Melbourne, Formula 1 and Blackberry

Exciting :)

A commonly accepted fact is that Melbourne is the most European of Australian cities.  Café culture, arts and a very diverse fashion scene combine to make it immediately accessible to us (Europeans).  Unfortunately, the weather is also the most London like of Australian weather……so what could be an incredible combination of Australia and Europe falls foul of rain and wind. 

Another formidable aspect of the Melbourne mind-set is their apparent drive to do everything “food” to their very best ability.  From a meticulously obsessive approach to coffee roasting, to their charcuterie and gelato houses, Melbourne’s restaurants seem to want to constantly “do one better” than the last restaurant to be recognized as the best of what they do.  Even the food trucks out there are not really mobile kebab houses like we know back in the UK, but purveyors of gourmet take-aways.

The trip to Melbourne was a family present, organized by Serina, as she was organizing the Blackberry hospitality at the Formula 1 race that weekend.  In a wonderful symmetry, Julia and I would be back at the Formula 1!  Back on our very first date all those years ago, her brother had organized a trip to see the F1 at the Hockenheimring on what we always remember as a fantastic day out.

The flight took about an hour and a bit and hammered home how big Oz is; at just over 1200km from Sydney, it’s the nearest big city, yet further away than Waibstadt (Julia’s home town near Heidelberg) from London!

Lovely old timers

I say, fancy seeing you here!

Working that Dustbin Bag!

Serina had also arranged for our room at the hotel and we had a fantastic view out to the south of Melbourne and also a wonderfully large and comfy bed J So good!  We moved in and relaxed then decided to head out into town for a small bite to eat.  Here is where the hotel failed…..the concierge sending us to the centre of tourist hell to eat at a place that was VERY far removed from the epicurean principles I described above.  Ho hum.  We live.  We learn.

Saroians in Hospitality Suite

Curmudgeonly Alex

Not so Curmudgeonly Julia

That night Serina, Julia and I were to eat out at a well known tapas bar….but it was too noisy.  We’re old and curmudgeonly now and…..naaaah, actually we just wanted to talk to each other without yelling, so we popped into a random Italian place next door.  It was fantastic.  The food was authentic, the ingredient were top notch and the service/manager as hospitable as you could want.  The wine was good too ;o)

Next day was qualifying and we woke up calmly then headed over to the track to see what was what.  On the way over we had a call from Serina to let us know 2 people had dropped out of the main hospitality and we were to join her up on the first curves, where Blackberry had a reserved area in the main stand. What a fantastic position!

These made a beautiful display

We spent the day talking to a wide variety of people, from colleagues to customers of Blackberry.  Most notably Julia made fast friends with Mimo and Nick, two guys from a big retailer in Oz.  Mimo’s wife is a hairstylist and he couldn’t believe Julia was one as well.  They were a “hoot” ….Nick insisting that Mimo was a wog and me…..stunned…..saying “you can’t say that!”, before Mimo insisting he was indeed a wog and there was nothing wrong with the word.  Out here it means someone of Italian/Greek/Lebanese descent and they’ll describe themselves as wogs…….VERY WEIRD let me tell you now!

Either way, they were loud, brash and very friendly so there was no ice to break and we had an utter blast with them.  At the end of the day they left with hugs and handshakes, calling us “paisan” and wishing us all the best. 

That night we ate at a place called Cookies….one of Serina’s favourite eateries in Melbourne.  Fantastic Thai/Asian fusion food with great cocktails and a really great atmosphere.

Once again we finished up with some digestifs in the hotel bar before bed, then off to another great night’s sleep.

Race day was warm and sunny!  Excellent.  Breakfast consisted of the finest ice cream Melbourne had to offer (Julia’s desire) and then we were off to the track. Rain is all well and good for the general “excitement” of a race, but frankly, the track and city is better in the sun.  Today again we joined Serina up in the hospitality booth and had great fun talking to colleagues and guests.  The race went by, we drank wine, we ate lovely food and generally lived the life.  Top drawer!

We had to leave just before the race was over to catch the bus back to the airport, but that was no issue.  Far better to head off comfortably than scramble with our luggage back to the airport.

Melbourne seemed to be a fantastic city with a hell of a lot to offer.  I really hope one day we can return.  Either way, thank you Serina, mum, the Alishans and anyone else involved in our trip…..not forgetting of course, Blackberry J

Bye-Bye Melbourne