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Having explored east of the Hyatt on our arrival, I got around to checking the western direction this afternoon, and stumbled upon a convenience store and outlet mall REALLY close by, the latter of which has a food court (which apparently closes at 6).

Got my mobility scooter this morning. The woman from the Melbourne mobility centre was incredibly helpful and nice.

Here's a photo of the scooter.

Walking is easy on the brain and hard on the legs. Using the scooter is the reverse, the level of concentration required is somewhere between walking and driving, and by the time I got back to the hotel after my excursion I needed a mental break and did the rest of my (much less taxing) exploration on foot.

It's fairly easy to use though the turning circle is significant and I suck at three point turns, so tight spaces are a hassle.

Cam showed me how to get to the nearest train station (Southern Cross) and showed me the IGA there. We then figured out how to catch a train with a scooter: go to the front so the driver can see you and ze(*) comes out and gets the ramp, making sure to tell them when you're getting off. The woman from the mobility center recommended giving zer a post-it with the destination so ze didn't forget but I got by without one.

We got off at Flinders Street Station and Cam showed me where the Coles is on Elizabeth Street before going off to do his own shopping. I got some tasty sushi at the sushi place next door then went into Coles, which was entirely accessible (at least to someone who can get out and reach things as necessary) The scooter could hold two bags of shopping plus my backpack, unfortunately I had three bags of shopping (including some bulky storage boxes) so some rearranging and eating-of-lunch was required. But it was still WAY less effort than carrying it all by foot.

I got lost on the trip back (no help from a local who sent me off at right angles to where I should been going) these giant Melbourne train stations are confusing! But other than that, and a bit of bumping into ticket machines and edges of aisles it was pretty drama free. We managed to find space to fit it into the room but it would be tricky in a smaller space.

(*)"They" really didn't seem to fit in this sentence.