Day 21: Queen Victoria Market and Melbourne Museum (country 2, city 5), half way done

Wow, Queen Victoria Market is massive! We started in through the indoor market building, with cheese shops, deli and salami counters, and all types of pickled and prepared foods. Then through the butchers' market with lots of fresh cuts of meat of all persuasions. And then among the fishmongers' stalls with massive local lobster, all sorts of fresh and filleted fish, crustaceans and other sea creatures. 

In the back we wandered the vegetable aisles, maybe a little dazed at this point by the scale and volume of the market. The biggest and best carrots. Massive figs, fresh. Passionfruit, mangoes etc. We had to take a break to get breakfast of superb almond croissant and a flat white before continuing. Way in the back were all sorts of consumer items - a belt shop, multiple hat stalls, pens, silk scarfs, and so on. Like a bazaar but with wide rectilinear aisles and very very clean. 

They have volume!

Beautiful fresh produce.

Hot peppers six to eight inches long. 

With the large Chinese population here, I would have expected more stalls devoted to spices and Chinese ingredients. Maybe we missed that section? But they do have macadamia nuts in bulk.

Amazing. Unfortunately we are flying out tomorrow morning so we have no need to stock the refrigerator. But if we lived here we could visit every day, or at least 2-3 times per week, with the little rolling shopping basket grandparents have used for 50+ years.

Outdoor coffee shop and meal stalls. 

Hefty almond croissant and a coffee. Yum! 

Next we walk back to Melbourne Museum, which we only visited part of a few days ago. 

Wait, the center building is decorated to look like a man's face?!? I did not see that when I was taking the photo, only now as I look back. 

Visit Melbourne.com says: Viewed from a distance, the facade of the building reveals a portrait of influential Aboriginal artist and activist, William Barak (1824–1903).

Again we approach past the Exhibition Hall and its century plants with colorful parrots.

Here's a shot of the birds. So many!

We check out the rainforest exhibit. They have a stick insect that's the size of an adult preying mantis, though with six walking legs. Hard to see it without the sign asking you to look for them. Pretty soon you see a dozen! This photo is just one, I think.

Again multiple references to aboriginal Country and listening to it, living in harmony with it.

The Pasifika exhibit is under construction. Boats are still in their wrappers, but the sails are up. And gorgeous!

Next we revisit the Welcome to Country aboriginal exhibit. We spend more time with stories of the Stolen Generations, 100 years of a cultural annihilation program aimed at "saving" the children through removing them from their families and putting them through English-only residential schools where they learned Western history and culture and were forbidden to use or share their own. The schools only closed in the 1970's, can you believe it. 

Aboriginal artifacts, some 150 years old, some modern.

We learn that 1 in 10 to 1 in 3 children were taken during this time, but no one knows because of poor and lost record keeping. At least there was a whole of government apology in 2008.

Lunch in the museum Cafe -- I get my Vegemite sandwich! Plus some veggie bowls and french fries -- do you want chips with that? 

1950's kitchen items. I like the colors and the labeling. Especially that the largest container is for cakes. Essentially CookieLand.

They have a life size model of the crest with stuffed kangaroo and emu. Weird.

On the way out I stop at a vision zero transportation exhibit in the basement. First item is about wearing high visibility clothing, rather than separating cars from other road users.  Annoyingly it wants to personalize the visit to you, making each guest put their name and identifying info on a magstripe card. I skip that part, only to find that the exhibits won't work when you press the button unless you have the magstripe card. Kathy is waiting so I abandon the exhibit. Argh.

More walking to the tram, tram to Southern Cross station where we successfully buy tomorrow's bus tickets to the airport, and another tram back home. Then a glorious nap!!

Today is the most beautiful day, with lots of sun, neither too hot not too cold, and a light breeze. Sailboats on the bay, everything is beautiful. We really like Melbourne, sleepy as it is (Bill Bryson tells Melbourne vs Sydney jokes).

Now it's time to head out for Chinese dinner. 

Snow crabs.

Giant lobsters, maybe 15" long. We hear squealing from the booth backing up to ours. Waiter is showing the live lobster to the family and the kids have never seen one up close.  Eeeeek!

We have stir fried Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce, dumplings in chili oil, and Peking duck. Delicious!!

Cute things we have learned about Melbourne. 

Sometimes you have to pull all the way to the left to make a right hand turn. You pull into what is called the designated right hook turn bay (at the far left). We figure out that it lets the tram move unimpeded, as well as traffic behind you. Not for the faint of heart. 

Yeah right.

You start here.

The time difference to Adelaide is only thirty minutes. Yes, it is just a wee little time zone! We'll be there tomorrow. 100° temps coming in a couple days.