North Carlton

Above are some pictures of our neighborhood, North Carlton, which we love. It is a neighborhood of wide streets and Victorian cottages (the first and last pictures are typical), many of them with their names carved into the ornate plaster work that trims the roof. Some are tiny old workers cottages, and others are quite grand. There are cafes, newspaper shops and milk bars (small convenience stores) everywhere. The strip of shops above is right around the corner from our house. There are even two 24-hour, drive-thru florists in our neighborhood. If you can tell a society's priorities by what they make available 24-hours a day and by drive-thru, then Melbournians prefer begonias to burgers.

The third picture is inside Jake's school, which looks like it was built in the 1930s or 40s. It is beautifully designed. The big central hall has high windows with stained glass trim that flood the building with light. The classrooms border the central hall; Jake's classroom is at the far end on the left. What you don't see in this picture is the loom that is currently set up and staffed by parents so that kids can try their hand at weaving, or the little garden right outside. I noticed that the water fountain had a sign in kid scrawl pasted above it which read: "No way sting worta." Nothing like phonetic spelling to illuminate the intricacies of the accent. Its funny what Australians do with Rs: they add and substract them liberally. So there is an R in the middle of "water" but not at the end. There is a kid at Jake's school named Conner Miller, which they pronounce Conna Milla (make the vowels sharper and it could almost be Bostonian). And the fascination with accents works both ways of course. We heard that Jake's classmates are all trying to imitate his American accent, and another parent told us that her son said that Jake's accent sounded "very clean."

Australia, like the U.S., is an old colonial outpost, and therefore, also like the U.S., it tends to lack the grandeur and old-world charm of Europe. But more and more we are seeing and appreciating the charms that are distinctly Australian. The people are open and warm and kids are welcome everywhere. The city is dotted with majestic Eucalyptus and Gum trees. Its seems like people are always stopping for coffee or a cup of tea. We are relaxing into life in Melbourne and starting to really love it.