Smith & Daughters: Fitzroy, Melbourne.

We celebrated Alanna's birthday at the newly opened—and wildly raved about—vegan restaurant Smith & Daughters in Fitzroy. The décor was beautiful, the people were awesome, the food was amazing and it was clear we weren't the only ones in love: there was a steady and regular stream of patrons all night long. It certainly lived up to the hype.

For a restaurant that had only been open a week, it was a bustling success. If you live in Melbourne or you plan on visiting, definitely eat here at least once, even if you're a carnivore—you won't be disappointed.

Happy Valley: Collingwood, Melbourne

Upon reading about Happy Valley in The Design Files a few weeks before our trip, I knew I had to go. I wasn't let down: there were rows upon rows of great books, everything from classics to cooking; an abundance of quality gifts, ceramics, homewares and more. It was so beautiful I didn't want to leave (I actually went there twice within two days). If you're looking for something "Melbourne-esque" to take home as a gift and you aren't the type to shop at a tacky souvenir store, this is definitely your destination.

Lucky for those of us living outside of Melbourne, Happy Valley has an online store.

Melbourne photo diary.

Some snaps of Melbourne (aka photos of buildings, street art, bicycles, coffee) from our trip four weeks ago. We spent most of our time catching up with old friends and didn't do as much exploring, but it was, as always, nice all the same.

Slumber Safari, Werribee Open Range Zoo.

Last Friday, on our second last day in Melbourne, we went to Werribee Open Range Zoo for their brilliant Slumber Safari, which I read about in Peppermint a few issues back. I booked this trip 6 months ago, an anniversary present to Martin who was still recovering from surgery at the time. Now here we were again, a week after my own surgery and our last little trip before his second surgery—the fifth in his lifetime—on the 1st April.

When I went through these photos I was left with 400 final, edited shots. There were so many photos I loved of our stay that I found it almost impossible to choose which ones to post here. It was as amazing as it looks; guinea fowl and bunnies and kangaroos roaming freely, exotic plants scattered throughout the lush green zoo grounds and of course the wide expanse of the savannah, with all the animals grazing and wandering gracefully through it. I felt as if I was in some other place, and it was easy to forget the Melbourne CBD was just 45 minutes away.

Our return to Melbourne: Part Three.

Before we flew home, we explored as much of the city as we could, both at day and at night. These are more moments in the city, from the laneway art to the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. Trying to capture it all was like trying to see and do and taste everything all in our short stay: impossible, and we can never get enough.

Read: Part One / Part Two / Part Three

Our return to Melbourne: Part Two.

We awoke to the buildings around us enveloped in dramatic cloud. The icy morning left swiftly, leaving us blue skies for our drive to Mornington. I took it all in: the wind through our hair and being out in the sunlight, the bright beach boxes dotting the peninsula, giving me look at what could have been, had the weather been warmer and it had been summer.

Read: Part One / Part Two / Part Three

Our return to Melbourne.

Melbourne: a city so nice, we visited twice. In our first three days, I captured moments within the city, the LGBT rights rally in front of the State Library of Victoria, and a wonderfully brisk, 12 degree day spent at sunny St. Kilda, where a nice lady walking her dog told me about a house a few blocks away that had dozens and dozens of rainbow lorikeets.

As usual, our journey began with coffee...

Read: Part One / Part Two / Part Three

A Love Affair with Melbourne: Part Three

Part Three brings you our weekend around the city, stopping by Little Cupcakes and visiting the ever popular Degraves Street. We continued our culinary education at Lindt Cafe and Haigh's Chocolates, enjoying mochas, hot chocolates and macarons. Sunday brought us to Federation Square for Mark-It Designers' Markets, where we marvelled at the handmade, intricate and eco-friendly creations from some of Australia's best designers and made plenty of purchases.

Our last night in Melbourne and Martin's birthday were celebrated at the famed Cutler & Co, where we thoroughly enjoyed an 8 course degustation together with a brilliant wine matching. There was a surprise pre-dessert course thrown in, followed by one of the most brilliant mochas I have ever had.

After packing our bags on our final morning, we took a leisurely stroll along Albert Park and Chapel Street, having a quiet lunch at Morris Jones, taking in the chilly air and the scenery one more time.

To complete our Melbourne posts, I made two separate videos: one for agIdeas and one for Melbourne in general (the general Melbourne video just has a lot of food in it. Sorry.). The Melbourne video isn't as in depth as I'd like it to be but that's pretty much because we only had time to eat our way around town. Next time, it'll be different; hope you've all enjoyed the series.

Part One // Part Two // Part Three

A Love Affair with Melbourne: Part Two.

Part Two brings you the second and third days of agIdeas, the coldest Melbourne May day in a decade, lunch at The Bridge and The Boatbuilder's Yard, and the best burgers we've ever had at Huxtaburger.

Part One // Part Two // Part Three

A Love Affair with Melbourne: Part One.

Last Tuesday, Martin and I began our love affair with Melbourne, to attend the renowned international creative conference, agIdeas. Albeit both being first timers to the city aptly named the capital city of graphic design in Australia (to which we have both frequently received a chorus of "and you call yourselves creatives?!"), I didn't have a doubt in my mind that I would love Melbourne. I just underestimated the extent to which I would.

The colourful cacophony of street art; the cosy, bustling laneways; the chilly air; the visually impressive boutiques, cafes and restaurants; the autumn leaves that reminded me ever so much of my first home away from home, New Zealand—I did all I could to take it all in, so fast-paced and fleeting, stopping at every moment to record it through the lens, my eyes searching hungrily for the next brilliant thing.

I took my 40,000th photo on my 5D MK II (only one and a half years old) in Melbourne, recorded 1,310 videos and took 922 photos. Video is still yet to come: after only having returned on Monday night, I haven't yet even had a chance to take a look at the videos. There may appear to be a lack of photos from agIdeas itself, but a majority of my video will be dedicated to agIdeas.

In the meantime, enjoy the first chapter of our journey through stills. Our journey began with our 5:55am flight, our first Melbourne brunch at Dukes Coffee Roasters, our first Melbourne tram ride (during which I got caught between the tram doors), and ended with the first day of agIdeas, visiting The Hungry Workshop's wonderful Melbourne studio, and having delicious Middle Eastern pides with them at The Moor's Head.

Part One // Part Two // Part Three