The date idea has been sitting innocently in our date ideas generator for years now. I see it every now and then and resolve to go along. When the Y date idea in our alphabet dates arrived, I couldn’t resist any longer.

I didn’t tell Den about it ahead of time – I find that if he has a preconceived notion of a date, he’ll bag it right away. It’s part of him hating to leave his comfort zone. I’ve made the mistake before of telling him where we were going when I knew he wouldn’t like it – it doesn’t bode well for a fun date. He gets all negative about it before he’s even had a go (Ten Pin Bowling and Strawberry Picking leap to mind). Usually, once we’re there and in the midst of it, he loves it.

We rolled up to Federation Square, Melbourne CBD. The middle of the city on a Sunday morning. Lots of people around to witness the ridiculousness (and yes, it is purposely ridiculous) of our little Laughter Yoga group.

The concept is simple: Laugh for no reason. The laughter leader takes you through a series of exercises incorporating breathing, rhythm and fake laughter. Pretty soon, the laughter stops being fake and turns to real laughter. You move around the group during your exercise, making eye contact with other members in order to contagiously spread the mirth.

I always laughed hardest when I caught Den’s eye – him too. Mostly because we were, I’ll admit, slightly mortified at what we were doing acting like lunatics on a Sunday morning in the middle of the city. It was hilarious. I caught Den wiping away tears of laughter at one point.

The practice goes for about half an hour, then you regroup and decompress – an important part of the process.

Straight afterwards, I felt light and happy and great. Then I crashed a bit – a common side effect if you don’t “ground” yourself enough following the session. I felt wiped out, frustrated, angry and sad all at once. There were a few tears. I wasn’t myself the rest of the day. I’m an emotional person at the best of times, and this had clearly stirred something up. Looking online, I found it was normal to clear away some bad emotions. I’m sure with more frequent practice, you can get to the feeling good bit.

Regardless of that, it was still a fun date. It met all the requirements we need – under $30 (free, in fact!), something we’ve never done before and something that pushed our comfort circles.

We made a little video for you to see. Find a laughing club near you and try it out!

“X Marks the Spot” – but first you need to plant the “X”

The Date Idea: Hire a metal detector and comb the beach looking for hidden treasure.

THE IMPORTANT BIT: Plant your own treasure! Stupidly I didn’t realise the potential of this date idea, I think it’s often a short coming many have when taking out a date. Had I taken more thought with this date and buried treasure for Emma to find, it would have produced an amazing surprise! It’s quite a thrill to discover something cool.

The Con’s: Any more than 10 minutes of searching in the sand is boring if you don’t find anything. But once you’ve found something, and it doesn’t matter what it is, you may not want to stop!

The Pro’s: When you find something, it’s exhilarating, it’s infectious!

How to make your date fall in love
with this date idea!

When Burying Treasure For Girls:
- If you’re not sure what your partner will like, buy cheap accessories, like ear rings, rings, belts or bracelets / bangles.
- If the accessories have no metal components bury bottle caps with the treasure for the metal detector to pick up.

When Burying Treasure For Guys:
- Money Clips are cheap to find on ebay, or you can get creative and bury a 6 pack of beer, or something funny that’ll make him laugh or impress!

It’s easy to bury anything really, even delicate things that are packaged up in a box, even zip locked in an airtight plastic bag to avoid the sand and moisture. Make sure you add metal to the packaging so the detector can pick it up.

Decoys:
Use decoys to keep your date interested, and have want to search for more:
- Bottle Tops
- Coins

How To Hide Your Treasure So You Can Find It Later:
Plot out a section of beach. In the summer months I recommend areas of beach that are not too busy. If you’re hiding valuables, do so during the winter months as beaches are rarely used, and ensure that you bury your treasure at least 5 – 8 inches below the sand.

Bury treasure the morning of or the night before you take your date out.

Begin with a reference point, a landmark… maybe a sign post or bin nearby that will help you locate the area of beach when you return the following day.

Bury your main treasure first, make sure it’s not too close to the shore line as wet sand may give you a false reading, and you don’t want the tide to come wash your treasure away (if you haven’t buried it deep enough). Also the tide may wet your treasure.

Scatter a couple of coins 3 to 5 metres away (about 7-10 feet) from your treasure. I’d scatter them towards your marker. Only use 2 coins, you don’t want your partner finding coins all day.

Again, another 3 – 5 metres away, scatter some bottle caps even closer to your marker, so it’s easy to find these items as soon as you step onto the beach.

This will help you understand and locate the main treasure much easier. And will make it much more fun as your partner starts finding more valuable things as they move closer towards your buried treasure.

About the Metal Detectors:
I hired the metal detector from Aaron Zanussi at Metal Detector Hire Melbourne located in Melbourne, Australia. Aaron was awesome to deal with – he gave me lots of info about what to expect on the beach…Aaron mentioned that people usually hit the beaches in the summer months looking for lost rings and valuables, so in the winter time it’s rare to find anything fun – and in most cases bottle caps will be found, all true. Aaron thoroughly explained how to use the metal detector, it’s easy, a trained monkey can do it.

Aaron’s hire out of the metal detector will break the $30 Date Night budget. It’s $40, with a $100 deposit which is reasonable. I highly recommend this date idea; but only if you take time to bury treasure. You know your date will be thrilled when they find something. You’ll have a blast!

BEFORE THE DATE: Dialog Between Denis and Emma .

Denis - “ABC Dating, we’re up to O. I’m choosing to do orienteering, or rather Geocaching. Ya, I know it really should be G, but I’m bending the rules a little.”

Emma - “Really? Sounds geeky, isn’t geocaching on par to those who dress up in medieval clothes and role play?”

Denis - “LOL”

So I’m excited about this date idea, I’ve already downloaded geocaching app (by Groundspeak Inc) for the iphone – $12.99 and I’ve created a free profile. Go to geocaching.com to set up your profile and details on how to get the app on your phone.

I announced the geocaching date idea to Emma, clearly it didn’t sound like her thing, and it receives the welcoming (see right) most people give to date ideas they think will flop. Before any of our geek friends are offended it’s important that I point out Emma is a geek at heart. Don’t let her cutsie girlie appearance fool you – she’ll probably out-geek anyone reading this blog.

WHAT IT GEOCACHING
Use a GPS device to find something small like a box or container, this is called a cache (see pics). Inside you should find a log book and possibly a novelty item. You sign into the log book, and can take the novelty item IF you replace it with something else of equal or greater value.

DEVICES
Hardcore enthusiasts will use a standalone GPS and plot the cache location via coordinates. This is perfect for the bush – if they want to log their find they’ll then go to geocaching.com and add the details to their profile.

I on the other hand am going urban – using my iphone via an app (android phones have an app too) that tells me where caches are located in my city, google maps guides me. Easy? Not so, even tho you know where the cache may be located you still have to find its secret spot, usually not in plain view. The iphone lets me log what I’ve found and can give me tips, hints and even spoilers if it’s getting hard to locate a cache.

GET INTERACTIVE
Some caches include travelling items… items that may have a mission. You can get involved and help the item get to its mission by finding out where its next home should be and get it there. Of course everything you do can be logged at geocaching.com, or you can play anonymously and just search.

Sound like fun? I think so… I’ve downloaded the app, I’ve set up my free profile and I can see there are caches less than 200 metres from my house… now Melbourne if you could only stop raining so I can set this date night up…

Ok, ready? Let’s Go!

Melbourne has finally turned on the weather today… a beautiful 28 degrees Celsius, perfect for urban Geocaching. With coffee in hand we started looking for the first cache, we worked our way to ACDC lane, named after one of Australia’s rock band pride and joy – AC/DC. The iPhone app said that the cache was easy to find, but we had no idea what we were searching for, 20 minutes later we used the cheats via the app and found the cache.

Second cache found us only a couple of blocks away… this was different type of cache all together, called a nano cache and it’s super tiny! Inside is a rolled up piece of paper in which you log yourself in and then put it back. (see very top pics)

We missed a few other caches because there were too many people around and we didn’t want to expose the caches, or look like baffled fools staring at pipes and walls. And one cache in particular was simply too hard to find. We spent 25 minutes looking around but no prize

It’s been an awesome day, trotting around the city checking out the lane ways, graffiti art and playing secret squirrel in the warm summer sun. After the purchase of the Geocaching app, I still had $17 left in the budget to blow. Enough money for a fine lunch Laurent Bakery – cnr The Causeway and Little Collins Street.

We loved this date idea so much that we’ll be making our own $30 Date Night caches for Melburnians to find. I’ll keep you updated.

Ideally, I would have liked it if we got up earlier and searched the city around 8am. All CBD’s are super quiet on weekends at that time but Emma enforces a strict no getting out of bed before 11am policy on weekends. If you’re trekking through the city geocaching take a camera, you’ll grab some beautiful shots amongst buildings and artwork. Have breakfast afterwards, use that time to enter in your finds and photos to share.

Guys, get into it! It’s a lot of fun exploring your city… there are millions of caches all over the world, and highly likely that you’ve got some in your city. Some caches will include interesting facts/history about the location and surrounding of the cache.

Ice Hockey
Go see an ice hockey match! The sport has become more popular in recent years. Even our hometown of Melbourne has a league! And we’re a long way from Canada.

Ice Skating
If the violence of Ice Hockey isn’t your thing, try taking to the ice yourself at an ice skating rink. Glide along gracefully hand-in-hand… assuming you nor your partner is a barrier-grabbing nuffy like mine is. When we went, I skated around the rink by myself while Den staggered along on the outskirts being lapped by 6-year-olds. Too cute. Grab a hot chocolate afterwards to warm yourselves up.

Ice Cream
It’s a simple date, but a lovely one. Pick a warm day and get some ice cream scoops from your favourite place then take a long walk together.

Italian Food
What’s not to love about Italian food? Head to your town’s Italian district or find a great, cheap Italian restaurant with authentic food and pig out on pizza and pasta together. Spaghetti with meatballs always reminds me of that scene in Lady and the Tramp!

Indian Food
I love a great Indian curry with naan, pappada and a mango lassi. Indulge either out at a restaurant or with takeaway at home, followed by a Bollywood movie to top it all off.

It ticks all the boxes as far a great date night goes for us – something new we’ve never done before, cheap and above all, fun, giving you something to talk about while on your date. (Because let’s face it, some weeks, if you and your partner have seen an awful lot of each other, you can run out of things to say unless you’re keeping it fresh.)

So I promptly registered for everything that films in our hometown of Melbourne. Given we’re not a huge city, we were limited to a select few shows – mostly entertainment and game shows.

Then we received a call from Deal or No Deal.

You need to be patient about this date as the process of application and auditioning can take a few months. Best to register now and then wait it out to see what happens. I kept it a surprise from Den until I got confirmation for the audition day just to make it a bit more exciting.

Audition day came and went without much fanfare… in fact, it was a bit of an anti-climax on audition day. Line up, have your photo taken, fill in another application sheet and then sit down to meet with the producers who have a chat with you to get to know you, and process your application. We left not sure what to expect next. They told us the wait could be up to 6 months before we got to a filming.

If you do get into the filming, there is no guarantee that you’ll make it onto television. With 150 people in the audience, there’s a five-in-seven chance you’ll get to hold a case and have a punt at $500 for guessing the case right. There’s a 1-in-35 chance that you’ll be THE person picking the cases off for the chance at $200,000.

They film quite a few shows in a row, so it’s a long day. They provided a yummy lunch and lots of laughs by way of the crowd-warmers that throw jokes around behind the scenes all day. Not every filming will take so much time and energy, but the key is to keep your spirits up as they are always looking for animated people to jump onstage. Which means you have to be over-the-top cheesy most of the day if you want them to notice you.

Guess what? They picked me. Most profitable date night ever! Unfortunately, as you’ll see here, I didn’t get anywhere near the $200,000 I could have had. But you know what? I had a ball doing it! It pushed our comfort circles way out (particularly the night it was going to air when I was nervous as all-hell.)

To check out the events as they unfolded behind the scenes and on national television, see below.

The last video only had room for about 30 seconds in it – to spare you the watching (and me the uploading!) I’ll just tell you – I had the $4,000! So after all that bad luck there was a little tiny light at the end of the tunnel. But despite kicking myself for days afterwards about choosing the wrong case (Why didn’t I pick Den’s birthday, or my father’s birthday? We could have had $15,000! Or $20,000!), in the end it was a great date night.

I recommend it – it’s a barrel of laughs!

And if you’re good at something, like general knowledge, why not try your hand out at an actual game of skill? Or if you have a favourite television show that you watch all the time, attend that together for a great insight into how it’s made. Television is a fascinating process if you’ve never seen it before.

Date Night Rating Overview
Romance Factor: 0/10
Cheese Factor: 10/10
Fun Factor: 10/10 (assuming you get on as a contestant… otherwise I’d give it a 7/10 fun factor)

B is for Bowling
Sounds corny? It totally is. This is one of the cheesiest dates out there and we love it! Bad shoes, bad hot dogs and bad lighting all make for a fun date for two.

A nice twist on this date is to find a nightclub bowling alley with neon balls and dimmed lighting for a (slightly) sexier bowling option.

B is for Board Games
Feel like spending a night in? Crack open a bottle of wine and pull out your old Scrabble or Trivial Pursuit set.

B is for Baking
Have some fun in the kitchen together whipping up a tasty treat! Cookies, brownies, a cake… whatever you make, make it from scratch (especially fun if you’ve never tried it before!)

B is for Bubble Bath
Assuming your tub is big enough for two; and not overrun with rubber duckies and the like, then a relaxing bath could be just the perfect date to end a long, stressful week.

Clean the bathroom (we like to use baking soda and vinegar so no harsh chemical smells linger), remove all traces of children’s toys and set up some candles and music.

Take a trip to pick up some luxury bubble bath and a bottle of champagne, then unwind in the tub together.

B is for Bar
Find a chic, sexy bar with appropriate lighting and nestle yourselves into a corner together where you can share a few glasses of wine and some bar snacks. Go midweek and find out when happy hour is or what specials they have on during the week so you don’t break the bank.

B is for Bingo!
No longer the domain of the blue rinse, couples need to reclaim the bingo halls for themselves! This is a great date – hilarious and comfort-zone-pushing all at once. Check out our review of this particular date idea here.

(NB: If cheesy, no-frills bingo halls really aren’t your style, find a local bar that puts on a themed bingo night to up your coolness stakes.)

B is for Bookstore Date
Take your date to a bookstore café and send them to find their three favourite books from the shelves. You do the same, then meet back in the café and spend the evening chatting about them. Why they were your favourites, how they influenced your life, where you were when you were reading them, etc.

Use the books as a great conversation starter if you don’t know your date well, or a great conversation starter to learn something new about your longterm date.

B is for Bicycle
Whether you go bicycle made for two or separate ones, this is a lovely date idea for a fine, sunny day. Take a leisurely ride to a picturesque spot (stick to bike trails if you’re novice – away from the roads is best!) and have a picnic or stop for ice cream once you’re there. Whimsical and romantic all at once.

B is for Beach
Oh I love a day by the seaside! Pack your towels, sunnies, suncream, magazines or a good book and a huge beach umbrella and spend a day with your toes in the sand, playing in the waves. If you’ve got the, ahem, balls then you could even consider the nudist beach.

Any other B date ideas I’ve missed out, daters?

And how go my other alphabet dating couples?

If you’re thinking of Alphabet Dating, now’s a great time to start. You can check back in every week to get ideas, or just head straight over to $30 Date Night and see what’s doing over there that interests you.

A is for African Cuisine
Find a local African cafe that serves traditional food, eaten with your hands in true African style.

A is for Acrobatics
Attend a local circus or tumbling course together and learn something new!

A is for Airport
Head to the viewing area of your local airport and watch the planes come in. Take a picnic with you to make it even more special!

A is for Apple Picking
If it’s apple season, find a pick-your-own orchard where you can spend an afternoon among the fruit trees. Take your spoils home and bake apple pie together afterwards.

A is for Art Gallery
Take your date to see an art exhibition or to a gallery opening!

A is for Arcade
Cash your $30 into coins and be big kids again at a video game arcade with your sweetheart for date night!

A is for Audience
Become part of the audience for a fun live TV show. Apply online – it’s usually free – and go see behind the scenes at a TV studio. If you go for a game show you may even win some money!

A is for Automobile
Take a cruise in your automobile with your sweetie by your side.

A is for getting Arty
This is a great at-home date if you can’t leave the house because you have children. Pick up some paper, professional graphite pencils and take a quick online tutorial on how to draw. Then have your partner pose for you while you sketch an arty image of them. Take turns posing! You may even convince them to let you practice your life drawing if you’re lucky!

Got any more dates beginning with A for us?

The ABC Dating trend has been bandied around for awhile now. We’ve heard of couples that have done it themselves, it’s been written about in the media and now?

Denis and I are going to attempt it.

So on top of our usual date night parameters (Being a $30 Budget, taking it in turns to organise the date nights and making sure we date once a week) we are now Alphabet Dating.

It’s pretty straightforward – we start with a date that starts with A (i.e. Going to an Art Gallery) and work our way through B, C and the rest until we get to Z (Which will undoubtedly be a trip a Zoo of some sort).

It starts tonight… stay tuned for the update on where we’re going and the review. I’ll also be listing great date ideas by letter for the next 6 months as we go!

We’re looking forward to it. And hey – if you feel like your love life needs a metaphorical Berocca, why don’t you join us in our ABC Adventures?

You know what everyone? Get over it.

It’s VALENTINE’S DAY! It’s a chance to show some appreciation to your sweetie. And the beauty of it is that there’s nothing to stop you also being romantic the week before, the week after or any other of the 364 days of the year.

As for what to do to mark the occasion, you don’t have to fall prey to spending hundreds of dollars, or paying a 300% mark-up on a bunch of roses to be romantic.

The key to it all is to stay away from the crowds. Dinner in a restaurant full of couples straining to carry on conversation does not a good night make.

Here are our top 5 low-key Valentine’s Day date ideas that will chalk you up some serious brownie points.

1. Plan a picnic
Go to the markets or a beautiful gourmet deli in advance and stock your picnic basket (traditional wicker ones are the most romantic by far) with yummy soft cheeses, chicken and salmon patties, pasta salads and fresh fruits. The inclusion of a few pretty cupcakes and a piccolo of French champagne (don’t forget the glass champagne flutes – plastic cups are tacky) will top it off perfectly.

Then find a quiet garden where you can recline in the sun on a picnic rug together and while away a few hours. A great picnic activity come in the form of this tiny little box from Kikki-K stationery. These Love Conversation Starters will have you laughing, reminiscing and chatting in no time. They’re a bit cheesy, but put that aside and enjoy it for what it is. You never have to tell anyone!

2. Take a Rowboat Out
Spending an afternoon in a rowboat conjures scenes from The Notebook. That’s a win. Find a quiet waterway that will rent you an old-fashioned wooden rowboat. It’s secluded and sweet. If it’s a hot, sunny day, make sure you provide a parasol for extra romance factor. You can pick up a brightly coloured paper one from Chinatown for about ten bucks, and if you wrap it nicely that can be her Valentine’s present.

To add some extra wow-factor, take a picnic with you. (But, guys? Leave the fishing line at home.)

If you really want to live up to the movie, you’re going to have to find hundreds of pure-white swans. Take some day-old bread and feed the ducks instead.

3. Champagne Breakfast
Knock their socks off before they’ve even gotten out of bed. You’ll need to prepare in advance. Plan a menu and go shopping the day before for ingredients. Blueberry pancakes, smoked salmon omelettes, croissants and fresh fruit are all great options. Get a bottle of champers and a red rose and serve a beautiful breakfast in bed.

The keys to making this even better include you cleaning the kitchen after you’re done, and making sure that the tray or the table that you serve your breakfast on are set impeccably.

4. Celebrate the Chinese New Year
This year, the Chinese New Year falls right on Valentine’s Day. February 14 marks the start of the Year of the Tiger – signaling a prosperous and strong year ahead. Book a table at your favourite Chinese Restaurant for Yum Cha and take your Valentine to drink tea and eat dumplings. It promises to be a festive date, and if you head to your city’s Chinatown no doubt you’ll be treated to Chinese drums, dragons and a street fair.

Before you get there, look up your own Chinese Zodiac signs online and print off the information. Then spend your meal reading out your horoscopes for the year ahead, or your compatibility ratings between your signs.

5. Rub-a-Dub-Dub
Tell your Valentine to plan for a night in with you. Then go about getting everything you’ll need to pamper them senseless.

If you can beg, borrow or steal a massage table then great. If not, the bed will do or even sitting upright on the floor in the lounge. You’ll need towels and oils. Cold Pressed Sweet Almond Oil is best, available from a health food store, or you can drop into Lush and pick up one of their delectable massage bars (the chocolate one is a favourite!)

Dim the lights, light some candles and play some chilled music. You may choose to start with wine, chocolates or a plate of fresh fruit to help you both unwind first. Then surprise your Valentine by offering to give them a massage! The key points to giving a great massage include going slow and using an open palm instead of your thumbs. Click here for some more thorough massage tips from our very own Denis Merkas.

As much as Emma is going to hate me saying this, I’m going to say it anyways… Emma has some expectations about the dates that I take her on… and… at times, she’s HATED the date idea before it’s even started.

So if I think the date idea is going to be crappy, well… I get nervous…

These days I tend not to give the date idea away – a surprise is always best. Actually, I usually dull it down so her expectations are so low that no matter what we do there is a chance that she’ll like it.

Plane spotting is one of those dates that could go all too terribly wrong! We drove out of the city, on the freeway and through toll-ways! I NEVER go through tolls – but I was chasing the sun so time was not on my side. As soon as we hit the freeway out of the city, Em’s was like “we’re going to the airport aren’t’ we?”

I was like (jokingly) “Dammit, stupid shit, $#%^en how does she know these things! …yes dear plane spotting it is. How’s that sit with you?”

Em’s – “I’m cool with that… are we going to make out?”

( LAUGHTER )

We had a great time! Check the vid out to see what we saw… Enjoy.