Took Scoot flight from SG (230am... zzz) to Melbourne. Arrived around 1145am but only managed to reach Melbourne city around 2+pm. Stayed at Mantra on Russell for two nights before departing to Tasmania (Hobart) via Virgin Australia (initially was another airline but it went into Administration before our flight. Fortunately, thanks to Virgin Australia for taking over some of the bookings. Also grateful for Hence, Tracy, Salina and Ivan, for waiting for both Shermaine and myself for late lunch (or by then, tea break!). The gang had arrived before us on different flights.
Melbourne - Day 1
Late Lunch at HK Cafe Melbourne
our fav HK Cafe in Melbourne
menu
curry fishballs
peanut butter toast
cross section view of peanut butter toast
3-eggs luncheon meat rice (my fav)
prawns scrambled egg rice
yummy red bean ice
Staff are young adults and efficient. Diners would order via the QR code or direct at the counter. Takeaway is available too.
We had our fill at the cafe before I learnt that we are to have a steak dinner in a few hours time. Wow!
I went back to the hotel to freshen up and rest a bit before dinner.
HK Cafe Melbourne
Address: 171 Russell St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
Reservation is a must at this popular place especially on a weekend. Thanks to Salina, we managed to get a spot for 5pm seating.
About 10 minutes walk from Mantra.
restaurant entrance
mysterious stairs going downwards
cosy booths
We were seated at the table not too far away from the open kitchen. Greeted by staff and was quickly settled to our table. Friendly vibes and everyone felt at home.
burnt ends
grilled octopus
grilled bread with cowboy butter
roasted bone marrow
Oh my gosh, the grilled bread with cowboy butter was so so good! I ate half the plate.
chopped wagyu tartare
tartare on chips
Malbec, France
smoked short ribs
lobster mac & cheese
Mayura Station Bone-In Ribeye
delicious medium rare
Next time, I think we need another plate of that ribeye. Yums.
Meatmaiden
Address: 195 Little Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
I have not been outside of Asia, so it was a good opportunity to meet up with my fellow foodie + travel group in Melbourne, Australia.
My ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) application took about one month to approve and thankfully, got it a few days before my trip start date. But by then, the air ticket was soooo expensive. In fact, it is THE most expensive budget air ticket ever in all my travels. Anyway, decided to throw caution to the wind and just do it!
Ticket booked, accommodation booked and bags packed. Time to travel!
2.30am flight
I am a short person, and my legs were almost touching the front of the seat. So, can imagine the taller persons challenge... But of course, if you have money to spend, can buy the seats with more leg space, quieter seats etc. My flight had a crying kiddo and the lady next to me, had dubious hygiene practice...For Scoot flights, passengers are to keep their mask on.
almost touching the front
Most importantly, we landed safely at Tullamarine Airport (Melbourne International Airport) around 11+am. On time, yay!
Ivan gave me a tip and said to use the Smart Gate at the airport. Indeed, it was pretty fast and convenient. Thumbs up!
Turn right after exiting the customs, and you'll find the Optus shop. Buy a prepaid sim card for just AUD25 for 60GB of data. Nice! Optus works well in city area and not so good at the mountain areas. The staff are fast and you'll be done within minutes.
Then, the transportation out of the airport to Melbourne city center, one could take the SkyBus (Melbourne Airport Buses) for just AUD19.95 for one way or AUD32 for return tickets. The bus stops at Southern Cross Station (near to some hotels). The journey from the airport to the city center is about 35 minutes, depending on traffic condition.
Or, one could get a private hire car via Uber. There is an UberX queue outside the airport. Just follow the signs. So, one will need to download Uber app first, and then use it to get a UberX car to the airport. The app will give you a pin code so there is no designated driver at that moment. Join the queue at the designated line and there will be someone who will indicate to you which berth to await for the vehicle. Then when the UberX car arrives at your 'berth', usually they will help you with your luggage as well. After getting into the car, do share the Uber generated pin for the ride as the driver needs it before he can commence the journey. If you are lucky, you'll get a super nice vehicle but the one that I got was pretty run down. Nevertheless, the driver was friendly. It usually costs about AUD50+ for a one-way trip out of the airport via UberX but there was a 10% discount if you sign-up for the one-month free membership to Uber One.
Reached Radisson on Flagstaff Gardens an hour ahead of check-in time, and luckily, the room was ready. Standard room, no frills. One double bed, a bathroom and shower. The mini-bar was stocked with drinks, non-complimentary of course. Hahaa, but the price for a bottle of orange juice was alright at AUD4.50.
hotel lobby
HQ's on William Restaurant & Bar
Standard Room
view from room
work desk, TV
instant coffee and tea
kettle
you drink/eat, you pay
travel adaptor to use during your stay
The room was pretty spacious. The bed and pillows are a tad softer than what we are used to in Singapore hotels.
bottled water
Radisson on Flagstaff Gardens hotel entrance
Flagstaff Gardens opposite of the road
night view outside the hotel
One thing I noticed during my stay in Melbourne, is always to watch out for the cyclists or food delivery riders. There are lanes for them and they do go pretty fast.
According to my friends, the hotel is right at the edge of Melbourne. Sounds cool, doesn't it?
Radisson on Flagstaff Gardens Melbourne
Address: 380 William St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
On the next day, I'd be meeting Shermaine to go to the zoo. But first, let's have breafast. Headed to the convenience store next door early morning and there wasn't any other person inside except for the cashier.
egg sandwich
322kcal, is all I need to know
soft white bread and egg mayo
After breakfast, it was time to head to the train station to go to Nishi-Kasai Station, as we'd be going to Edogawa Ward Natural Zoo (free admission).
to the train station
top-up Suica card
Met up with Shermaine at about 11am, and she bought choco on her way to meet with me. Thank you Shermaine!
choco ball
lovely choco
Edogawa City Natural Zoo
Address: 3 Chome-2-1 Kitakasai, Edogawa City, Tokyo 134-0081, Japan
Then, using Google Maps, we navigated around the area and managed to get to the Zoo! Here are the few landmarks that we passed by.
dolphins sculpture
Sunny Mall
signs of a zoo nearby
Edogawa Natural Zoo entrance sign
Here are the sights and sounds of the visit:
map of the zoo
photo-op here
The zoo can be easily covered within 20 minutes. Small and nice. Saw mostly parents with kids in tow at the zoo.
loved the handmade infoboard
giant anteater
Hehe, first time seeing such a big anteater! I don't think there's any in Singapore Zoo.
Victoria Crowned Pigeon
There's a petting zoo inside but it was not open for petting when we visited.
feeding time
smiley goat
chill chic
Next, we stumbled upon the prairie dogs enclosure. They looked like oversized hamsters.
prairie dog
pretty flowers
As the zoo is connected to Gyosen Park, the last enclosure that one would see is the penguin enclosure. It was quite calming to see the penguins swimming.
After which, we took in the sights of Gyosen Park. Yes, there were some who were enjoying their picnic there on this bright sunny day.
We were done by 12pm and decided to find a place for lunch. Went back to Sunny Mall and found a food court in there but it was crowded and the food didn't entice us. Decided to walk outside and into the unknown (actually, was just towards the alleyways across the road from the mall...) and finally found a shop with homecooked meals.
walking back towards Nishi-Kasai Station
popular mode of transport
decided to eat somewhere along this road (left)
定食 稲 Shokudo and Teishoku Restaurant
Address: 5 Chome-8-16 Nishikasai, Edogawa City, Tokyo 134-0088, Japan
kitchen and menu
ok, there's a menu on every table
The prices for the teishoku are all pretty reasonable and I was tempted by the fried cutlet and all. Decided on pork shogayaki instead of fried stuff while Shermaine opted for oyakodon.
Pork Shogayaki @¥750
i liked pickles
oyakodon close-up
oyakodon set @¥700
The pork shogayaki set came with an onsen egg. Not sure but I just mixed this with the rice. The stir-fried pork with ginger was tasty. For the rice, I added some spicy fried garlic minced and that brought it up to another level!
Both of us enjoyed our lunch very much. The staff are all friendly too and brought the complimentary drinking water flask (cold) to our table.
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