One of the things Melbourne does well is a lot of parks and greenery. And not just downtown, but in all parts of the metropolitan area. So with spring in the air Isabelle and I headed north to Ruffey Lake Park. It is a large park on the northeast side of town not too far away from where we live. Funny enough it is quite popular to use for birthday parties. With good facilities to barbecue in almost every place it’s no wonder Australians are fond of eating outdoors. But Ruffey Lake Park is on a different scale than most. With several playgrounds to choose from it is a family favorite. And when I say playground I mean of course the play area, but also under-roof seating to accommodate at least 50 people as well as the aforementioned barbecue facilities, and naturally public bathrooms that puts most others to shame.
A not so tragic commons
Australians, or at least Melbournians, seems to value their common areas quite at lot. The idea that hundreds of people can filter through this park on any given day, if not maybe a thousand on a nice Sunday, and it still seems pristine and welcoming is not necessarily the norm. Of course some things are maintained by the local council, such as the public bathrooms and barbecue facilities. Naturally the playgrounds need maintenance as well, but these open, public spaces that are available to all just seem to be notch above what other places have. I’ve seen lovely parks in the US, and some might even rival those found here, but the majority are not as well maintained or not as well equipped. So if anything, I’ve got to give it to Australians that being outside and enjoying nature is accessible to all. Maybe even more so than Norway!
Free ice cream
To make a lovely day at the park just that much better, we also got free ice cream. There was an ice cream van parked in one of the parking lots and so we went over. Sadly, the lady did not accept card payment (you can get by just fine without cash in this country), but seeing a sad child not get ice cream was too much for her. So she offered Isabelle a free ice cream! Very generous. While serving the ice cream she asked where we were from as we are clearly not Australian. I mentioned we were here on an extended stay from Norway, and as a gift to me she also insisted that I get a free ice cream as well. So we were doubly lucky I guess!
We also found a shingle back lizard on our way to the park. They have them at the aquarium here in town, but we got to see one in they wild. Although he had gotten into the road so hopefully he found his way to more lizard-friendly territory.
