A day in Melbourne

Wake at 8am to get free breakfast before 9. And have to checkout as hostel is fully booked for the next night.

Sun is shining. It’s a Saturday. Guests are nice. Eat free toast and cereal in the courtyard outside.

Checkout at 10am. Then walk to The Nunnery hostel, not too far and don’t have a transport card yet. I’m outside of the free tram zone.

The Nunnery
$38 AUD$38 AUD per night in an 8 bed dorm.

Drop my bags in the luggage room as bit early for check in. Nice receptionist can charge my powerbank and then also my phone as it has died.

Walk to buy an Australian plug. And withdraw some cash. Don’t get lost.

ATMs mostly have high fees, so give it a miss.

I find an Aussie plug adaptor in a supermarket sort of store.
$6.94 AUD$6.94 AUD

Back at the hostel I can now check in early, and ask about going to St Kilda Beach. Receptionist loans me a myki card, Melbourne’s public transport card, save $6 AUD$6 AUD. Plus, I discover later it already has $17.20 AUD$17.20 AUD on it.

There’s some free city wifi. But I buy a 300 MB roaming pack.
$10 NZD$10 NZD with 2degrees.

See SIMs with 24 Gigs of data for$15 AUD$15 AUD available. Mega good.

Catch the tram to St Kilda Beach.
$4.40 AUD$4.40 AUD

I make a Couchsurfing hangout before I leave. Get one reply, but they want me to go somewhere else.

Then while I’m on the tram, which has air conditioning by the way and is pretty cold – I get CS hangout success. A Spanish girl is already in St Kilda and wants to meet up.

We arrange to meet and are both easy-going and good with communication. We find each other, super easy with data and Whatsapp. Next we go for food straight away, before we talk too much and get hungry.

But first up is a beer in the sun, which is trying to be warm.

10 dollar jug of beer, easy decision.
$10 AUD$10 AUD

Next another jug and this time order some food too.
$10 AUD$10 AUD

Cluckin Delicious burger.
$12.90 AUD$12.90 AUD

And a single mac and cheese croqueta, because why not.
$1.90 AUD$1.90 AUD

All the other Couchsurfers joining the hangout are all talk and no action. We update the hangout and head to the beach.

I want a swim, but first we sit and talk. A guy manages to find us. Says “are you from couchsurfing?” Well done him.

We chat, I swim, but other guy doesn’t stay long.

The two of us go to have another beer in the park.

Spot this on the way, seconds after saying something about Kiwi.

$4.50 AUD$4.50 AUD single beer from a bottle store. Cheaper if you drink it there.

We chill, and have some snacks. We share some hummus and bread.

Next she gets a phone call from her Couchsurfing host, I translate drunk Australian for her.

We go to charge my phone at her CS host’s house. It’s a sweet apartment with an awesome view.

Her host comes home with some friends. We stay and party at their house. Aussie hospitality: Free beers.

I tram home before there’s less/no trams.
$2 AUD$2 AUD only!

Sleep in 8 bed dorm. Other roommates all seem to be long termers, so not much room for my stuff but it’s all good.

Total spent: 91.44 AUD91.44 AUD