Tag: st kilda

Exploring St. Kilda’s Botanical gardens

Posted on by Libby Withnall

Today was a work day for Kevin so we didn’t have the slow, lazy morning we had been having. Kevin left just after 8am. I put on a load of washing while I decided what to do with the day. It was going to be a hot one – over 30C all afternoon so I decided it would be best to get out in the morning and go on a walk to and around the local botanical gardens.

It was supposed to take 15mins to walk there and though it seemed longer (probably because much of the walk was alongside the busy St. Kilda road, it was right on 15mins when I walked in the gates.

I spent the next hour wandering around, sitting to rest for a little bit, and stopping to take lots of photos and videos.

The pond area was lovely, especially once they started the statue fountain

I really enjoyed my walk around the gardens and because of all the trees it wasn’t even too hot.

I found a different route home, off the main road, past some lovely homes with yet more flowers.

I was pretty hot and tired by the time I arrive back at the apartment. But I also felt very rather accomplished. I ate my breakfast (turkish rolls with vegan cheese spread & salad) while I cooled down. Then I draped the washing around the place (mostly in the 2nd bathroom) since there was no drying rack to be found, before showering and getting dressed. I spent the afternoon editing vlogs and writing blog posts. Lunch was some of the leftover pizza. I added some pineapple this time.

Kevin arrived home about 3pm. I cut up some watermelon for an afternoon snack and then a few hours later we ordered a delivery for dinner. I can’t remember the name of the place but it was totally vegan.

I was excited to be able to order ANYTHING I wanted. We both got the Wonton soup. Then shared some “chicken” satay sticks, spring rolls and dumplings. It was ALL delicious.

And of course, another lovely sunset to end the day.

By the beach in St. Kilda

Posted on by Libby Withnall

Another slow, easy morning – seems to be becoming a bit of thing here. But with a view of the ocean outside the window it is VERY difficult to get out of bed.

It was also pretty cool until late morning so there was no need to rush. We had breakfast (sourdough toast with jam) in bed again and I edited a vlog while Kevin did stuff on his laptop.

I think about 11am we decided it was time to get up and moving. We contemplated getting a tram but decided to walk down to the Esplanade/Beach. It took almost 30mins but was pretty nice – past lots of restaurants and cafes.

Such a lovely area and there were plenty of people out enjoying the beautiful weather.

We decided to check out the markets first and look for something for lunch.

Amazingly the very first stall was one serving empanadas – and they had a black bean one which was vegan. It was really delicious and such a treat. Kevin had a cheese empanada which he also enjoyed.

We then checked out the stalls. It was an arts and crafts market (which I quite enjoy) but there wasn’t much I was interested in. You just never know at markets. We did get some more wax wraps.

Next we wandered down to the beach, stopping to rest our feet for a while. I people watched and Kevin had a little lie down.

We then walked out along the pier. It was a nice walk and the views back to St. Kilda & Melbourne were impressive

  • No Fairy Penguins at this time a day but we did get a selfie :-).

We, of course, had to get a selfie at the end of the pier.

On the way back along the pier Christy (and the pups) facetimed time to let me know that their first walk with the dog walker had gone well.

We made it back to solid land and started the walk back to our apartment. It definitely seemed longer on the way home (though luckily was pretty flat) but I had rather sore feet by the time we got home. It’s definitely been a long time since I walked that far and was on my feet that long. But walking did allow us to see many of the lovely homes/buildings in the area, including the church that we overlook….

And a better view of our apartment building.

Boy was I glad to be back and able to put my feet up. But before I did I quickly made us a little snack to enjoy.

Tonight I made (or really assembled) sweet potato gnocchi with a veggie pasta sauce. It was really good. We watched some YouTube videos and enjoyed another stunning sunset.