Just like home

There are some things here in Melbourne that are completely different that we're used to, and there are a few things that are just like home. We first started to put this together as we entered town (driving on the left side of the road!) and rolled past a Costco. Then, the ubiquitous McDonalds. I've seen Starbucks, too. Just when I thought I'd maxed out on American storefronts, I saw my gym. There's an Anytime Fitness in downtown Melbourne. And I left my pass key thing at home... 

Of course, we want to have nothing to do with businesses we've frequented in the US, so we had dinner at a local pub. 

 

 

That wasn't an American business planted in Australia. It actually looked and felt more like an English pub. 

Also, much like in Dallas, all of the smokers were relegated to the outdoors. This was something I didn't expect, but I was very happy to see. Another interesting fact about this pub was that the male to female ratio was way off. If you look at the photo, you'll have a hard time spotting the few women in the pub. Somehow, my brain made that connection from the gold rush days when most of the people in the city were workers. We learned yesterday that during the great gold rush in Melbourne from 1851-1860, there was a severe shortage of women, since most of the manual labor was done by men. Maybe this pub was a throwback... 

Anyhow, we're off to breakfast, followed by a steam train to the Yarra Valley wineries. Tough life, right?