Last Tuesday night was very exciting for me. My mum was due to land in Melbourne to spend a week with us. I last saw my mum in September and this is the longest we've been apart. I usually see my parents and sister once every 6 - 8 weeks; Steve and I usually drive up to Newcastle and we stay at my sister's.

Whilst we waited in the arrivals hall I was feeling all jittery and seeing my mum come out from the sliding doors was so nice. We hugged and started walking out the airport when she stopped to fiddle with her coat and bag so I asked what she was doing and she just carried on fumbling and mumbling. Next thing I knew I looked up and behind me and saw my sister stood there with a trolley. And all I could do was stare at her for what seemed like ages. I recognised her but couldn't fathom why she was stood in Melbourne airport. She was a completely unexpected but utterly wonderful surprise and neither Steve or I knew or had any clue. Apparently everyone back home knew and had known for ages but had been briefed to not breathe a word to me or let slip on Facebook! I am mightily impressed by their ability to keep this secret.

So momma and baby brought cases full of goodies as can be seen in the picture above and believe me that photo doesn't take account everything! The list ranged from Wotsits and Nik Naks to caramel digestives, dryer sheets, glass cleaner, shampoo and conditioner, DVDs, Bisto... I'm not actually much of a chocolate or crips eater but not having access to what is an everyday food item in the UK has made me crave for these items!

My workplace has been flexible with regards to unpaid leave etc and it during their one week stay I only went to work for 2 of the days. My mum, sis and I have never really spent such a concentrated amount of time with just each other and we loved it! We ate out lots and I was able to take my mum to some of our favourite Asian food haunts. We also had a nice dinner at Nobu and lunch at Rochford Winery in the Yarra Valley. My mum did some reading and research of her own and suggested we try a place called Dish which was also yummy.

Momma and Baby aren't great sightseeing folk so we enjoyed just walking around the city, doing some shopping, stopping for coffee and cake and just relaxing in each other's company! We actually spent a lot of time watching Chinese DVDs together harking back to the time when we were little and used to do this at home with mum! We thoroughly enjoyed this!

Mum enjoyed the markets and says that the fresh produce over here maybe more expensive but the quality is better and tastes far better. Mum cooked for us a couple of times and we really enjoyed what she prepared so much so that Steve wants me to try out her cooking methods for roast belly pork (char siu) and the pan fried snapper!

You can tell by the pics that we had a great time together and all too soon it was bye bye time. I really miss them and I think this visit has made me miss them more and hanker after my dad too who wasn't able to come. It's going to be a while before I see them all again which is sad. I think saying farewell the first time when we were leaving the UK was easier because Steve and I had an adventure to look forward to and they were off on a family holiday and we also knew that I'd see my mum in a few months. This time saying bye bye, we don't have plans to see each other again so it feels a little harder. Having said that my mum says she really likes Melbourne and wants to return with my dad so more family happiness to come in the future!

After Momma and Baby Bear left, my friend Kat came for the Grand Prix and now we're expecting Steve's parents, brother and cousin to arrive in just over 24 hours!

Well we've had a long weekend, done a days work, picked up my mum for her visit and a special unexpected additional guest in the form of my beloved sis (I call her Shmui) and they've had their first day in Melbourne. Currently jet lag has taken over their weary souls and they are fast asleep and Steve had a long lunch so he came home early and had a nap too!

But for this post I need to go back further to the weekend. Friday saw a frantic finish to the end of the working day (system issues meant last minute panic) and I rushed out at 18:30 to meet Steve at the station to head to Box Hill to meet Ling and Noah for dinner. We had planned to steamboat but the warm weather meant we opted for dumplings. Food was quick, filling, tasty and cheap although service was lukewarm to say the least. We also went to Monga Dessert Lounge afterwards and I am still not a fan of Chinese sweet soup and desserts although I'm happy to carry on testing out this preference! The busy working day caught up with me so had to call it in a night after dessert and head home. A temp of mine once warned me not to hang around Box Hill Station and her words were: "Oh no Minda, bad things happen after 9pm at Box Hill Station." So I didn't really want to tempt fate...

Saturday we originally had brunch plans with Andrew and Stacey with whom we went wine tasting with last weekend (Steve works with Andrew) and another of Steve's colleagues. However, illness and the like meant we had to change plans and the revised plan meant meeting Andrew and Stacey at lunchtime to go to Hu Tong for dumplings. Hu Tong was great as usual in spite of a mix up between pork and prawn. Two bottles of wine later and a stop at Madame Brussels was inevitable where we shared a jug of cocktail before embarking on a spontaneous mini pub crawl that saw us stop off at the Elephant and Wheelbarrow, James Squires (pool playing occurred), Beer Deluxe, Riverland and finally BearBrass where we stayed until it got dark and we needed sustenance in the form of pizza and chips!

Sunday morning saw us chase those hangover cobwebs away with a trip to Greasy Joe's in St Kilda where we met up with Karly and Cam over burgers...very delicious burgers. Karly opted for the Caesar Salad (wedding dress rations) but did steal the odd chip. One drink became a bottle of wine and a few beers and then the rain came down! The day had started off bright and sunny but in the space of 30 minutes the grey clouds had rolled in and the rain poured! A sign for us to head home for the next engagement of the evening...

As part of Melbourne Food and Wine Week, Steve and I had bought tickets to an event at Koko Black which is a gourmet chocolate shop for a Morroccan banquet with matched wines. Upon arrival we were greeted with Turkish Delight Martinis which were pretty and potent before settling down to some soft cheese, flat bread and herb salad. The courses were brough out on sharing platters. The couple opposite us were very friendly and were in the city celebrating a wedding anniversary. Good dinner companions who gave us lots of wine tips and places to visit.

Next up was Melting Fragrant Salmon with Soused Eggplant and Chervil. Not sure what soused means but the eggplant was very thinly sliced so that each slice was transparent and it had a a sweet, sticky flavour. The salmon was done very rare and was certainly melting. The Rare Seared Yellowtail with Iranian Spice and Baby Beet Salad was also delicious having a tongue tingling effect. Honey and Cardamom Duck Breast with Figs and Shaved Bolivian 60% Wild Cocoa came next. Tasty, spicy duck done rare as I like it with a sour sweet marinade. The courses started off good and progressively got better.

Next main courses arrived - Veiled Quail in Vine Leaves with Lebanese Style White Cabbage Salad served with Hazelnut Tabbouleh and Double Lamb Cutlets, Creamy Freekah with Sujuk, Pumpkin, Pearl Onions and Bitter Chocolate-Orange Blossom Jus with King Mushrooms with Crunchy Cocoa Nib Wafers, Shankleese and Sesame. All very tasty and accompanied by big glasses of wine!

Dessert time - Four Orbs on a Bed of Chocolate Soil

Chilli Chocolate Sorbet
Toasted Sesame Chocolate Ice Cream
Pomegranate Doughnut
Chai Chocolate Choux

Followed by Chocolate Cardamom Mousse with Sesame and Pistachio Brittle, Candied Pistachios and Salted Caramel Sauce which by this time I had to pass as too full.

And the last plate were some Koko Black chocolates...

It was fun evening and the food was certainly good. Looking forward to next year's food and wine festival.

Sunday's activites were followed by brunch with Charlotte and Vida on the Monday and a day of household chores in preparation for Momma Chan's visit!

Cheers everyone! It started to turn autumnal this week and Steve and I saw Melburnians bring out their Winter coats and scarves to battle the mid teens temperatures. Our Winter wear is still in boxes and we're not feeling the cold just yet. Work was pretty standard for the both of us. I felt it was a particularly long week with a candidate turning up to interview late, another saying the wrong things, one failed to turn up completely with no notice, clients seemed to be particularly demanding so when Friday was on the horizon I was ready for it!

Charlotte and Nick had kindly invited us to dinner at their place on Friday night along with Emma and Lucy and her fiancé Steve whom we hadn't met before. We soon warmed to him especially after the initial introductions we learnt Steve is a financial accountant, knows his football having worked in London and hates coffee. For those that know my Steve, you'll realise Lucy's Steve is like my Steve's long lost twin. Confused yet?

Dinner at Charlotte's was a lot of fun and we look forward to our turn to host although we have a much smaller dining table and perhaps not as much room... On the menu was a lovely beef and mushroom stew done in the slow cooker so very tender and tasty and perfect for the chill in the air. It was served with polenta and I must say that for a first time polenta maker, Charlotte did really well and none of the guests were any help having little polenta experience between us! Dessert was a boozy chocolate and orange pudding served in pretty martini glasses and topped with pretty orange zest that have been soaked in orange cognac. It was great going to our first Australian dinner party and it's another sign that we are making friends and making Melbourne into our home for the short term.

Rumour had it that Saturday and Sunday were going to be warm days. Not quite believable given the grey skies and chilly breeze on the Friday. However Saturday dawned bright and sunny. After a little lie in I convinced Steve that a nice lunch at Nobu would be just the ticket and it was. As usual the food was delicious and it was very enjoyable. Fuelled by a half bottle of wine, we headed to the Melbourne Exhibition Centre to go to the Cellar Door and Farm Gate event which was on as part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.

I knew it was going to be a good event when I received a text from Charlotte (who was already there with Emma) that read "Best day ever!! About to get sausage! x"

Steve and I had made plans to meet up with one of Steve's colleagues and his wife; Andrew and Stacy who had come to Melbourne from St Albans just before Christmas. The event was very well run with 60 wine producers and other food folk each with their own little white tent set up on a grassy verge by the river. Buying a ticket meant wearing a green wristband and being given a plastic wine glass and then it was a case of going up to each little tent to taste the wine. There was a huge water tank and all the producers had mineral water to rinse the glasses and keep the winetasters hydrated!  People could also walk through for free. There was a nice feel to the event with barrows of fruit and veg and hay bales to sit on adding to the decor. We saw a Chinese man take a carrot from one of the barrows, rinse it under the water tank and then proceed to munch on it! Free lunch I guess!

It was pretty busy but the number of producers meant that we never had to wait to get our glasses filled. There wasn't any uncivilised behaviour in spite of all the wine on offer. Some wine was very good but others not so but great to be able to try so much. We certainly got our $35 entry fee worth. One of the more popular tent was Rebello. They based their products around strawberries so always a winner. They had a strawberry and apple cider which was scrumptious. Also a strawbellini which is a strawberry moscato as well as a champagne made entirely from strawberries and some strawberry liquers. The strawberry champagne was called Charlotte which was great marketing for Charlotte who promptly bought some! We bought some cider and some liquer which I am looking forward to having with soda and some fresh lime; perfect if the weather stays sunny.

After the wine tasting we headed to our "local" ie the Belgian beer bar beneath Eureka Tower. We carried one enjoying the sunshine and our tastes moved from wine to beer and ciders. Dinner was at World Restaurant and as well as Andrew and Stacy, we were joined by Emma and also Matt and Kelly. Matt also works with Steve and the last time we'd seen them was when we had dinner with them at St Kilda when we had first arrived in Melbourne.

Sore head Sunday for Steve! Following the excesses of the day before, unsurprisingly Steve had a sore head and was a bit grumpy. Although credit to him, we managed to clean the apartment before heading to South Melbourne for a mooch around the shops and to get some groceries for next week. Steve and I like Crocs flip flops because they are so comfy and don't look as ugly as the clogs so we went to the Crocs store to have a browse. I had some fun with the giant clog in there as you can see and we also purchased three pairs between us! It was a bit of a shoe shopping day as I found some cool black high heels on sale in another store too and couldn't resist!

Lunch was at a great deli type place called Gas that we walked past. We usually eat from the South Melbourne Market food court and I like the Vietnamese sandwich followed by a dim sim and Steve usually goes for a Chinese but we departed from tradition and really enjoyed it.

Steve's hangover started to get worse - that post lunch lull was beginning to set in so we had a quick groceries shop before heading home and heading to the pool at Eureka Tower. There's a grassy terrace with loungers and seats so we spent the rest of the afternoon there soaking up the sunshine and relaxing with newspapers and magazines.

It's been a good weekend and next weekend is a long one as it's a public holiday on the Monday. And then my mummy arrives on the Tuesday night which is very exciting!