Melbourne's Sporting Highlights

Well my last few hours in Melbourne, in Australia for that matter, are drawing to a close.
With my last full day in town I decided to hit the streets and see what I could find, I know the hotel was within walking distance to two hallowed grounds for sports in Australia and I was able to not only find them, but do tours at each. Rod Lavor Arena plays hosts to the Australian Open tennis tournament every year and the Melbourne Cricket Ground is one of the oldest sporting venues in all of Australia and both were fun to see up close in person.
The tour of Rod Lavor ended up being a private one as I was the only one who signed up for the 2:30 tour, so that was kind of cool. The picture above is of me in the post-match press conference room holding court with the imaginary throngs of media I had to deal with, the tour guide got a good laugh over my antics as she took the photo.
The Melbourne Cricket Ground tour was interesting all together, I still don't really grasp the whole idea of the sport, I mean how can you call it a sport when they have a "tea break" and a "lunch break" and some of the "tests" can last as long as 5 days, are you kidding me? But still I can appreciate history and people who rise to the top of their game. The ground was actually used as a military base during WWII as a staging area for U.S. soldiers, who about them apples?
You can see all the photos of the sporting tours, click on the headline above:
After the tours I took to the streets of the city where I came across the "Shrine of Rememberance" which is kind of a WWII memorial but encompasses a lot of the country's military history.
My journey, at least in terms of photos, wrapped up with a visit to St. Patrick's Cathedral. There is a lot of Irish influence down here, and there is a funny story about that, ask me next time you see me, and the cathedral is a perfect example of that. The native "blue stone" used to build it really gives the church a characteristic you won't find at any other St.Patrick's.
To see photos of the surroundings of the city, including the cathederal, check on the blog entry below for the link.
Well it is Thursday night in Melbourne, I am all packed and ready to go, I am going to hit the poker table in hopes of doing two things :a) winning some money and maybe even playing against riegning World Series of Poker champion as the Crown is his "home" casino and he reportedly got into town yesterday and b) staying up as late as possible to try and sleep for most of the plane ride to help me suffer as little jet-lag as possible upon my return. But, as they say, the best laid plans. . .
Cheers and see you all soon.