Melbourne

A 15-hour flight is every bit as long as it sounds! I started the trip by flying to San Francisco, where I had a 3 hour layover before boarding the Dreamliner for the 15 hour flight to Melbourne.

As I have come to expect when flying United, we had a delay of about 40 minutes on the tarmac before take-off and ended with a 45-minute wait before arriving at the gate. The before take-off delay was explained as a maintenance issue, and the after landing delay was blamed on Singapore Airlines' hogging the gate and being unable to locate some baggage. 

Of course, by the time I was finally released from captivity, I was so happy to be free that I almost felt like writing a letter of thanks to United for allowing me to get off the plane.

I took the SkyBus (18 AUD, 25 minutes) to Southern Cross Station in Melbourne CBD (Central Business District), and from there it was just a short walk to my hotel. I arrived at about noon.

The room, booked using Air Miles, was tiny but completely adequate. I changed clothes and set out to explore.

One of the things I noticed right away was the splendid architecture. I learned that the Gold Rush, which brought unexpected wealth to the city, led to the construction of many fabulous buildings, including the Melbourne Town Hall, currently decked out for Christmas, complete with petunias and artificial turf. It looked pretty but somewhat incongruous.

Flinders Street Station -- Australia's oldest train station. 

There is a big clock at the top, under the dome, and a row of clocks immediately above the doorway, which led to the expression, "Meet me under the clocks."

St. Paul's Cathedral -- another Gold Rush era building.

I went inside and looked around, but they charge $5 to take photos, so I opted out.

A statue of explorer Matthew Flinders in the churchyard, which seemed to be a popular place for people to sit and read or have a snack.

Chinatown 

The main shopping street has a lot of these arcades, some of which are quite elegant inside.

This eye-catching building is an H & M store, in the old postal building. Inside it is all marble and wrought iron. The front steps serve as a hangout for people using their phone, talking, or just sitting.

   

On my way back to the hotel, I noticed a tour agency, so I stopped in and booked a tour of the Great Ocean Road. I then wandered down to the riverfront, which was a bit creepy in the setting sun, so I found my way back up to Flinders Street.