One thing most visitors fail to note before stepping into the Australian sunshine is, how hard it bites.

Please, please do yourselves a grand favour and slap on sunscreen. The sun is far stronger than it is in Europe - I know, I lived in the UK for 6 years and lay on a few European beaches amazed that I turned brown, not bright red in minutes.

So, don't be decieved into thinking you'll be okay. Getting sunburnt in Oz is not fun and it does not take long.

Enjoy my lovely city, drink lots of great coffee at the many local cafes [avoiding the few Starbucks that are struggling to convince us we need their muck] and remember, its just a GAME!!

Coffee
-Journal 253 Flinders Lane
-Pellegrini's 66 Bourke Street

Sunscreen
Available everywhere...

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As an Aussie who lived in Manchester for 5 years, the only answer to the prepackaged lunch ordeal had to be, Shlurp!

Tucked away on Brazennose Street, opposite the town hall, Shlurp offers wonderful homemade soups, tasty salads and wonderful wraps - all made on the premises daily. It also serves the best coffee in Manchester - coming from a Melbourne-born coffee snob, that title is not lightly bestowed!

Lucy, who owns and runs Shlurp is passionate about food and people - what a combination!

The food is affordable and fresh, give Shlurp a go and say hi to Lucy from Claudine!

Unit 2, Brazennose House
East Brazennose Street
Manchester, M2 5BP
www.shlurp.co.uk

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There is nothing like eating by the beach, but when the beach is St Kilda the only place to eat in Melbourne is The Stokehouse. Fab food, laid-back atmosphere and literally a hop, skip and a jump to the sea. What more could you want?

Just so you feel like you fit in, I'll give you a couple of tips. Lunch at The Stokehouse should be eaten downstairs in the Bistro because the buzz is better. Also, you are seated by a waiter, who takes your drink order then leaves you to contemplate the menu which is on a board by the kitchen. This is also where you order and pay and collect your cutlery. Sounds like a canteen but it is a brilliant system which works. You meals are then delivered to your table by the staff.

I'd skip the deserts at The Stokehouse and wander down Acland Street for the best ice-cream on the planet - 7 Apples. It is at the top of Acland Street on the right-hand side. I dream about this place.

30 Jacka Boulevard, St Kilda; www.stokehouse.com.au/

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Melbourne is Australia's coffee capital (due to a large Italian influx in the post-war years) and therefore we studiously avoid all coffee chains and only drink our coffee in cafes. The wonderful Johnny owns a cafe in Flinders Lane called Journal.

The other thing about coffee in Melbourne is that we have our own names for each kind. An espresso is short black, a latte is a flat white, an Americano is a long black and a cappuccino is, um, a cappuccino.

Shop 1, 253 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

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I love breakfasts in Melbourne but some places are more special than others. My personal favourite is Mario's. The breakfast is second to none and the coffee is excellent and served the way it should be.

303 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy; Take tram No 11 which runs down Collins Street; Open: Sun-Wed 7am-Midnight, Thur-Sat 7am-1am

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