Well I've been here for just over a week now and I'm finding more and more reasons to love Melbourne. One of which is the coffee. I have never tasted such wonderful coffee before! They say it's because of the Italian immigrants way long ago who brought espresso machines over. Whatever the case, Melbournians are very particular about their coffee. They cringe at the idea of drip brewing (the way we generally brew in North America) and large 'to go' cups from places like Tim Hortons. Here, to have a coffee is to pay at least $3, to sit in a cafe and to sip from a small cup. If I ask for 'a coffee' at a cafe in Melbourne, I'll be met with a puzzled look; one must order a 'tall black,' 'short black' or a 'flat white.'

I've been living in a share house since last Saturday in a suburb called Brunswick, about a 20 minute train ride from the CBD (Central Business District). It's alright in Brunswick but I've been trying to find a place in a suburb called Fitzroy. It's where all the cool people live, haha. Fitzroy's just loaded with cool places to wine & dine. It's really close to the city too, only about a 10 minute tram ride or a 20 minute walk. Some people say it's a suburb that's overrated and overpriced, but I'm going to give it a shot. I wasn't happy with where I ended up living in Taipei, so I really want to make sure I'm in a good spot for now in Melbourne. So after some searching (not too much, I actually got really lucky) I've found a new place to call home in Fitzroy. I'm moving in on Monday! It's another share house and I'll be living with one guy and two other girls. It's a great location, great house and a very close neighborhood 'family' I'm told. Now to find a bed and other bedroom furniture!

As for work, well there have been some developments but nothing is set yet. I started working for this Lebanese pizza man in his shop The Oven. The job is just waitressing, but I'm not happy with it. It looks like I might start waitressing and bartending at a place in the CBD starting next week. Also, I might be interviewing for a marketing position with an ATM import company next week. Pretty random... I know. I just want to make some money and keep busy for now! It's too cold to do much else! haha

Lastly, I mentioned in an earlier blog post that I was writing an article for The Epoch Times newspaper. Well, it's been published!! Here's a link if you're interested to read what I've written! Epoch Times Article.

Laura's Down Under!

I arrived in Melbourne on Wednesday, Aug 5th! I had a fabulous flight (I love flying) and even had three seats to myself on the long 11 hour flight! I used all the cushions to make a lovely bed. Everyone around me was very jealous. I spent my first three nights couch surfing (see the website here) with these awesome two Aussie girls. They laid out a great mattress for me near the heater (it's 10 degrees Celsius here!) and it was more comfortable than my Taiwanese mattress! Just today I settled into a room in a share house for a week.

As it's quite cold here and I'm generally the type of live-in, long-term, make-a-nest-first type of traveler I'm now looking for a temporary job in Melbourne as well as accomodation. I'd love to be a barista for a while so I'm going to visit cafes next week and see how it goes.

In regards to the city, I LOVE MELBOURNE! Especially coming from Taiwan, it feels like I've just come home. Not that it's like Southern Ontario, but that I felt at home right when the plane landed. Being surrounded by English again (albeit crazy accents) feels so great and I'm in love with the food, coffee, culture, style, everything! I don't have any exciting stories yet or pictures (in fact, I haven't taken any!) but all in good time.