Moomba is one of the longest running festivals in Australia, and it's snuggled deep into the colloquial history of Melbourne. It has run annually over the Labour Day long weekend since 1955 and has undergone a face lift in recent years to try and refresh its image and relevance. The most recognisable elements of Moomba are its street parade, the Birdman rally and the watersports which splash along the Yarra river. I've never really attended a Moomba in its entirety and my memories largely consist of wandering around the carnival rides with a pack of teenaged friends. This year there was also a great line up of live music, so I thought I'd revisit those carnival experiences.
The huge stuffed toy prizes and terrifying rides are still there, but the stalls now line both banks of the Yarra and look really pretty at night with all their lights on. I was really impressed with the program, which included all manner of activities from beach vollyball, dance classes and exhibition shows. We wandered through at night after work but I think the festival is probably best experienced during the day when there are many more varied and interesting activities. Skill games and noisy rides are only diverting for so long when you're short on cash, and in that sense Moomba hasn't changed much for me at all. But it was great to see bands like Augie March perform for free and our mob of twenty-somethings still had a fun night out.
As per usual, I got a craving for fried potato, so we visited Lord of the Fries. I'm torn on this place - I love the concept and their menu always makes my mouth water. And I will agree with everyone that their burgers, while expensive, are damn tasty. But I'm just not sold on the fries - my box came out slowly and the chips were over cooked and a little too salty. The sauce of the month - Andaluse - was similar to what I remembered in Europe but not as strong a flavour. Given how much I loved that sauce on Belgian fries, I might just have to have a go at recreating it myself at home instead!
Saturday hosted the first urban golf tournament in Melbourne (as far as we know). Part mini golf, part bar crawl and definitely entertaining for both players and observers, we formed teams of four and careered around Carlton and Fitzroy following a course which spanned kids playgrounds, a private home and the Fitzroy Town Hall. Golfing dress in as rediculous a manner as possible was mandatory and we even picked up some extras on the way from the local street dweller to limousine drivers and a buck's night! I've discovered corners of Fitzroy I'd never seen before and had even more fun than I could have predicted. If you'd like to participate in further events, consider emailing the organisers.
I farewelled a good friend on Sunday from the spacious and relaxed confines of the Little Creatures Dining Hall. This venue appeared while I was busy traveling around Europe so I've been looking forward to checking it out since I first noticed it. The area is perfect for large groups of people as the wooden tables are generously proportioned, plus the noise level never got too much to interfere with our conversation even though the hall was packed when I arrived. Drinks are a little expensive, but with Little Creatures products on tap we weren't complaining too much :)
I Wish
There's always events or attractions I don't have the time or money to see, here's a list of the things I'm most disappointed about missing in the upcoming week:
- Dancemassive 3-15 March, multiple venues. A fantastic looking program spread over three locations with tickets starting as low as $10. I'd love to see more dance and this is really accessible.
- Stitches and craft show 11-15 March, Melbourne showgrounds Flemington. This long running exhibition has recently had a change of ownership and I'd be interested to see the new direction it'll take. Plus with colder weather coming soon I'm starting to take more interest in my knitting needles...
- Alice in Wonderland until 15 March, 20 Ovens st Brunswick. Drawing on the hallucinogenic qualities of the story, this piece of theatre sounds really intriguing.
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