Melbourne Craft & Quilt Fair Set-up Day

Set up day dawned, and I was quite excited to get going! I arrived at the Convention Centre to find it warm and ready to go - signage up, table and stool already there - yahoo! It was good to see my 'travelling circus family' although I was devastated to find Mick the truck driver would not be there - apart from the fact that he's a lovely guy, I had planned to use the compressor in his truck to blow up my inflatable mannequins!! All the other boys tried very hard to come up with a solution, but finally admitted defeat and sent me to the nearby servo. It wasn't far, and it was nice to get out and see the very mild Melbourne day. It worked a treat, although I was very aware of the interesting sight I was presenting! Back to it, and I was out of there by midday, ready to meet Mum for lunch. I stepped straight onto a tram which took me right across the city to the Windsor Hotel, where we hoped to have lunch or high tea. Unfortunately, there was a function on

and the restaurant was booked out, so we had a drink at the Cricketers Arms whilst we decided what to do. Which was to walk down Flinders Lane to Federation Square and try Arintji, which we had looked up last night and marked as 'interesting light noms'! It was toasty warm and quiet, with a lovely view over the river to the boat sheds. I very much enjoyed my Gruyere Souffle with Cauliflower Croquettes, followed by a Rasperry Pudding - oh dear!  We rolled out to wander the city streets on the way home, and enjoyed ducking through some lovely laneways - including the one

that houses the Hopetoun Tea Rooms - look at those noms! I also loved seeing these guys again - some of my favourite street art.  I am now glad to be tucked up in the warm burrow to relax and prepare for tomorrow - I'm looking forward to it!