Ash Travels on the Trains in Melbourne. Day 2.

Ash Travels on the Trains in Melbourne.
Day 2 - The Sandringham, Frankston, Cranbourne, Pakenham, Glen Waverley, Alamein, Belgrave and Lilydale lines!

6.40 Seddon. It’s dark and I’m tiered. Wonder if I’m more insane than I thought. Was going to take a photo of my squished morning face, only to be met with some infernal beeping and the message “Batteries depleted. Camera shutting down” when trying to turn the camera on. Briefly consider admitting defeat and going home to bed, but luckily I’m apparently made by sterner stuff than that, and decide to just buy new batteries at Flinders Street.

7.00 Arrive at Flinders Street. Run to convenience store for batteries ($4.95) and to Coffee HQ for breakfast (we were out of coffee this morning and I really need some). Get a chicken bagel and a large Long Black (all in all $10.30 – today is already more expensive than all of yesterday).

7.12 Leave Flinders Street on the Sandringham train! The Sun goes up! Looks like we have a beautiful day ahead! The coffee is wonderful! Mood already much better!

7.37 Arr. Sandringham (matey). Very nice! Line: Town centres and houses, good amounts of trees and greenery. Every stop on the line (including the end station) looks like a charming place to live! Also, the sea can be seen (not merely glimpsed) Brighton Beach – Hampton.

7.35 Leave Sandingham!

7.50 Coffee runs out, so I put on the mp3-player. First song of the day is Modern days by The Ark. And the second is Hard Rock Hallelujah! I play it twice.

8.10 Arr. South Yarra. Delayed! Have I missed the Frankston train?

8.15 No! It was likewise delayed! Sometimes those things do work out in your favour… Surprisingly crowded train – I can see that the trains towards the city are full, but why are all these people going out to Frankston at 8 am a weekday morning?

9.10 Frankston! Line: Nice and long! None of that WTF Are we there already?-feeling that was all too common yesterday. Quite ordinary suburbia while in the inner suburbs, but gets better as it goes and the houses move away from the tracks and the shops and restaurants align themselves along the tracks (instead of on angle against it, as usually). Quite nice, especially as one can see the sea between the houses Aspendale – Carrum.

9.15 Leaving Frankston! The mp3-player presents Löss from the musical Kristina från Duvemåla, which is an awesome song if you understand the lyrics… (Two women are fighting over whether the other has lice or not, while a third, oblivious, tells everyone old folk lore about lice… Hilarious!)

10.02 Arrive Caulfield, late! Fall over three teenage boys in my hurry to get of the train, apologise, pick myself up, run for the 10.03 Cranbourne train (on the other side of the station) and make it! All to the tune of I am the black wizards by Emperor.

10.25 Pass Sandown Park – supposed to work there on Saturday. It’s further away than I thought. Means an other early morning…

10.50 Arr Cranbourne! Line: Caulfield-Dandenong is shared with the Pakenham line; flat land, suburbia with lots of parks, lawns and wide streets, some open field. Cranbourne line proper (past Dandenong) has some industries but they soon give way to open fields and country (farms, animals). Sheep and horsies, awesome!

15 min until the train goes back, so I decide to get up, stretch my legs and try to find a toilet. Marvellously enough, I actually find one! Yay!

11.08 Leave Cranbourne to the tune of La Mer / Sarah Brightman.

11.20 Arr. in Dandenong. See the Pakenham train pull in on the other platform, run!

11.25 Pakenham train actually leaves.

11.49 Arr. Pakenham! The line ‘proper’ has the same make-up of (industries, suburbs, country) but grows increasingly country, more farms and animals! Also gets a little hillier, nice!

Getting really hungry now, so it’s a good thing that there’s 20 min until the train goes back. Now if only I can find somewhere to get food… Fortunately, Pakenham appears lots less dead that many other end stations I’ve been to.

11.55 Indeed, lots of supermarkets, cafés and a pub, almost making me wish I’d scheduled a longer break here. Decide for Goody’s Café and Take Away (the place with the cocal-cola sign on the photo), get a warm Chicken Caesar wrap, a bottle of juice and a potato cake ($10.20). Spending lots of money today, but worth it!

12.05 Back on train! Attack food.

12.10 Leaving Pakenham.

1.20 Arr. Richmond. Have missed the 1.17 Glen Waverley, to no surprise as I figured out that was bound to happen several stations ago. Next one is 1.31, putting me 15 behind schedule, can only hope that won’t prove too disastrous.
Buy chocolate from the vending machine.

1.33 Leave Richmond.

1.35 Passing Burnley… Ah, Burnley, the site of my first job in Australia! Now there is no tent in Burnley park, only some bare earth where it used to stand. Sniff.

2.04 Glen Waverley! Line: Pleasant looking suburbia, quite hilly though and so providing a fairly nice view.

2.11 Leaving Glen Waverley, still 15 min behind schedule. Coming home / Iron Saviour.

2.38 Arr Burnley. Off course, the train that just pulled in on the other platform turned out to be the Alamein one, the one that I wanted! Crap! Could have caught up on schedule there! 20 min behind now if I catch the next, still could be worse I guess.

3.03 Leaving Burnley on 10 min delayed Alamein train… In hindsight, I guess my schedule was too tight and bound to fall apart, but it was the only way to squeeze it all in between sunrise and sundown! I can only hope there is still some light to see by when I reach Lilydale.
For whom the bell tolls / W.A.S.P

3.25 Arr. Alamein. Line: Not very exciting, just as one could guess from such a troublesome line. Much like Glen Waverley, but a bit more rugged with more trees, also less hilly so less of a view.

3.35 Leaving Alamein. Should have done so 40 min ago according to schedule, ah well.

3.41 Arr Camberwell. There’s a 3.48 Belgrave so that’s improvement to only 20 min behind! Yay! Well, it’s somewhat delayed off course, but you can’t have everything…

3.54 Leaving Camberwell, and it’s a limited express train, too! Limited express, how I adore thee!

4.00 Passing Box Hill, which is an underground station, how exciting!

4.39 Belgrave! Line is quite uneventful until Ringwood (Lilydale split), then gets better as you can see the mountains in the background as the train travels in the wide dales. The last stretch (past Ferntree Gully) is absolutely stunning! As the train then enters between the mountains themselves.

But does this beautiful end station have a toilet? No, and that’s becoming quite a problem…

4.45 Leaving Belgrave, towards the setting sun…

5.08 Ringwood! Bathroom! Ohmygodfinally!

5.18 Leaving Ringwood in gathering darkness. Luckily, Lilydale isn’t too far…

5.35 Lilydale!! And while there is just enough light to see by, too! Line: Gets increasingly hilly but never really enters the mountains and the real bush, so mostly just hilly with some animals. But the mountains can be seen on the right hand side for most of the journey, so it’s a pleasant view (or would be, if it was light out and I could see properly, I assume).

And there we are! Feeling immensely satisfied! Get of the train, stretch my legs, until…

5.48 Leaving Lilydale! Angelheads by The Ark in the headphones! Now all that is left to hope for is that the battery holds on until I get home…

6.47 Arr. Flinders street, incidentally, almost exactly 12 hours after I was here this morning…

7.05 Leave Flinders street…

7.23 …and am home in Seddon! VICTORY!!!

SUMMARY:

Zone 2 Metcard: $18.40
Food Day 1: $4.40
Food Day 2: $22.70
Batteries: $4.95
TOTAL: $50.45

Stations visited: 29 (14 day one, 15 day two)
Times Metcard validated: 8 (4 day one, 4 day two)
Times Metcard controlled: 0
Times public bathroom visited: 3 (1 day one, 2 day two)
Times when bathroom was needed but there wasn’t one/there wasn’t time: Uncountable

Favourite line: I’d still say Hurstbridge, but I probably need to go on it again to be able to compare it fairly to Belgrave.
Most boring line: Upfield, followed closely by Epping.

What adventure next? Actually getting off the train and looking around at some of the most interesting looking stations! And I still haven’t gone to Stony Point, or Sunbury, or Melton…

Tomorrow: Sleeping in.

…Am I really stupid for getting this absurdly proud feeling in my chest when looking at the Melbourne Railways Map? I feel like it’s a continent I’ve conquered.

Ash Travels on the Trains in Melbourne. Day 1.

(Originally, I was going to guest post this to Em's blog, but then I thought I might as well put it on my own, even as it will be the only thing here. Like, ever.)

Ash Travels on the Trains in Melbourne.
Day 1 - The Williamstown, Werribee, Sydenham, Broadmeadows, Upfield, Epping and Hurstbridge lines.

8. 29. Seddon. The 8.22-Werribee just arrived. Lovely, delays already! The Williamstown train "is now expected in 8 minutes". Also, it's raining.


8.33. Still Seddon. Listen to music while waiting. The first song of the day (on my mp3-plyer set to 'random'-mode) is Legion by VNV Nation.

8. 38. Leaving Seddon! Finally!

8.49. Arrive Williamstown. Verdict on Williamstown line: Short. Quite nice. Very suburban idyll sort of thing.


8.53. Leaving Williamstown! Only 9 min behind schedule. Listen to Hasta la vista by Olexander (that's Ukraine's 2003 ESC song, for those of you not keeping track of that sort of important information).

8.59. Arr. Newport. Changing trains. My Werribee train is to leave at 9.08 so back on schedule! Beautiful!

9.03. Fuck. Spoke too quickly there. Werribee train now "expected in 13 minutes".

9.15. Leave Newport.

9.43. Arr. Werribee. Verdict: Very 'open' line. Industries, sure, but also open fields and some somewhat rugged looking suburbia, but flat land. Nice to see the horizon! Also, the sea can be glimpsed between Newport and Seaholme.


9.49. Leaving Werribee. Appearently this is supposed to be a "9.46"-train, My schedule says 9.51. Now worried there is something wrong with it. (Morning star / Amorphis)

10.27. Arr. Footscray. Change. 7 min behind schedule now due to wait in Westona. We had to wait for the train fram the other direction as there is just one set of railway track between Westone-Seaholme. Gargh.

10.31. Leaving Footscray, on time! (Song of Toreadors / Bizet)

10.40. Passing Sunshine. I applied for a job (in the liquor department of the supermarket) when I first got here, and everyone was horrified. "You don't want to work in Sunshine! It's scary! You will get stabbed to death!" they said. Bah. It doesn't look particulary scary to me...

10.54. Arr. Sydenham/Watergardens. Line: Quite mixed, not very exciting. Some industries, some suburbanness, some open plain. Nicer the further you go, less industries.



Was sort of planning on having lunch here, but apparently there's a train back to the city at 8 past (my schedule says 28.) Decide to have a look around, I could use some coffee at this point...

10.59. Look around finished. Nothing at all promising by the way of food. Pretty much all I can see is an enourmous parking lot and a costruction site. Also, cold and windy. Thankfully, the cold wind has all the refreshing effect of a cup of coffee.

11.09. Leaving Sydenham/Watergardens! Listen to The Most Radical Thing by The Ark. It's a pretty average The Ark song, not their best by any means, but it's still ten times as effective and catchy as The Worrying Kind that they competed in the ESC with... go figure.

11.37. Arr. North Melbourne. Could have ran for .38 Broadmeadows train, but it's worth it to wait, 11.58-train is still 20 min ahead of schedule. Now, time to find something to eat, really.

11.47. Nothing promising within 5 min walk from station. Buy a pastry and a can of coke from the station vendor. Only $4.40 and surprisingly filling! Now if only I could find a bathroom, too...


11.56. Realize there is a bathroom. Too late! Damn!

12 noon - Leave North Melbourne. Love gun / Kiss.

12.10. Pass Moonee Ponds! This is where I rented an apartment when I was here two years ago! Nostalgia! They appear to still have that cheap pizza place by the station, too! Make plans to visit here soon.

12.26. Arr. Broadmeadows. Huh? That was short! Line: Nice suburbia, growing increasingly rugged though. Trees and greenery, and somewhat hilly, so fairly pretty. Broadmeadows is also supposed to be "scary" and "dangerous". Snort.



12.35. Leave Broadmeadows. Shout it out loud (live) / Kiss.

1.02. Back in North Melbourne. Upfield train leaven in 7 min so time for bathroom! Yay!

1.10. Leave North Melbourne, 40 min ahead of schedule! Yay!! Dead Boy's Poem / Nightwish.

1.36. Upfield! Wow, you actrually get the impression that there's something here, like shops, restaurants, people... instead of the train tracks just stopping in the middle of nowhere. Boring line though, but quite varied: first towny, nothing to see really, then opens up to a more suburban enviroment, flat land.


1.47. Leaving Upfield! To the tune of Pick up the bones / Alice Cooper.

2.16. Arr. Southern Cross. Epping train in 4 minutes. This is really going beautifully! ...And now will go straight to hell, of course, as there is no wood on this station. No coffee machine either, shame; I would have fed it my coins as am getting quite tierd now.

2.23. Epping train arrives! Wow, it's one of the old ones! Haven't seen one of those in years, since I was here last. Comfy seats though! No music, as I turned it off.

(Unfortunately I forgot to take corresponding photos of a new train, despite plenty of opportunities, so that you could compare. Maybe I can fix this at a later point.)

At West Richmond two heavily tattooed rocker-type guys, one ~35 and the other ~25, board the train, both smoking home made cigarettes. The older is speaking on his cell phone, attempting to convince a fried to come out with them that night. "Fuck", he says, suddenly, as the tiny stump that is left of his cigarette goes out, and whips up his lighter. Lights it--- "FUUUCK! AURGH!!" he screams, grabbing his nose. The stench of burned nose hairs fills the carriage.

3.08. Epping. No coffee machine either, and don't dare to go on too much of a hunt, as I can't be sure when the train goes back towards teh city. Line: Not very exciting, residental areas, suburbia a little on the rugged side. Can't see the horizon really, even as it flattens out and the buildnings move away from the train tracks as it goes further.



3.14. Leaving Epping, Wishmaster / Nightwish.

3.40. Clifton Hill in the rain. No facilities by the way of food or toilets, even as I would have had plenty of time. Grumpy.

3.50. Leave Clifton Hill on crowded Hurstbridge train, still get a good window seat, go me! Cheered up by that. Over the rainbow / Freedom Call.

4.39. Hurstbridge! Wow! The Hurstbridge line is really stunningly beautiful! Gets better and better the further you go! Gets hilly at first and then almost monutaneous, little houses and communities hiding under the trees (proper bush, not those trees you have for show in suburban areas), the train windles up and down and between the mountains. I try to take photoes once in Hurstbridge, but they really can't do it justice! Gorgeous!

Spend the 20 mins until the train goes back looking around, and buy a cheese&bacon roll and a 'continental eclair' from a little bakery/cafe. Crush on Hurstbridge. Decide to come back for a better look, soon.
5.01. Leave Hurstbridge. Eat my eclair even as I had intended to save it until after dinner. It's really messy but I'm the only one in the carriage so I can be as messy as I want! Hah!

6.03. Back in the city, Flinders street station.

6.27. Leave Flinders street on a crowded, delayed Williamstown train.

6.43. Seddon/home! That's over an hour ahead of schedule (7.52) so good effort all in all!


Tomorrow: The Sandringham, Frankston, Cranbourne, Pakenham, Alamein, Glen Waverley, Belgrave and Lilydales lines! (=getting up at six am. Yay!)