By BRIDGET COOK
STAFF at the Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne were left bemused and amazed on Friday when an Italian tourist turned up to check out the Australian Garden.
Not because he was an international visitor, as the garden attracts people from across the globe regularly, but more because of how he got there.
The man had ridden all the way from Melbourne CBD on one of those fixed-gear hire bikes that are common in the city.
He had two friends with him who made the trek, but they did it a lot easier on electric bicycles.
The Melbourne Bike Share website said the bikes were designed for short trips around the CBD, so a 60 kilometre trek out to Cranbourne would probably not fit that description.
And it would have been a costly affair due to having to pay by the hour, with the trip taking at least three hours without factoring in the return trip and time to enjoy the garden.
Since the bikes didn’t have lights and the visitors didn’t have any high res gears on, staff suggested it’d be safer to ride to Cranbourne train station and hop on a train back to the city – sound advice the tourists took on board.
Staff said the lovely fellow even offered his autograph to the bemused staff in the visitor centre on his arrival.
Staff did not manage to get the man’s name or contact details, but took a few snaps so they could share their bemusement with others.
