The Namesake and Melbourne Post 8
On Monday night, Heidi and I went to Cinema Nova to enjoy their $7.50 movie night which happens every Monday. We opted to see a film called "The Namesake" which has been out for a while, thus we were duly bundled into a tiny cinema with a comparatively small screen. It was very comfortable, however, and didn't really diminish viewing pleasure at all. In fact, the movie was rather good.Based on the novel of the same name by Jhumpa Lahiri (which I read a while back and enjoyed, but not immensely), the film chronicles a family's migration from India to the US, the birth of a boy who is curiously named "Gogol" after his father's favourite author, Nikolai Gogol. The main thrust of the film focuses on the boy growing up and coming to terms with both his name, and the cultural/psychological awakenings that come with growing up as a first generation American born into a migrant family. The film is very well made, the performances are quite fantastic, especially by the boy's father. Gogol himself is played by the Indian guy from that "White Castle" movie, a fairly different role here for him with a lot more meat, and he handles it reasonably well. Alltogether a good film, go check out - and read the book.
The other cool thing that happened today was that the Arabic Culture club on campus organised a tent on South Lawn where one could smoke shisha and procure Arabic pastries and sweets, all at the nominally low cost of $2 for membership. So I spent around an hour-ish lazing around in the sun with Simon, Kai Yau and Heidi, smoking shisha on the grass and watching campus life go by. Awesome. Gonna be a whoooole lot more of that where I'm going!
Further, I am determined to continue chronicling my favourite activities in and around Melbourne, despite the fact that many of you are either sick of this or skip this section alltogether. This is because I want to look back on these posts when I'm overseas, to remind me of home, and when I return home also to make a heady list of things I need to refresh myself on... so here 's another one, number 8 in the series, this one has a very coffee related flavour.
Pictured above is the outdoor seating area of Tiamo. Tiamo, located on Lygon St, opposite Lygon Court, near the corner of Faraday, is an Italian restaurant that has been there for quite some time now. It serves up a decent mix of pastas, salads and sandwiches and the coffees are not too bad. The reason why you go to Tiamo, however, is for the atmosphere. It is the most atmospheric restaurant in Lygon St because of it's history. Tiamo is the embodiment of Carlton's laid-back Italian attitude to life, the place is plastered with posters promoting events and in Tiamo you will find a veritable mix of patrons, from your Italian gangster looking locals, to families of mixed ethnicity, to Africans from the nearby Commission flats, to tightfisted students debating over a latte. A perfect representation of the eclectic mix that is Lygon St, Carlton. See the indoor seating area below:
It should be noted that, this semester, I have quoted Lygon St as my favourite place in Melbourne. When I say this, however, I refer to the area in and around Faraday St and not really beyond that. This area has Cinema Nova, Readings, Borders, Tiamo, Carlton Yacht Club, Lygon Food Store, Carlton Espresso, Country Road and a bunch of second hand bookshops. Ahhh this is the real Carlton... not the Notturno/Papa Ginos infested area further down the strip.
The picture above is of Atomica, surely one of the best places to get a coffee in Melbourne, I would certainly place it in my Top 5. Atomica roasts all its coffee fresh on premises and also supplies a number of cafes (Animal Orchestra at uni for one). Although the staff can sometimes be a little surly, this quaint Brunswick St cafe's coffee and vibe more than makes up for it. They were playing hip hop then blasting heavy metal rock when I was last there... the latter made me rather unhappy but it was all worth it for that espresso. Pictured below, by the way :) with their cool logo on the cup.
And finally, upon introspection, pictured below are a few of my favourite things, taken in Laurent (a French-inspired cafe/boulangerie franchise) in Church St, Brighton, not far from where I live.
And while the cappuccino pictured is not usually my coffee of choice... coffee, the paper and my camera for random snaps, sitting outside a cafe on a sunny afternoon, who could ask for anything more? Well maybe a Cinzano...Labels: film, food+drink, melbourne
posted by LX @ 12:29 AM
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