The guide book

When I moved over, my friend Fran gave me her copy of the Melbourne Compact Street Directory (6th ed). It's a solid 500+ pages of information. I enjoy flicking through the pages, trying to orient myself in this new city. Occasionally I spot something interesting - it told me that one block from my house, is a velodrome. I went to check it out, and it seemed pretty disused, but I found a way in. Many of the map symbols it uses are unexplained, and I think tomorrow I'll try find out what a flag with 'Indian' signifies.
It's been a handy tool to have as I make my way around the city. It helped me get down to Brighton where I bought a bike from a guy who had studied in Christchurch. I trained to Flinders before cycling home (~15km). I'd planned to buy a smart phone, but the combination of the book, my willingness to explore, and the kindness of strangers has been all I need to get around.
As I'm (slowly) becoming more familiar with the streets, I'm becoming rather familiar with the book itself. Waiting at a stop, a girl asked me if the 55 tram went down Flemington. I had a look at the tram map, before expertly flicking to Map 369, confirming that yes, it did. 'You're pretty quick with that map book', she said. 'Well, I do use it a lot' I replied.