A semester in Australia.

Thanks to the lovely people at Popsugar Australia, I won two tickets to a Gold Class screening of My Week With Marilyn for Thursday evening.

On Thursday it rained. No actually, it stormed. And I foolishly didn’t own an umbrella at this point in time.

So when I left my house pre-screening (with over an hour and half to spare for a half hour journey) I exited in an entirely weather inappropriate All Saints dress and a disposable poncho workshopped into a waterproof bonnet. It was quite some look that unfortunately was not documented on camera.

I ran for the tram in my makeshift outfit. Got on it. Realised I had no change to buy a ticket and subsequently got off the same tram at Coles – about five minutes down the line – with the intention of buying a Metcard and an umbrella. I dutifully did both and sprinted for a passing tram only to get stuck on the other side of the road with the tram driver apologetically shrugging at me as the rain poured down.

Anyway… I caught the next tram. And then it stopped. It stopped behind a broken down tram.

(THIS WAS MY THIRD TRAM INTO THE CBD – TWO OF WHICH HAVE GOTTEN STUCK BEHIND BROKEN DOWN TRAMS.)

So after waiting for the tram to be fixed. Then walking for a bit. Then getting on another tram which was only going half of the journey. Then getting off that tram. Waiting for another tram. And getting on another tram. I eventually sprinted onto the platform at Flinders Street and hopped on a train to Camberwell.

This was where my luck changed. After loudly ranting to Lucy about my journey and how my Metcard had bent and wouldn’t even go through machines, a kind guy gave me a working Metcard he’d found next to his seat. Then another guy – who was clearly loving our entertaining conversation – reassured us we were on the right train and told us it was only a ten minute walk downhill to the cinema.

So eventually, an hour and three quarters after I left home in Brunswick West, I arrived at the art deco style Rivoli cinema in Camberwell for the screening.

It was definitely worth the trek.

We were greeted with canapes and free drinks all nice (although there is a limit to how much juice I can consume) and then led into the cinema. Gold Class doesn’t exist in the UK, but basically it’s where a cinema is converted to have fewer seats (probably only 30-odd) that are all individual reclining armchairs. Considering my actual bed is just a mattress on the floor, these chairs were something else.

The film itself exceeded expectations with a great British cast (the accents were homely) and the fact we were served a two course meal in the cinema definitely added to the enjoyment. We shared Fish and Chips and a Red Thai Curry, followed by a Sticky Date Pudding with Butterscotch sauce and a flourless chocolate cake.

YUM.

So yes, Gold Class is fun. I probably wouldn’t ever pay for it myself (a ticket without any food/drink is thirty-odd bucks alone) but I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for more opportunities to get more tickets.

Thanks Popsugar!