Problogger 1: So I’m in Melbourne…. Now What???

I am here in sunny  grey and freezing Melbourne. As a typical Queenslander, I gave no thought whatsoever to the thought that it might actually be a little colder than 22 degrees. She’ll be right – nothing a little cardy won’t fix.

Ah – yes. It’s times like these that I realise I may have developed a little bit of country bumpkiness about me!

Never mind – I hear that shivering melts fats cells so I should come back at least two sizes smaller (ok – I just totally made that up to make me feel better).

Today I enjoyed a lovely little walk around town. No, I had absolutely no idea where I was going. And the fact that I had a paper map in one hand, and my iPhone with maps in the other, while wearing the only bright red jacket in a sea of black, probably gave the Melbourinites some sort of idea that I am not from around this neck of the woods.

I decided to ask for help. And so here is where the strangest part of my day began. I needed help, right. So you’d KIND OF imagine that pretty much ANYONE on the street would be able to point me in the direct of shops and coffee. But, you see, I needed the RIGHT kind of help. Not the busy middle aged man in business suit who was too busy to stop, or the older lady who was in the big smoke for her annual day out, or the young kid with headphones in his ears, or the girls who were giggling together about some private joke, or the big scary looking men who were trading bouncer stories. Then I thought, “Oh for goodness sake! Just ask someone before you end up walking to Sydney!”.

So then I stopped a lovely woman who told me I looked a little chilly (I told her I was trying to lose weight. She didn’t buy it.) Turns out she had no idea where she was going either, but we were probably heading in the same direction anyway so we may as well walk together! So we walked and chatted for a couple of blocks – looking doen down each little lane and wondering if it was worth venturing down!

Eventually we went our separate ways, and I realised I was in Chinatown. I had no idea if Chinatown did good coffee, but I was SURE they could do a good pork dim sim. Lunch – sorted.

I thought I should get back to my hotel – so I whipped out my map, and realised I had pretty expertly managed to bypass every single major shopping precinct in the city. Yep – it’s a skill I tell you.

I enjoyed a lovely dinner with my gorgeous bloggy friend Kelly, and I am rested, ready and r-r-r-really excited about the first day of Problogger Training Event tomorrow! Bring it on!!