Those of you from Boise will know that smell that the sagebrush covered foothills get after a long-overdue rain. The Eucalypts, like the ones pictured, get a very similar, though even more overwhelming smell after a rain. They are such remarkable trees. They have this exfoliating bark, reminiscent of Crepe Myrtles (in fact, the Eucalytpts are in the Myrtacea (Myrtle) family. According to Wikipedia, Australia has over 90 species of Eucalypts, and the ones in Royal Park are quite common. Still working on the exact species. The leaves are olive or willow-like, and below is an image of a branch that fell during the storm. Beautiful, isn't it?So we had this lovely cool day, and I decided to spend it tooling around the area, looking for a yarn store and a clay studio.
Voila. Successful on both fronts, and the folks at both were wonderfully friendly. I can start at the clay studio any time (though I've yet to figure out how or if I'll bring any work home), and the yarn ladies invited me to join their knitting group on Saturdays and/or the local spinners group! All lovely. Here's an interesting thing about folks in Melbourne. I had initially though that people were quite stand-offish. Certainly, few make any eye contact, God forbid smile on the street. But here's the thing. As soon as you connect. . .be it a bartender, a shoe salesperson, a yarn lover or a potter, they are warm as toast. Honestly, I have been so welcomed in that situation. Just takes some patience and figuring-out. 
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