The Melbourne Identity

After a long stint in the heat of the Queensland summer and with my brother heading over seas for a year long European adventure, I decided it would be a good time to head back to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia - 'the garden state'.

I touched down at Tullamarine airport on a Friday night and the Melbourne Autumn night chill was instant - but a friendly reminder of Melbourne.


Picked up by my brother Matt, it was off to a warm corner pub to meet my other bro Jeremy and catch up over a few Cooper's.

A band was starting to set up in the corner. The members of the quartet ranged from the ages 45-50... But they weren't your average 45-50 year olds. They were 45-50 year olds from Fitzroy. That consists of 'chopper reed' like facial hair, Vintage hats from any one of the shops on brunswick st and instruments that would fit in nicely at a museum.

It was fair to say I didn't know what to expect.

If someone told me that this band was about to play a cover of 'I kissed a girl' by Kate Perry I would of said "yeh, and grizzly adams had a beard"...

Well it turns out Grizzly Adams did have a beard and this group of 45-50 year olds did do a cover of Kate Perry's 'I kissed a girl'! (along with a version of 'teenage dirt-bag' by whetus, however they removed the word teenage and aptly replaced it with 'middle-aged'.)

A crowd filled the dance floor and sitting at the closest table to the action we were soon ushered out of the way by a keen dancer we later nicknamed 'roley poley'.

This was the closest thing I could find of what 'roley poley' looked like... (the body part anyway... He wasn't actually a fat weasel wearing clothes.)

It was the perfect start to my Melbourne weekend having all that I missed - A stiff breeze, AFL on a telly in the corner and 'roley poley'... Well I never actually missed 'roley poley' but I do now.

Here's a link to the band that was playing there - they were awesome, try catch them next time your in the Fitzroy area. (If a guy ushers you to move back to make room for his dancing and he's about 4ft3, theres a fair chance thats roley poley).

http://www.prayerbabies.com/index.php?option=com_aboutprayerbabies&Itemid=50


On Saturday I found myself at the brunswick St oval watching the Roy Boys (Fitzroy Football Club) play some good ol' fashioned ametuer footy. The Lord Newry Hotel was soon to follow and was to lay the foundations for a boozy night on the town.

I caught up with good friends Jimmy Grundy and Franky Mynard at the Lord where we planned the nights proceedings.

It entailed a trip into China Town, down a dark seedy alleyway and through the doors of a club called 'Euro Trash' - which was trashy by name and by nature.

This is a picture of one of the bartenders at Euro Trash.

We all know what path the usual Saturday night takes although it sometimes varies, but the next destination was ofcourse... A fastfood establishment.

(I actually didn't order a thing, whatevers on that table is all hers.)

A lovely Sunday lunch and a few glasses of water with the family on Sunday capped off a great weekend and gave me my long lost Melbourne fix.

Till next time trend setters... Good Surf'n and bye for now...