We were all pretty tired this morning, after a late night and not a lot of sleep. Sherry was still sacked out hard with a pillow around her head while Mark got ready for his conference. The first thing Ro asked was, "Are we doing something with those girls today?" He was sad when we told him no. Mark left early for a breakfast symposium sponsored by one of the drug companies, while Sherry and Ro grabbed brekkie in the Executive Lounge.
There's a Direct Factory Outlet next to our hotel, so Sherry and Ro did a little shopping. They scored Ro some shoes and clothes to replace those he's worn holes in or otherwise destroyed. After dropping their goods back in the room, they headed for a park Kate had pointed out on the drive home last night. Turns out, there is a really cool playground less than a ten minute walk from the Hilton, and Ro had a good play before they came back to the hotel to wait for Cerine to arrive. Sherry got takeaway from the café downstairs, and Ro entertained himself with computer games on the laptop. A song from his upcoming school Christmas play must have been stuck in his head, because he kept singing, "Kiwi kids are rockin' it, rockin' it! Kiwi kids are tops!"
Ro enjoying the Docklands Park
Webb Bridge over the Yarra
Cerine still hadn't shown up when Mark came home, so we gave up waiting, left a key for her at the front desk and a note in the room indicating our destination, and headed out to explore the Docklands. We went back to the park, where we all had a play, then walked down to one of the marinas across from Etihad Stadium. Soon we got a call from Cerine (we had left her Sherry's cell) and eagle-eyed Ro spotted her walking up the street, running to greet her. Her flight from Sydney had been delayed, so with just a couple hours left in the afternoon, we boarded a City Circle Tram to give her a tour of the city. Ro enjoyed strap-hanging like a big boy on the crowded tram, with his tip-toes on the seat.
Centrifugal force made this spinner impossible to stay on very long
Melbourne is the sporting capital of Oz
Hanging around the Docklands
Catching up on the tram
Victorian Parliament House
Cerine was kind enough to watch Ro while we went out for dinner with Dr. T and her husband, Burt. We met them down in the lobby; it took a minute for Burt to recognize Mark, then realized Mark (as a resident) had posed as a lumbar puncture model for the supplemental video Burt (a videographer) shot for Dr. T's book. Mark even shaved his back for it! We all hopped in a cab and headed for Little Vietnam. We probably could have walked there faster, as our Somali cabbie invariably managed to take the most crowded rush hour roads.
We were spoiled for choice when it came to restaurants, as they all looked good. We finally settled on Minh Minh, which was like a Thai-Vietnamese fusion. They didn't serve alcohol in the restaurant, but they had BYO, so Mark went nextdoor to the liquor store and got a bottle of Oyster Bay (NZ) Chardonnay for the ladies and pints of Little Creatures ale for himself and Burt. Mark's Thai prawn soup and Mongolian Lamb were delicious, but the sizzling hot skillet kept popping specks of sauce on Mark for what seemed like 5 minutes. Sherry stuck with tofu.
Good times!
Naturally, the ladies dominated most of the conversation, and with the exception of some shop-talk about cameras, Burt and Mark were content to just relax and enjoy their food. Dr. T commented that we (Mark & Sherry) seemed to be a great match, and Mark concurred, "She keeps my life sorted, and I keep her from spinning out of control."
Burt and Judy claimed our meal was far better than the catered affair they had last night for the presidential dinner at the Melbourne Cricket Ground with all the ACEM bigwigs. They did get to go out on the pitch, though, which would be akin to walking onto the mound at Yankee Stadium. When we got home, Ro was still awake. Cerine was lucky to get him bathed, let alone asleep. They had gone down to the Executive Lounge for snacks and hot chocolate (fast becoming one of Ro's favorites), but Cerine (a strict vegetarian) wasn't willing to risk eating any hidden meat or animal products in the hors d'oeuvres, so they came back upstairs and had room service for dinner. They spent much of the evening coloring and playing Hide & Seek - tough to do well in a hotel room, but Ro didn't care.
Trying to hail a cab
Sherry put Ro to bed, while Mark and Cerine headed out to the Crown Casino just on the far side of the Convention Centre. Cerine was still hungry, so we wandered around inspecting all the restaurant menus. After walking probably 2km inside the massive complex, we ended up back where we started; Cerine finally decided on some whole wheat pesto with sun dried tomatoes. Mark, even though it was well over half an hour since he'd eaten the Asian food, was still full and just had a Flat White. He needed the caffeine to get his mind focused, because it was time for a little gambling.
As we walked into the casino proper, the guards told Cerine she couldn't take her small backpack (which doubles as her purse) into the gaming hall. She would have to check it at the coat check, and pay $5 for the privilege. That wasn't gonna fly with Cerine, so we walked around to one of the other entrances, doing our best to make the backpack look like a purse, and snuck in when the guards were talking to someone else. We walked around the enormous gaming floor, taking in the atmosphere. We felt like we were at a casino in Macau, with Chinese girls everywhere dressed to the nines for a big night on the town.
The cheapest tables were War (like the card game you played as a kid) for $10; after watching the game for a little while, it seemed like a license for the casino to print money. The $15 blackjack tables were no better, only paying 6-5 on a blackjack, so Mark had to step up to the $25 tables for the standard 3-2 payoff. He allowed himself $100 to play with, and promptly got pummeled down to $25, clawing his way back to eventually finish up $37.50. Cerine probably did him a favor at that point, claiming "I'm tired," and giving him a ready excuse to quit while he was ahead. Cerine's game is craps, but being used to $2.50 minimum tables in the US, the $10 tables were too rich for her blood, so we called it a night.
We wandered around the complex, trying to find the Krispy Kreme we had passed at one point, but it had just closed for the night. Then we proceeded to get lost trying to get out of the darn place (they really don't like you to leave), coming out on the wrong side of the building and taking the "scenic route" back to the hotel. Sherry and Ro were sawing toothpicks when we arrived. Mark was exhausted from the long day, and passed out quickly. Cerine, ever the avid reader, read a book long into the night by the light of the closet.
Cerine outside the Crown
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