Southern Cross Station. Not so easy the other direction.
A quick shop for groceries at Woolworths Southern Cross Station. Then realising I had forgotten my Myki card used the quickest and most convenient way to purchase a new one - the test/trial version of downloading Goggle Pay (Android version) Myki card and tapping straight off my phone.( to be tested tonight when I travel out to Camberwell by train). More about this later.
Check in at Melbourne Central YHA . Go to my room 100 an 8 share female dorm top bunk only available and dump my luggage, quick change of clothes then off by tram to Flinders Street. The was a new guy at reception who knew of Bastian - apparently he group chats his ex work collegues at Melbourne Central YHA all the time.
First stop walk to the NGV - damn it I can't even take my backpack in to purchase a ticket I have to queue to cloak it first, join the members line, flash my MCA membership card to get tickets which have sold out for tonight but still available for the final day tomorrow of the Escher X Nendo exhibition. Done. Pick up my backpack from cloaking then off again.
I purchased entry for 11 am tomorrow as I will be having a very late night and early morning tomorrow ( if I can stay awake).
Can't wait to see it! I wonder what I will enjoy more Legoland or Escher X Nendo!?
Next onto Camberwell ( but not without probems using my Myki card now embedded onto my phone. This is a trial run and only works on an Android phone. Was it difficult to install the app? - no not really but you have to to turn on the NFC function on your phone which I was not really happy to do due to security issues. I learnt pretty quickly that if this function is not switched on you cannot tap on or off with your Myki card. Although annoying I only switched on the NFC setting just before I had to tap on or off and ensured it was always switched off at all other times. This shows how much confidence I have in the security and privacy of the NFC and Google Pay functions. Yep NONE! Just as well some train officers don't know how to use this app and what liers they are when they try to convince you that the app works REALLY well - REALLY?! It's still in the trial stage AND only available on Android phones - Sorry to the thousands of Iphone users out there ) to get some Chargrill Charlies for dinner - An institution in Sydney for years, ( I grew up eating Chargrill Charlies ( and getting the name wrong calling it Charcoal Charlies) in Rose Bay - my little niece & nephew still eat Chargrill Charlies from Rose Bay but we only ever did and they still do takeaway on our way home from school ) it is the first store to open in the Melbourne suburbs - I wonder if it tastes the same??? Will soon find out at dinner time.
Just looking at the new dine in site, it is somewhere you would definitely go to eat with family and friends. It is a larger space compared to the Rose Bay store back in Sydney and is nice and casual. I love the little tomato tins with plants in them hanging from the ceiling.
And that massive bain marie displaying the mountains of freshly made hot ready to eat food. It's not just about the chicken either but the variety of sides and salads including the chips or potatos ( see their website for their full menu and opening hours).
The transport officer at Camberwell Station advised me that it used to be an old bank building and that everyone goes there and that it is really busy. He said that I can't really miss it. By the way public transport in Merlbourne is shocking - if you thought Sydney's public transport was bad Melbourne's is worse - how long do you have to wait for a sardine packed tram along Flinders Street? And what is with all the trackwork asnd bus replacements? Is there no public transport over the weekend around the CBD? Just walk - It's a lot quicker!
Although I was advised it had been open for two weeks now, today (Saturday) was It's official grand opening with free quarter chicken and chips for lunch between 12 pm and 1 pm and free half a chicken and salad between 5 pm and 6 pm for dinner until sold out. T shirts also given away. I didn't arrive in time for lunch but did get dinner Rating 9/10. Loved the quinoa salad! I wish there was one in Melbourne's CBD closer to where I am staying!
Daylight savings ends on Sunday 7th April 2019 and to celebrate KFC is giving away free food outside the State Library on Swanson Street. I was planning to go and check it out but after Chargrill Charlies am all chickened out! And a little too tired to go out again between 2 and 3 am in the morning. ( Sorry cousin Cara!) I'd rather sleep in . On the other hand I should have gone out as there is a extremely heavy snorer in my room! Did I even get any sleep? So tired I just could not get up at 7 am to travel out to Legoland @ Chadstone.
Gee thanks hosekeeping for making my bed and chucking out my brand new bottle of water I just purchased which reception would not replace therefore I had to go out again in the evening, find the nearest Coles or Woolworths to purchase a replacement bottle! Yes there was a filtered water fountain available but what part of "Yes but I need the water bottle" did reception not understand when they advised me they had a filtered water fountain ?
Sunday 7th April 2019 - off in the morning at 11 am to see Escher X Nendo Between Two Worlds @ the NGV. The line for non members is extremely long however I have my ticket and just join the members queue. The line moves fairly quickly. Unfortunate members behind me joined the incorrect queue - instead of joining the members priority ticket sales sales queue they joined the priority queue to enter the exhibition.
Once inside there is a dark tunnel only lit up with moving geometric patterns swirling about which to the kids delight are chased by them.
Onto his wood prints - his early works pre and student years start the exhibition with a piece titled Study of Drawing Hands February 1948 and ends with a print of two hands left & right joined together titled Drawing Hands January 1948
Throughout the exhibition it had me questioning How did he draw that? His exhibition was based around The House. I loved his optical illusion and reflection prints. I found holding your phone over his reflection prints made the reflections more enhanced when photographed.
Highlights of the Escher X Nendo Between Two Worlds exhibition include :
1. Study for Drawing Hands February 1948
2. Self Portrait November 1929
3. Bonitacio Corsica October 1928
4. Hand With Reflecting Sphere ( Self Portraitin Spherical Mirror) January 1935
5. Day & Night February 1938
6. Reptiles March 1943
7. Transforming House Oki Sato ( designer) Nendo Tokyo (Design Studio) 2018
8. Smaller & Smaller October 1956
9. Convex & Concave March 1955
10. Zooming House Oki Sato (designer) Nendo Tokyo (Design Studio) 2018
11. Bond of Union April 1956
12. Gathered House Oki Sato (designer) Nendo Tokyo ( Design Studio) 2018
13. Waterfall October 1961
14. Snakes July 1969
15. Drawing Hands January 1948
Refer YouTube videos uploaded and photos below
Above Eschers last pieces of artwork.
The house of infinity
The shrinking house as described by one visitor as " I feel like Alice In Wonderland"
The House of optical illusions - if you refer back to my blog about The House of Mirrors that I visited, walking through this section of the Escher exhibition reminded me of that.
There are so many photos of the Escher exhibition I would like to upload but unfortunately I am having trouble uploading them again. So Let me try again.
It's Black - It's White - no trick photography here - remind you of another artist's art installation I visited previously @ Carriageworks?
Example of my what I created there below :
Most of Calder's works were pieces of jewellery, wire figures, a few paintings, mobiles and black metal sculptures. There were no optical illusions or reflections - a lot of looking but no thinking involved inlike the Escher exhibition.
Photos below.
above 2 favourites
above 3 favourites
4 Gods? I thought there were only 3 - healthy wealthy and wise.
It is a fairly full flight back to Sydney too and sitting next to a weird man who had to go to the toliet twice - once before we even departed and once as soon as the plane took off, that asked for a glass of water in between to take his "medication" with , before attempting to order 2 beers and a hot snack which wasn't even available on the 1 hour domestic flight using a point to select technique and not being able to make up his mind as to what he wanted to order then ordering a pair of ear phones with his snacks but not using them ( as he was haaving problems just opening the packaging around them) instead opting to watch some devil worshiping movie at full volume.
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