Petalsweet in Australia Part V...Melbourne and Home

I was very sad to leave my friends in Brisbane (read all about our fun in Part IV below), but it was getting close to the time I was due to head back home to the States, so I was also excited to get going to my last stop in Australia. I flew from Brisbane to Melbourne with plans to spend a long weekend in the heart of the city visiting new friends, and letting them show me all of the things they love about their home.

Melbourne is a gorgeous city with a lot of European influence. There is an incredible mix of beautiful old architecture and churches along with very modern buildings...but they feel and look as though they both belong. The streets and lane ways are filled with smartly dressed city-dwellers and hundreds of little outdoor cafes where you can enjoy time with your friends and the fabulous people-watching...

Beautiful churches:





Contemporary skyline:



The very modern Federation Square:...the civic square in Melbourne:



Cafes and lane ways:



My lovely and very gracious hosts were Mignon Daymond of Cake Face, and Kerrie Giannakis and her daughter Molly of Love at First Bite Cupcakes. I had spent the previous year connecting with them via our Facebook pages and was thrilled that they might have some time to show me the sites of Victoria. All are incredibly talented cake decorators and sugar artists, and it was such an absolute pleasure to spend time with them! Little did I know they would put aside most of their other responsibilities and take the time to share so many amazing parts of Melbourne! From sun-up to way past sun-down...for the entire three days I was there...we walked and talked and laughed and ate...and ate some more...and I loved every single minute!

Mignon, Kerrie and Molly:



Mignon had just moved in to her new cake studio...and I had the wonderful opportunity to spend some time visiting with her in her gorgeous new creative space:





Kerrie and Molly were excited to see Mignon's space as well...and we had a fabulous time talking shop, and sugar flowers, and all things sweet:



My heartfelt thanks to Min, Kerrie and Molly for taking such wonderful care of me while I was in the city...and for taking so much time to share beautiful Melbourne with me. It was such a pleasure to finally meet you...and I feel so incredibly blessed and grateful for our friendship. xoxo

Here are a few more photos of my weekend tour...

Walking along the Yarra River:





The beautiful Birrarung Marr Park on the north bank of the Yarra River:



The iconic Acland Cake Shop window in St Kilda - a favorite beachside suburb of Melbourne...and yes, we just had to "force" ourselves to go inside and try something yummy to go with our afternoon coffee:



Dinner and desserts in Carlton with another dear and gorgeous new friend Tish...the dessert counters and cake displays at Brunetti's are legendary:



In the amazing Cake Deco shop in the city...it's a tiny shop that is wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling cake decorating supplies...so fun! This was just one tiny corner:



I also had the great pleasure of finally meeting Fran McGregor, who is an amazing cake artist in Melbourne. Fran and I connected through our Flickr sites and social media, and I had been a huge fan of her beautiful work, Cakes by Francesca, for well over a year...





Fran is now working on an amazing project called The Cake School, and will be teaching and hosting many different kinds of cake decorating and sugar art courses. We had a wonderful breakfast meeting at the adorable Firehouse in Ringwood, and Fran graciously gave me a tour of the new facilities in progress at the school. Thank you so much, Fran, for the lovely day AND for sharing your exciting new adventure with me! x

And then...

Just like that...

It was all over and I was heading back home to San Diego...



My heartfelt thanks to all of my wonderful new Aussie friends and colleagues for all of your time and thoughtfulness, and for taking such amazing care of me during my 7 week adventure. And thank you so much to my many students who were eager and excited, and grateful and kind...and very talented! I hope to be back soon...

And thank you to my fiance, family and friends for their endless encouragement and support...truly, I am blessed.

Thanks so much for stopping by...

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