hot fun in the summertime

melbourne does many things well, but above all it has mastered the art of outdoor entertainment. booze, music, sunshine, (usually) free entry...who could ask for more? sunday i was fortunate enough to attend the st. kilda festival, which returned after a 2006 hiatus. st. kilda is the most popular beachside 'hood in melbourne, and while other beaches such as brighton are better for sand and surf (or as much surf as you can get in port phillip bay), st. kilda's music and partying scene is top-notch. at the slightest mention of st. kilda beach, every local will automatically offer up advice about how to avoid stepping on dirty needles, but most of the colorful riffraff/IV drug users/sex workers have long been driven away by yuppies/backpackers/scenesters looking for a good time. i am proud to note that, to my knowledge, i have yet to contract a blood-borne illness in st. kilda. (wait...are we counting the dutch businessman i picked up on v-day last year?? we are?? oh...dammit).

we started the day at our friend mark's BBQ, where gourmet sausages, good company, and alcoholic beverages were plentiful. also abundant were snide comments about lindsay & my choice of goon (read: boxed wine), but i will defend our choice by saying that 5 litres of wine for $11 is a hell of a deal, and we're poor so we'll take what we can afford. we also played cricket in the park across the street, and i came away from that experience with a few observations: 1) playing cricket is much more exciting than watching cricket, however 2) a sport with tea breaks will always be a sport for pussies; 3) i am pretty proficient with a cricket bat, but 4) it is not recommended that one attempts to play with a glass of wine in his/her hand, as it could result in some unfortunate clothing stains.

our departure for the festival was timed to both miss the crowds on public transport and arrive in time to see melb-based band dallas crane perform on the main stage. check them out here: http://www.dallascrane.com/. their style can best be described by the following equation:

AC/DC - angus's school boy uniform + denim on denim + street urchin newsboy cap - dead lead singer + really hot guitarist = dallas crane

although the set was only about an hour long, i was thoroughly entertained, and may even fork out some cash to see them properly at either the espy or the east brunswick club in a few weeks. apparently they're prepared to take the U.S. by storm, so all my northern hemispherians better grab a rain slicker. it also didn't hurt that the location was stellar: the sun was setting to our right, the water was sparkling behind the stage, the music was cranking, and the fellow festival-goers were friendly. although the festival itself was mobbed, we managed to get in & out with little hassle, and even brought the evening to a close with some delicious churros. (melburnians LOVE their churros, but that is a subject that will be investigated at a later time).

all in all, it was a fantastic way to spend a sunday. i remain fully appreciative of all this city has to offer, three years after our initial rendezvous. on that note, i go to sleep in preparation for my first day of uni orientation tomorrow. i have no doubt that there will be some sort of bureaucratic idiocy to bitch about in a future post, so stay tuned...