G'Day From Melbourne!

Hello from Australia! We are in Melbourne and I am typing away as I sit in our almost-penthouse suite (thanks to an upgrade given because Eric is in the poker tourney), with a 180 degree view of this beautiful city. It is so clean and pretty -- we are along the river with views of the ocean as well. The hotel is very upscale (reminds me of Okura in Japan) and the smells remind me of Tokyo, although I think it's the diesel!

We got up at 3:30am on Tuesday in NZ to catch our 6am flight. We arrived in Melbourne and napped after getting into our hotel room. We spent the afternoon walking along the river and swimming at the pool (it was 37 degrees Celsius, almost 100 degrees Fahrenheit!) On Wednesday we rented a car (just for the day) so we could drive along the famous "Great Ocean Road". It was beautiful -- we spent the afternoon boogie boarding at two beaches -- one that we call, seaweed beach, because it was covered in a thick blanket of seaweed about 20 feet wide (you couldn't avoid it because it went all the way down the beach). The other was a pristine beach further along the road where the water was crystal clear and the sand was white and plentiful. Kiana had fun running from the waves and playing in the sand. This was a far cry from horsepoop beach in NZ (I'll explain later). Next time we come, I want to do the tree walk at Otway, where they've built a walkway along the treetops (pictures remind me of scenes from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). I really wanted to do this, but thought the girls would have more fun at the beach. The coast is absolutely beautiful!

We spent this morning in the city -- I would LOVE to come back to Melbourne with just Eric. It is more of a city for adults. It is trendy, people are dressed nicer, and it is very, very expensive. We are in the most expensive part of the city, and one of the nicest hotels. It has been a long time since I've been in such a nice hotel. Very upscale, and I must say, I'm enjoying myself since it is really a decadent break from our New Zealand house. The girls and I walked around the city for a couple of hours in search of the perfect cream puff. This has been Mari's wish for her birthday treat (today she turned 7, and yes, this is the 4th time and 4th city we are celebrating in!). We found a beautiful French bakery with all the individually displayed desserts and pastry chefs in their uniform standing behind the counter. I, too, was in heaven. They didn't have the exact cream puff, but Mari chose a very pretty chocolate dessert and Kiana chose a lime/raspberry one. We are going to celebrate in a few minutes. Mari is finishing her homework, and we just shared some rolled sushi we bought on the street.

Last night Eric gave me a 2-hour break while he and the girls went to dinner. I know I sound like a terrible mother, but I really enjoyed the peace and quiet. It has been a little stressful lately because for some reason the girls have not been on their best behavior -- especially Kiana. Eric has played live in the hotel casino to get into "poker mode" -- he feels pretty out of competitive mode since we've been on "holiday" mode (see, we're talking like Kiwis already) for the past several weeks. Anyway, hopefully it will kick into gear for the start of tomorrow's tournament (speed poker, not the championship tourney which starts on the 16th).

Tomorrow the girls and I leave early for the airport and fly back to NZ. Mom K will arrive on Sunday morning! I will be without a PC until Eric's return on the 19th or 21st.