Australia's second largest city successfully combines the architecture of the 19th century with modern skyscrapers. Lying along the banks of the Yarra River, Melbourne stretches towards the sheltered shores of Port Phillip Bay. A city of culture, Melbourne boasts a number of fine museums and galleries, exciting performing arts and a humming night life. The city has an excellent public transport system.
Cultural Mix The state's capital city is home to a diverse mix of people, reflected in the cuisine of the city. Melbourne has numerous foreign restaurants often found in sectionalised districts: Lygon street for
Italian, Little Bourke Street for Chinese, Lonsdale Street for
Greek, Victoria Street for Vietnamese, Sydney Road for Turkish and Middle Eastern, and Acland Street for
Central European. Brunswick Street in the trendy suburb of Fitzroy is a good choice if you haven't identified your craving and want a range of tastes from which to choose. St Kilda is the seaside hot spot with plenty of restaurants, cafés, bars and nightclubs just off the beach. You might want to head for
Queen Victoria Market which has
over 1,000 stalls selling a wide variety of edibles. The historic buildings, delightful food smells and crowds combine with plenty of atmosphere. Chinatown, developed when Chinese prospectors joined the gold rush in the 1850s, survives as a flourishing Chinese community with an abundance of often excellent Chinese restaurants and supermarkets. You can see the story of Chinese contribution to Australia at the Museum of Chinese Australian History.
Museums and galleries
Be sure to visit the Museum of Victoria and especially the National Gallery of Victoria. Described as the most impressive art collection in the Southern Hemisphere, here you can appreciate some impressive Aboriginal art and take a stroll in the outdoor sculpture garden. There is also the Polly Woodside Maritime Museum, and for a few darker but interesting moments there is the Old Melbourne Gaol, the last haunt of Ned Kelly, the infamous Australian outlaw. The Rialto Observation Deck is a good place to get a view of the city and Port Phillip Bay.
The Victorian Arts Centre, comprising a complex of buildings on the bank of the Yarra River, houses the National Gallery, the Concert Hall as well as the Theatres building, which has three theatres built below ground. The Victorian Symphony Orchestra, Opera, Ballet and Theatre Company all put on productions at this venue. For more cultural entertainment and some architectural delight, take in a show at either the restored 19th-century Princess Theatre or the Regent Theatre.
Link to Hotels in Melbourne
Green Melbourne
Melbourne has a number of parks in which to rest your sightseeing feet, have a picnic or a take stroll. The most impressive of these are the the
Royal Botanic Gardens on the banks of the Yarra. The Gardens have a superb array of plants from many parts of the world these are certainly the best gardens of this type in Australia and, some would argue, in the world. Also worth a visit is the
Royal Melbourne Zoological Gardens where the whole range of Australian fauna can be seen in a rather different manner to the conventional approach to zoos: most old cages have been removed and instead, visitors walk through large enclosures simulating the natural habitat of the animals.
Sport and events
Location of the 1956 Olympics, many of the sportsgrounds lying southeast
of the city centre were laid out for the Games. Of particular note is
the Melbourne Cricket Ground which has a capacity in excess of 100,000
and is the venue of the annual Australian Rules footballl Grand Final,
Australia's biggest sporting event, in September.
There are a number of festivals and sporting events throughout the year
that keep Melbourne on its toes. The Melbourne Cup is the horse race
that brings Australia to a halt each year, and in January you can see
some of the tennis greats in action at the Australian Open. The annual
Comedy Festival, starting on the first of April, the International Film
Festival and the Food and Wine Festival are all great Melbourne
experiences.
Australia's second largest city successfully combines the architecture of the 19th century with modern skyscrapers. Lying along the banks of the Yarra River, Melbourne stretches towards the sheltered shores of Port Phillip Bay. A city of culture, Melbourne boasts a number of fine museums and galleries, exciting performing arts and a humming night life. The city has an excellent public transport system.