On the Coast – Over 55 Issue 32 I November/December 2019(clone) | Page 28

Rendezvous
Melbourne
Senior heads south
W
e are thrilled to be back
in groovy Melbourne. For
this weekend sojourn, we
stay at the Rendezvous Hotel. Built
in 1913 as the Commercial Travellers
Club, this heritage-listed hotel has been
refurbished and retains the ambience
of the Edwardian period throughout
its immaculate guestrooms and grand
suites. The Rendezvous ticks all the boxes
for us, with its hip amalgam of historic
stained-glass exteriors and high spec
tasteful interiors with all the modern
technologies. Not to mention robes and
slippers and other comfy hotel treats.
Paul’s letter to the Corinthians 9:4. "And
tell the porter I want one of your columns in
my room"
Mrs Pictures' jaw drops to the plush
carpet as we enter our suite. Not since
our digs at the Beacon in Manhattan,
have we experienced such an amalgam
of taste and historic luxury. Our suite,
with its balcony overlooking historic
Flinders St Station, is all muted tones,
with fat olive curtains as tall as mainsails,
chic glazed pots, all perfectly lit from
cavernous ceilings. In the corner of our
suite I spy a Corinthian column, revealing
the hotel’s provenance, as our suite
was originally the dining room of the
aforementioned Commercial Travellers
Club. And although we are opposite
the main train terminus in the city,
noise is tempered by tall double-glazed
doors. Everything in our suite has been
planned for our luxury and comfort. The
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O N T H E C OA S T – OV ER 5 5
to find the cool vibe WORDS BY DORIAN MODE AND
PHOTOGRAPHY BY LYDIA THORPE
bathroom is all Hollywood glamour and
the room, artfully partitioned, houses a
king-sized bed and posh linen that invites
you to flop backwards and smile, as if
scuba diving from the stern of a dive-
boat. The room is so lush we spend more
time than we would in a hotel room.
Wrapped in scarves like hijabs, we
brave the icy Melbourne spring evening
and descend the grand oak staircase to
stand beneath the hotel’s centrepiece: the
Art Nouveau Grand Dome. However, at
the first floor, our descent is blocked by
a cadre of siliconed blondes in towering
heels. It’s like the casting for Love Island,
I think. And seniors, guess what? It’s the
casting for Love Island. A producer hands
me a clipboard and quizzes me. “Are you
here for the casting?”
“I’ve been married 30 years. I’m
already cast in the production of Tolerated Acceptance Island”. She looks
at me blankly as we squeeze through
the silicone and into the chill of the
Melbourne night.
God, we love Melbourne! The streets
are a hive of people looking for cool bars
and good times. We find ours in one of
the iconic Melbourne laneways aptly
named Highland Lane, where a Scottish-
themed bar beckons. It’s only 4pm but
it’s Melbourne’s Happy Hour. At only
$5 a throw, we soon re-enact that iconic
Ealling Comedy, Whiskey Galore. We are
the oldest people in the bar but Frank
crooning, “Young at Heart” fills us with
hope. Later that evening, staggering from
the whiskies, we dine early at the posh,
Taxi Kitchen. It’s all louvred windows and
stainless steel. This upmarket restaurant,
overlooking the Yarra, impresses with
its Asian-infused traditional cuisine.