Trams according to Rick

The public transportation system in Melbourne is well known for its many trams which run in a complicated network throughout the city.

Z1 class built from 1975-78

B class built from 1987 to 1993

Z3 class built from 1979 to 1983. They've been an iconic landmark for over 100 years.There are seemingly hundreds of different types, ages and sizes of trams operating in the city from the very new French built Citadis C2 class German built Combino 3 section D1 class

(as above, but please note that all the trams prior to the French and German cars were built in Melbourne!)

to the older

and the oldest. The iconic and much loved W class, shown here in City Circle service

Our good friend, Greg King from Sunbury, enlightened us about the fine points of this mode of transportation. As it turns out, he is a semi-retired Melbourne tram driver and a dedicated aficionado. He knows everything there is to know about these machines. He teaches drivers, collects information from sources around the world, builds model O-gauge trams and trains for hobbyists

and even has part of real tram in his backyard. I had some free time on my hands and Greg offered to take me to Ballarat to see the Melbourne Tram Car Museum one day. I dropped Karin off at school and drove to Sunbury, where Greg and I started our trek. The Museum is astounding. Located in the country outside Ballarat, it is a complete working tram installation.

The man in charge is just as dedicated to this hobby as Greg is. To hear these two friends discuss on and on about the finer points and details of vintage trams is to hear a foreign language: Power supplies, brake systems, transmissions, historical changes in designs in the W4 Class No. 670 and W3 Class No. 663 over the years, etc etc. To witness the two of them is to marvel. Six fully restored vintage trams, on tracks and complete with overheard wires are all in working order. They're refurbished to pristine condition and their woodwork shines like fine furniture. I must confess I got a bit of the bug myself and came home with an authentic vintage tram headlight assembly to begin my own Tram Shrine in Winnipeg. Plans and photos for the project are forthcoming and who knows, those who visit us may see a bit of nostalgia in the back yard or at the cottage one of these years. In the meantime, we enjoy travelling the many different trams in Melbourne. We may even book for dinner on the Restaurant Tram one of these days! Just recently on the news, Melbourne politicians are promising to maintain and restore the old W-class trams.

Melbourne Happenings - Part 4

As of mid-September, we have returned to our original exchange person's home in the area of Melbourne called Kensington. It has been an adjustment coming back. It is located much further from school and takes much longer to get to and from school again. It is a long and narrow terrace home with all the rooms off a narrow hallway. There is virtually no back yard.

Hopefully the weather will start to warm up soon, so that the place will not be so cold and drafty.

As the Aussie Rules football season has progressed, Rick and I have become hooked on the game. We have managed to take in some interesting games as of late. We were fortunate to be given free tickets, compliments of a Melbourne principal, Peter Rouse, to attend a Western Bulldogs game

with our friends Ray and Cath Kenny. Ray is an avid “Doggies” supporter, so it was fun to listen to his running commentary on the players and the plays. After that game (which the Doggies won!), Rick and I went to an area of Melbourne called Docklands

for dinner with some Canadian friends, Bruce and Annette Phillips, who were visiting Melbourne briefly. Bruce is the brother of my good friend, Margo, in Ottawa, and it was great to catch up with them, if briefly, over dinner. Once the football quarter finals were on, we managed to get tickets to the 2^nd and 3^rd - ranked teams playoff game.

It was incredible to be part of a crowd of some 63,000 wild and cheering fans. Rick wore a St. Kilda scarf, and felt great when 3rd-ranked St. Kilda actually won the game over the 2nd-ranked Geelong team! It was a nail biter, right to the very finish. Unfortunately, we will be away when the final premiership will be played.

Much goes on in Melbourne and we cannot always keep abreast of all the happenings in the city. Nor can we attend everything that is advertised. So often when we walk along the streets, we will come across something that is novel and interesting. One such happening was an interesting promo in the streets for the upcoming Royal Melbourne Show,

a horticultural event that we were unable to attend.

Australians are very proud of their country,

and we always hear much in the news about the accomplishments of outstanding Australians. Thus the coverage of the Commonwealth Games was expansive out here, as Australians came first in many events and certainly in the medal count! We have heard many documentaries about Jessica Watson, the Australian young girl who sailed solo around the world. At concerts we often hear music arranged by Percy Grainger, an Australian native. Now the Australians are lamenting the fact that their Australian son, Mark Webber, has currently slipped from being first in the Formula 1 car racing championship. And for the past several weeks we have heard only about Mary MacKillop, Australia's first saint to be canonized by the Pope. Imagine our surprise to spy a Canadian flag in the distance when we were watching the ceremony, which was on ALL the TV channels! That led us to do some research and discover that Canada too was getting its first Canadian saint...but of course that was never mentioned in the news out here.

Recently we also had a national election in Australia. It resulted in a hung parliament and it took fully a month to negotiate and make undercover deals until a Prime Minister was announced. The country continued on quite successfully in the interim without anyone at the helm!

Another newsworthy item is the fact that the Australian money is gaining every day in value and thus things out here are more expensive for us now. Good thing that we will be back in Canada soon!