The number 16 tram takes us to St Kilda. It is an odd place, simultaneously pretending to be trendy and gritty. We overindulge in pastries from the Acland Cake Shop, vanilla and French vanilla slices, apple crumble and reminisce about theme park rides. I was never taken to Luna Park in St Kilda as a kid. At least, not that I can remember.
The number 96 tram follows the old railway line back to the city, some of the station buildings converted for other purposes. Then it returns to a proper street tram, carrying us through the central business district to Melbourne Museum.
There’s a Lego Star Wars exhibition at the museum. Star Wars was a major part of my childhood in this city and it feels right to celebrate it here again.
There are huge recreations of droids, of a pod racer, of battles and lightsaber fights, all made out of Lego. The detail is incredible. But I do love the cutaway Imperial Star Destroyer and the Death Star with their humourous minifig vignettes.
There is also the opportunity to build your own droids, spacecraft and lightsaber. Rummaging around in trays of Lego and assembling them into something from your imagination is very addictive. By the time we emerge over three hours have passed, the cafe is closed and stomachs are well and truly complaining.
So no chance to explore the rest of the museum. Instead we catch a tram back into the city centre and find Lim Kopi, yet another Malaysian restaurant.
The quality of their food is very high. The char kuey teow is very tasty, the chicken laksa is a real curry laksa, less to my preference in laksas, but very genuine in flavour. B and Alex absolutely loved the fish fillet noodle soup, declaring it one of the best they’ve had in a long time.
Very full now, we decide to walk back towards Federation Square, but are delayed by Kori Ice Cream and buy a Fuji apple and a calamondin/mango ice cream, sit and eat them at Bourke Street Mall.
Preparations are just starting for Diwali celebrations at Federation Square, mainly a couple of Indian hosts talking while we sit in the late sun. I have bought tickets to tonight’s screening of Spirited Away at the ACMI Cinema.
The other two buy pizza from Flinders Street station before heading back to the hotel while I go in to watch the movie.
The ACMI Cinema is really nice and the screen is super clear compared to what many of our local cinemas serve up these days. Hardly surprising, because the people at ACMI, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, are true cinema nerds.
I have seen Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away countless times, own the DVD, Blu-ray, have it on streaming, but every time I watch it I spot something new and this is the first time I’ve seen it on the big screen. Like Star Wars and its connection to Melbourne, Spirited Away has become part of my life. The incredible artistry, the music and the soundscape always takes me to my favourite other country of Japan.
Then, as Diwali winds down for the night outside the cinema, it’s a tram ride back to the hotel and a slice of leftover cold pizza for a late dinner.
