It’s well past noon and, other than making French toast for breakfast and doing a load of laundry so that we can pack tonight, I’m completely unmotivated.

We’re both just plunked down on the couch.

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What we’re learning, two months into our current 5 month trip, is that 7-10 days in a city is NOT enough for us.  I could have used more days eating New Zealand ice cream in Wellington. We could have used an extra week in Adelaide. And it feels as if we could use a month here in Melbourne; the sheer variety of galleries, museums, parks, and theatres is daunting to face in just a week.

We keep finding new sites to explore and activities to do, and there’s really just not enough time – nor is our energy level up to the task.

Ted will undoubtedly correct me and say that it’s me doing that learning, because he already knew it.

Yesterday we (well, I) foolishly thought we could do 2 fairly big things in one day AND have dinner with some fellow travellers.

As it turns out, the only thing we did well was the dinner!

Sure, we got lots of photos, and learned a few new things, but a slower pace would have been more rewarding.

It’s too late now, 40% of the way through, to change this Round-The-World itinerary’s pacing, but I’m already glad we’ve chosen to “stay put” in Mérida Mexico for 3 months next winter. 

In the meantime, I may simply need to reconcile myself to not doing everything on each of the wish lists I created for every stop.

And today? Nothing planned beyond enjoying the view from our 18th floor windows, and a quick stroll around the Spencer Outlet Centre down the street, where Ted surprisingly found a New Zealand ice cream vendor in the food court (yes, we both had cones), and I – not surprisingly – found a great deal on shoes: exactly the kind of simultaneously flexible and pretty sandals that I’d been looking for.

Since an item in means an item of the same suitcase volume out, my cheap rubber thongs (I still have a black pair for the beach in Greece) and the fabric trainers that I’ e been carrying around fir 2 months without wearing once, will be left behind in favour of these metallic leather Hush Puppies. My world cruise friend Linda, who inspired me with her gorgeous metallic trainers that simply looked great with everything she wore, will hopefully be proud of me.

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We just sat around for the evening, had a late supper, and packed. Tomorrow we board a Jetstar commuter plane for Canberra.