February 11th, 2010
Let’s get right to it. Tourism Australia’s new strapline should be; “Melbourne; Whats not to love?” A clean, green city with adventurous modern architecture stacked next to colonial grandeur, set on wide tram carrying boulevards.
From the river
The city centre, CBD (Central Business District) is as bright, pleasing, surpising and walkable as any city I’ve ever been in. A vibrant cafe culture with coffee houses and bistros every couple of paces. Victorian style shopping arcades growing artfully from alley openings and 80 story light catching office blocks. Suburbs as individual and interesting as each other. Italian, greek, japanese, chinese. Everyone has a quarter! As first impressions go, Melbourne is a city you can take home to Mama.
Street Chess
We were headed to St. Kilda. A seaside suburb of Irish backpacking fame. We stepped out of the airport and there it was. The St Kilda Shuttle. Aint it easy? We took the journey in, with big smailes, watching our new city grow and weave around us. Kilda, it turns out is Dun Laoghaire with sun. The old houses, promenades, markets and that seaside feel. Everyone loves Dun Laoghaire but who can afford to live there (the nice part)? and who can weather the rain that sheets in off the Irish sea freezing the legs of every Cailin in a skirt?
Cute houses in st kilda
The Irish backpacker however, gets to Kilda, and finds he can go no more. He is home. He is in Dun Laoghaire heaven, on a backpacking budget, with sun, surf and bikinis. He may never leave. The Irish brogue is the most noticeable accent at the street cafes. Sure, there are french and english too, even some aussies, but if there are not some Irish toe-rags in the room next to you, you’re not in Kilda.
St Kilda pier
2 days of orientation is all I get. I have a week packed to the gills with interviews and a second week for follow-ups.
The first weekend at a friends barbie (as in “throw another shrimp on the…”) Bren, a TV editor from Dublin, tells me that I am now 30% better than I ever was. I am 130% Niall. He tells me that Irish and UK experience is looked upon very favourably in Oz as our working environments tend to be busier, tougher and more focused. So now I can give that 110% football coaches were always asking me for and still keep a little in reserve! Yippee. Later that night we play poker and Bren wipes me out. He knows his per centages that fella!
The tram
My interviews all take place in the CBD. The 7th floor, 20th floor, 24th floor, even the giddy heights of the 30th floor, all provide me with different views of Melbournes downtown. On the 30th floor of a Collins St highrise, one Director I am meeting casually maps out the city in front of me, pointing off in all directions, adding names liking Sallylongheadandnose and watchyoudontdoapoo*. The names it seems are a mixture of Irish and aboriginal, only sillier.
A coffee street in the CBD
For 2 weeks of questions, a man had better know some answers. Thankfully I won more than I lost, and what I did know, sure they just added 30% to it anyway. One day, all this will be mine! A paycheck may suffice though….
* These names may be fictional