Melbun

We started off our holiday in 

Melbourne- or Melbun as it's pronounced. It was about an hour flight south of Sydney and was so fun! It's a fun, funky little town...a little grungier and artsy-er than Sydney...with great food and drink. We started out our first day with a visit to the Queen Victoria Market- the largest market in the Southern Hemisphere. 

We then ventured over to Federation Square where we found ourselves on the big screen...

Then to Fitzroy Gardens and the home of Captain James Cook 

(Excuse our eyes...we caught the 6am flight that morning)

For dinner, we visited one of the coolest lane ways in the city- Hosier Lane. Melbourne is big on graffiti and this alley did not disappoint. 

 

We ate at Movida- a deeeeeelicious tapas restaurant recommend to us by our friends Sarah and Robert in Sydney. They used to live in Melbourne and gave us great tips on where to go and what to see. Churros and sangria at Movida:

The next day, we toured the vineyards of Yarra Valley- about 45 minutes outside of the city. 

Later that night, we ate at Cookie 

 

And met some Brits who asked us to join their game of Jenga....don't mind if we do!

The next day we went wayyyy up high to the top of the tallest building in the southern hemi. 

And some sweet person proposed in the air! How cute. 

We checked out the Little Creatures Brewery in Fitzroy...

And dined at a yummy greek restaurant (another rec from Sarah and Robert)

On Christmas Eve, we took a day trip to Phillip Island...about 1.5 hours away from Melbourne. It was a beautiful day. We explored the island..visited a koala conservatory...and watched the Penguin Parade. 

Did you know koalas sleep 18-20 hours a day and don't drink water? Neither did I. 

We saw a wallaby. Cute little fella. 

The Penguin Parade is an event that happens every night on this beach. About 2000 penguins come out from the ocean at sunset to go back to their homes for the night. We weren't allowed to take pictures (we saw a lady get kicked out because of that so I wasn't taking anyyyy chances ) but here is a look at the beach before the penguins came out. 

It was pretty chilly- 

I stole these pics from a website but you get the idea...

 It was a very cool experience! 

On Christmas Day we slept late, watched some Breaking Bad, and Facetimed with our families. It was perfect! We then went to the movies- a Stapp Family Christmas Tradition. We saw American Hustle (with some vino hey hey) 

And then we had Vietnamese for Christmas Dinner- haha not very traditional but delicious none the less! 

It was strange being away from family during this time but we embraced it and enjoyed the experience. Next leg of our trip....Tasmania!