My Monthly Chronicles: October 2024

We had many beautiful meals and fun outings in October.  More than I have energy to write up.  I still dream of writing more on many of these places but for now here is a whirlwind overview of the month (and you can catch up on October's home food at In My Kitchen post).   I was surprised to notice a few visits to wine bars.  Overall it was a busy month with local tours, a workshop at Monsalvat (above photo), a cinema outing, and a trip to Geelong.  In between we have been binge-watching ER for some excellent hospital drama.  The news has been off the scale, with the USA and Israel vying for the most crazy stories, but thank goodness for the cheering moments, many of which you can see below.

The Vegie Bar, Fitzroy

I am always happy to go to The Vegie Bar (380 Brunswick Street) for having so many great options on its vegetarian menu.  Sylvia is less keen but she does not have the nostalgia of visiting over decades.  I had a delicious and healthy Zen Bowl: Chilled ramen noodles, miso-sesame dressing, avocado, braised shiitake mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, wakame, edamame, cucumber, kimchi & togarashi.  I really enjoyed it except the big pieces of kimchi which I left.  Sylvia decided she was going to have Lord of the Fries across the street but she could not resist the beautiful strawberry and matcha chia pudding special. 

Collage workshops with Storyholding, Monsalvat

I have written before about how much I love Monsalvat (7 Hillcrest Avenue), an artists colony that looks like an olde worlde French village in the northern suburbs of Melbourne.  We went there a few weeks ago and were pleased to see the last of the purple wisteria flowering.  There wasn't much time for sightseeing before the rain because we were there for a Collage workshop held by the very friendly and very creative Rochelle van der Merwe of Storyholding. We had great fun making collages with all her wonderful ideas, tips, magazines and second hand books.  You can see what we produced and what we ate in the photo.  There has been more fun with collaging at home since the workshop.

Third Chapter, Eltham

After our collage workshop, we went to The Third Chapter cafe nearby (26 Commercial Place).  It was a had a welcoming vibe that just made the good food taste even better.  Sylvia had an iced strawberry matcha and I had a Veggie Patch juice (kale, carrot, celery, cucumber, orange, ginger).  To eat, she had the Kale, Zucchini & Halloumi Fritters with beetroot labneh, avo, halloumi and poached egg, and I had the vegan version of the Vegie Chapter (big brekkie of scrambled tofu, spinach, pesto tomatoes, mushrooms, hash brown and toast.)  It was great but so filling that we took leftovers home.

Jolly Miller, Bundoora

We were out in Bundoora for an appointment so we stopped for lunch at the Jolly Miller (T13 and 14 Uni Hill Town Centre, 5 Janefield Drive).  Like many bunch menus it was full of egg dishes but I was excited to see a vegan menu!  I had a fantastic Nourish Bowl of maple pumpkin, beetroot hummus, pan fried kipfler potatoes, and a salad of kale, quinoa, cranberries, seeds and pomegranate.  The potatoes were like chips and the salad was so satisfying.  Sylvia had the Zaatar Halloumi Breakfast of toast topped with halloumi, zaatar, tomatoes, avocado, radish, rocket, feta and poached eggs.  We also shared a small oreo cheesecake and iced tea.  The selection of food was very impressive.  I want to go back for more.

Fishbowl, CBD

I happened across Fishbowl (242 Flinders Lane) while in the city.  It is a healthy fast food franchise I can get on board with.  I am a big fan of bowls of grains, vegetables and proteins.  So beautiful and satisfying.  I had Tofu Boys bowl which has tofu, kale, cucumber, radish, shallots, edamame, sesamiso dressing, tamari almonds and crispy shallots with base of brown rice.  It was only $12.90 for a small bowl.  There aren't many seats in the place but if you manage one looking out onto Flinders Lane there is much street life to see.

Heavy rains and blocked drains!

I have had a few bike rides in October when I have been faced with water on the road.  Now that's what you call spring rain.  It has made me very glad to have mudguards on my bike.  They save me from a wet back but can't stop my feet getting wet when I ride through a puddle like this one on Swanston Street (by RMIT)

Archive Wine Bar, Geelong

We visited my parents in Geelong for my dad's birthday.  We walked down to Archive Wine Bar (140 High Street, Belmont) for a drink and nibbles from the grazing menu.  It was not cheap but a great way to celebrate.  The Archive Grazing Platter for 2 ($49) was impressive, unless you are allergic to peanuts.  My parents and I loved the spread of three cheeses (brie, vintage cheddar and pecorino), mushroom pate, beetroot relish, pickles, olives, roasted corn kernels and mixed nuts.  We all agree that the flavours of the mushroom pate was a highlight.  The nuts made it harder for Sylvia to enjoy the platter due to her peanut allergy.  Fortunately she loved the Deep Fried Stuffed Olives with Aioli ($12 for 5) and the Popcorn Cauliflower with gochujang sauce ($10).  They were amazing but I would have loved more than a small plate of nibbles.

It was surprising that the nuts in the platter were not mentioned on the menu or when we ordered because otherwise the menu accommodated for vegetarian, vegan and gluten free as well as a decent selection of non-alcoholic drinks. Sylvia and I both loved the refreshing White Peach Spritz ($13) and my mum enjoyed the Non 1 Salted Raspberry & Chamomile, Moorabbin, Victoria ($13).  I have forgotten what my dad had to drink and did not take much notice of the lemon tarts because they just aren't my thing. 

Tacos y Liquor, Geelong

After Archive, Sylvia and I went to a cute little Mexican bar called Tacos y Liquor (87A Little Malop St) for a bit more food.  Again it was a place where drinks were prioritised over food.  There wasn't much that interested me in the drinks but the food was fascinating.  We enjoyed sitting at the bar and watching cocktails being made with style.  We shared a taco with mushrooms and cuitlacoche.  The idea of cuilacoche, a corn fungus, always seemed slightly off-putting but when we were told it was similar to mushrooms it made sense and in fact I could not even identify it in the delicious taco.  Likewise the cooked cactus on the tostados was far more delicious than it sounded.  We also had some nachos with mushrooms and some guacamole on the side.  The nachos were nice but I prefer proper melted cheese rather than a premade cheese sauce but I understand the practicalities.  There was so much guac we ordered more corn chips to finish it off.  It was a great way to end our day in Geelong.

National Carers Week 2024

In National Carers Week, I went to a work morning tea at Brunettis.  The photo is of the pretty bouquets of flowers put together by a colleague with what she could find in her garden.  It was such a generous gesture.

Pickles Milkbar, North Carlton

We went back to the all-vegan Pickles Milkbar (1008 Lygon Street) for lunch.  It was good to eat in this time.  Sylvia had the Damn Caesar ($17) with fried enoki mushrooms, vegan bacon, caesar dressing, pickled onions, capers, parmesan, dill chimichurri, lettuce, and garlic butter on a focaccia.  I wanted the Chicken Shawarma ($17) without the marinated plant based chicken.  So I asked for the fried enoki mushrooms which did not work as well for me compared to Sylvia who enjoyed hers.  Mine was very stringy in every bite and I would not do that substitution again.  

I did love having a kebab-style wrap with salads and a tangy "Ultra Culture x Pickles 'Good Sauce' hot sauce", and the optional fries it to remind me of falafels I had in Jerusalem many years ago!  We were also delighted with Sylvia's soy flat white with a coffee froth flower and my home made raspberry lemonade.

Pentridge Prison Tour, Coburg

I finally got to do a Pentridge Prison tour run by the National Trust.  I went on the evening tour of H Division was with my friend Kerin for her birthday.   Pentridge Prison ran from 1851-1997 and has magnificent but stern old bluestone buildings still standing.  We walked around outside and then spent time inside the cell block H (which I realised makes it sound like classic Australian soap opera Prisoner but this was for men.).  

The tour was based around the narrative of runaways and included time with ipods which were set up to tell different stories depending on which cell we walked into.  The stories were interesting and sad.  It must have been such a different place to the complex today that is buzzing with cafes and shops.

Olivine Wine Bar at Pentridge, Coburg

After the tour we went to modern day Pentridge.  We had a drink at Olivine (The Interlude Hotel, 1 Pentridge Boulevard), a bar in an old cell block.  They have seats in old cells where you can have a drink.  Unless like us, you don't book and find that there is just one free table in the central area.  We enjoyed some fancy drinks.  I was pleased to see some non-alcoholic options and really enjoyed my Lost in the Forest: Tanqueray 0% Spirit, Orgeat Syrup, Lemon, Pear Soda. 

Brunetti Oro, CBD

My dad invited a group of family and friends to the 100th Herald Sun Aria competition.  Beforehand we  Brunettis at 250 Flinders Lane for lunch.  It is a favourite place that is reliable for good Italian food, good coffee and an amazing array of desserts.  That's why Sylvia came for the lunch even though she didn't go to the Sun Aria (as my dad used to call it when I was a kid).  She had spinach arancini and oreo cheesecake with coffee crema to drink.  I had eggplant and salad in a toasted bun.

Historic tour of Sydney Road, Coburg

I went on a historical society tour of Sydney Road that was held with the RSL.  It was so interesting to hear about what it used to look like when the block between Bell Street and Munro Street had a bluestone pub with a cast iron verandah at one end and a church and a cinema at the other.

Sobo Japanese Cafe, Parkville

I had lunch at Sobo Japanese Cafe (323 Grattan St) a couple of time lately.  My don tofu bowl on my first visit was ok but lacking in colour.  I much preferred my vegetarian bento box on my second visit.  It had tofu katsu with rice and sauce, sushi, okonomiyaki, soba noodles with edamame, pickled ginger, pickled daikon and seaweed salad.

Lucky Little Dumplings at Pentridge, Coburg

We were at Lucky Little Dumplings at Pentridge again when we were at the cinema.  We ordered our favourites: sweet chilli eggplant, steamed vegetable buns, fried rice and edamame.  Then Sylvia really wanted to try the dessert of Crispy rice cakes topped with black sugar syrup. It came with a generous amount of powder on top.  She wanted to make sure it was not peanuts.  We were told it was nutmeg but think what they meant was kinako, a roasted soybean powder.

Memoir of a Snail - highly recommended movie

At the cinema we saw Memoir of a Snail, an animated film for adults by the talented Adam Elliot.  He is a local artist who reflects Melbourne and Australia in his handcrafted stop motion.  It was the story of twins who faced one misfortune after another but found sparkle in a grim life.  It was poignant, heartbreaking, intelligent, sad, quirky and dark.  Highly recommended!

Flovie Florist Cafe, Carlton

We visisted Flovie Florist Cafe (261-263 Queensberry St, Carlton) for lunch mid last year and returned in October.  It was not as busy this time, but every bit as pretty with flowers everywhere and good food.  We started with fancy drinks.  Sylvia loved her butterfly pea latte and I enjoyed the chilled Snow White drink of butterfly pea, strawberries and lychee.  I also had a vegetarian version of the big breakfast with great crispy tofu instead of eggs.  Sylvia had the Mexican Loaded Chips without the pulled pork.  She liked the cheese on the waffle fries but is less keen on the onion and capsicum.  We went around the corner to Humble Rays for ghost toast for dessert afterwards.

Luther's Scoops, Brunswick

When Sylvia heard that there was a new fruit pie at Luthers Scoops on Blyth Street by the corner of Sydney Rd in Brunswick, she had to go there.  We shared the rhubarb and custard pie with a serve of vanilla custard ice cream.  It was so good.  And because we happened to be out in the evening buying pie on 31 October we had a drive around streets with good Halloween decorations to see all the cute little kids trick or treating in their cute little costumes.

Halloween Coburg I

I could not believe how busy the local streets were on 31 October with so many kids in cute costumes, so much sweet food and some imaginative decorations.  The above house had lots of decorations but it was the headless horseman that really amazed me.

Halloween Coburg II

This picket fence had one of the most original and creative Halloween decorations in our area.  The silhouettes were very creepy with some bones hanging from the verandah, a couple of tombstones under the spider and a dark pumpkin headed skeleton leaning over the fence like a not-so-friendly neighbour.

In the News:

Pagers, beds and phones: Latest Lebanon attack in Israel's history of bold covert ops, ABC News (the US ABC), 2 October 2024.

Albanese acknowledges ‘terrible pain’ of Hamas attacks in video message marking 7 October anniversary, Guardian, 7 October 2024.  (Also I was fascinated by Roni Eschel's story.) 

Universities under pressure (in UK and Australia) - ABC The Science Show, 12 October 2024.

A life raft for the lonely and a crowded town square: The bond forged over 100 years of ABC Radio Melbourne (anniversary), ABC (Jon Faine) 13 October 2024.

No, we shouldn’t care about the PM’s new $4.3m house — it is a hall of mirrors for media stupidity, Crickey, (Bernard Keane) 18 October 2024.

Indigenous Australian senator defends heckling King (on his visit to Australia), BBC, 22 October 2024. 

Risks of Violence around the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election: A Primer, International Crisis Group, 29 October 2024.

NACC to reconsider whether to investigate robodebt after ‘apprehended bias’ finding against commissioner, The Guardian, 30 October 2024.

Fun links:

MMBW Planning for Melbourne's Future - a1954 video promoting the Board of Works but fascinating for old footage of familiar Melbourne streets.  

Catcerto - a concerto around Nora the cat's piano playing - so cute to watch.

Frog bakes toad's favourite cake - beautiful knitted puppet stop motion by India Rose Crawford.

Bohemian Trumpsody - the Marsh Family's beautiful singing of hilarious satirical lyrics.

Awkward Portraits - I am assuming this company is a reaction to glamour portraits!