G'Day Mate. Welcome to Melbourne, a city of many cultures (Melbourne)

Member Name: jammaker49

Product:	Melbourne
Date:	06/01/04 (172 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Clean and spacious, ooooodles of shops

Disadvantages: Parking is terrible.

Melbourne. The capital city of Victoria, way down south in Australia. I never would have gone there had it not been for my son choosing to marry a Melbourne girl, and us having to fly over 15,000 miles for the wedding! Having tasted it, and the surrounding area just a little, I will definitely be going back, although not for a while yet!

We spent just 2 weeks in and around Melbourne. I wish it could have been more, as we really only scratched the surface, but as I teach, and was already playing hooky for those 2 weeks, we couldn't push our luck too much! Next time though, it will be for much longer. To go all that way for just 2 weeks is not exactly a waste of time, but you are just getting into the swing of things when it is time to come home!

MELBOURNE ITSELF

Melbourne is situated in the South East of Australia, along the banks of the River Yarra, and close to the various beaches situated around Port Philip Bay. It is close to mountains, and an hour's drive brings you to some of the most spectacular coastal scenery you could ever wish to see. There are many forest areas close by, including Eucalyptus forests, where, if you are lucky, you may get to see Koalas in the wild. Melbourne has a population of an estimated 3.5 million.

Melbourne claims to be of the safest, healthiest, and cleanest cities in the world, and having just been there, I can well believe that claim. Although the very centre of the city is like most other city centres, much of it is pedestrianised, making it safer for those on foot, and the whole area is surrounded by huge parks, and open land.

Melbourne is laid out in a symmetrical, rectangular grid, with wide streets, making it easy to travel form one part to another, and making following a map very easy. It's a bit like Milton Keynes in layout, but without those infernal roundabouts! The only problem we found with this grid system was the sudden one-way systems that don't always seem
to have much rhyme or reason. We soon got used to it though, and travelling around the area was plain sailing.

The Melburnian lifestyle has been greatly influenced by people from more than 140 nations who have made this city their home, creating a rich multicultural society.

TRAVEL

Leave the car at home and use the trams! At least in the centre of Melbourne, and in outlying areas during the rush hour. Parking is at a premium, and difficult to come by. Even outside our apartment block there was disc parking, which meant that if we were unable to get into the very small car park, we had to move the car every hour after 7 a.m. And they are very strict on the parking laws.

Melbourne has a brilliant tram network, and as the roads are built on the grid system, it is very easy to work out where you need to change, and where you need to get on and off the trams. The tram rails run in the centre of the roads, and trams have right of way in the city centre. A one day ticket, giving unlimited travel within zone one (city centre and up to 4 miles out depending on where you were) cost around 7 Aus dollars. There were also tickets available for zones 2 and 3, but we never actually got out that far! The zone one tickets covered more than enough ground.

Around the very centre of Melbourne, the City Circle Tram was completely free. If shopping was your order of the day, then this was the one to use. Once again, furnished with a decent road map, it was easy to establish where to get on and off. One word of warning though. Don't be tempted to use this on a hot day! It gets very packed, goes quite slowly, and is not air-conditioned! Needless to say, we chose a hot day!

Flinders Street Station is well worth a visit. This is located next to Federation Square, and is the central point for all train journeys to and from the suburbs, and even further afield. The station itself is a beautiful landmark, and worth going to see, even
if you have no intention of catching a train!

We did have the use of a car for our second week, and once out of Melbourne, the roads are generally good, not too crowded, and well sign posted. A speed restriction of 80 km is in force on most main roads, and this is strictly enforced, with cameras etc. Because of this, most cars are equipped with cruise control, and it is advisable to use this, even on the freeways.

A toll charge, similar to London?s congestion charge, is applicable on all roads in and out of Melbourne. Top up cards are available in a number of outlets, and you get an audible beep in the car as you pass under one of the toll control machines. Most people buy the cards in advance, but you do have up to 5 days to purchase one after going through the controls. I have no idea what the cost is, as the car we used was already equipped with a prepaid toll card.

Skateboards also abound in Melbourne, but, sorry to say, we did not avail ourselves of this method of transport!

ACCOMODATION

All sorts of accommodation can be found in and around Melbourne, ranging from very basic youth hostels, to 5 star hotels, with prices to match. Much of the accommodation available is in serviced apartments, again in varying degrees of luxury!

The serviced apartments that we were in for the duration of our stay were on the east side of the city, just near Fitzroy Park, and almost opposite the Melbourne Cricket Ground. They were classed as 3 star, and were situated in a 3 storey block, with a small car park (about 6 cars could fit in) in a small side street, away from the noise of the main road.

We had 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, small fitted kitchen, television, telephone etc, and we were very comfortable there. The beds especially, were enormous (at least 6 ft wide) and extremely comfortable. We had no intentions of cooking, so the small kitchen was no hardship. The bathroom had a toilet, and a very small bath (it was
OK for me as I'm only
4 ft 11, but my future son-in-law at over 6 ft could barely get in it!) with a shower over the bath.

Sheets were changed every 3 days, and towels were replenished whenever we left the used ones in the bath (every day in our case!) Fresh soap, shampoo and conditioner was placed in the bathroom every day too.

We also had a patio door leading to a small veranda, which had a table and 4 chairs in it, and which caught the sun nicely at around lunchtime.

My daughter booked the apartment (Knightsbridge Apartments) on the Internet, and it worked out at about £250 each for the 2 weeks that we were there, which I don't think was bad at all. That included all the electricity, daily servicing, and they would even order your shopping in for you if you wanted. The only thing we had to pay for at the end of the holiday was for phone calls, which amounted to around 30 Aus dollars (about £12).

I would definitely use this type of accommodation again, as it gave us the freedom to come and go as we pleased, eat as and when we wanted (or didn't want, as the case might be) and worked out pretty reasonable for 4 of us. Ours was a medium priced apartment block, outside the centre of town, but within easy access of many of the town's facilities.

EATING OUT

Where does one start? Melbourne is a totally cosmopolitan city, and this is reflected in an enormous variety of culinary delights. If you can't find it in Melbourne, it probably doesn't exist!

As well as the vast choice of restaurants from all parts of the world, there are the usual McDonalds, KFC, Burger King (called Hungry Jacks in Australia) but who wants to use those when you can have virtually any dish imaginable?

We found a little back street café just down the road from our apartments that did us beautifully for breakfast each day, offering everything from cornflakes to smoked salmon, and a good choice of teas
to wash it down with! The same café offered afternoon teas, with homemade scones etc in the afternoons.

Many of the restaurants and cafes had tables and chairs outside as well as inside, and this was very pleasant on a warm late spring evening.

A great many restaurants are not licensed, but you can take your own drinks in, including soft drinks, and no charge is made for corkage. The Australians also do not expect a tip, which we find strange. The serving staff are always (or were in our experience anyway!) very friendly. Indeed, we have a picture of our friendly Chinese lady sitting down with us at our table on our last night there!

Most of the hotels and apartment blocks also have a delivery service, where you can phone a central number, a courier will go to a number of different outlets, should you so desire, and bring you your order all in one fell swoop! This was particularly helpful for us, as I eat very plainly, and daughter loves spicy! One night we had an order for pizza, Mexican and Chinese, which would have been a pain for one of us to go and buy, but was simply a phone call way! And it always arrived piping hot.

THINGS TO DO IN MELBOURNE

Shop until you drop! The only place I have seen so many shops in around the same sized area, was Dublin in Ireland. In Melbourne there are so many roads to shop in that you lose yourself! Literally! We spent ages looking for this one shop that we had found the day before, and in the end had to go into another shop and ask them to phone the first one and ask them where they were! On our last day there, I bought 2 pairs of trousers, a cotton cambric embroidered blouse, and a full lined dress for 75 Aus dollars, which was about £35. Also much of the jewellery is excellent value for overseas customers, as you can claim the tax back. My daughter and her fiancé bought their wedding rings while they were there, and hubby bought me some beautiful opals for Christmas (but I chose the
m of course!)

A must visit, is the Aquarium, situated on the banks of the Yarra River. This is an incredible experience, with fish, sharks and all manner of marine life seemingly swimming above and around you. It is a perfect place to go when it gets very hot outside! Don't forget to take your picture standing inside the shark's mouth!

Melbourne Museum is where my son had his wedding reception, and is well worth a visit. We had the pre-reception drinks in a rain forest, situated within the museum, which was absolutely incredible! We ate our meal just around the corner from Pharlap the horse made famous in the film! The museum itself is housed in quite a modern building, but you don?t really notice this when you are in there.

Federation Square is one of the focal and central points, where you can watch the world and his brother pass by. You can wine and dine in the open air, catch a ball game on the giant screen, visit the exceptionally good Visitor Information centre.

There are numerous parks all over Melbourne, each one offering different scenery and attractions. Fitzroy Park was our nearest park and here we visited Captain Cook's cottage, which had been transported to Melbourne from England some time in the 1930s and rebuilt in its current position. The rooms are so tiny, it seems almost impossible to think that someone once lived in them. The Botanical Gardens, over on the South side of the River Yarra, house a tremendous number of tropical plants from all over the world, and reminded me very much of the tropical gardens on Tresco, Isles of Scilly. Each park has its own special character, but one thing remains the same in all of them. Many of the trees are protected by thick plastic sleeves, to stop them being destroyed by the possums! And it is wonderful to be walking through one of the parks, with parakeets flying down from the trees and landing in the grass in front of you.

Nobody should visit Melbourne
without spending at least a full day wandering along the South Bank of the river Yarra. Here can be found all sorts of retail outlets, bars, a multitude of eateries, and some of the best amateur entertainment you will encounter. On a warm, sunny day, we watched native Aborigines in full regalia making incredible music with their didgeridoos, there were people dressed and made up to look like statues suddenly stepping out and scaring the life out of you, and all manner of musical ensembles. Here too, can be found the Plaza Casino, with breathtaking views from the highest building in Melbourne, and with timed fireworks every night lighting the sky above.

Here too, can be found one of the many undercover markets, selling all kinds of unusual items at a fraction of the prices in the shops.

The above attractions are just a small fraction of the many diverse sights and activities that can be found just in the centre of Melbourne. Venture an hour away from the centre, and the choices are even greater.

THINGS TO DO WITHIN A SHORT DRIVE FROM THE CITY

My very favourite trip that we took was along the Great Ocean Road, which takes in some of the most spectacular coastal scenery I have ever seen. You can take a trip in a coach, but we decided to go by car, and we went in the opposite direction to the organised trips. Well, you've got to be different somewhere haven't you?

We travelled to the west of Melbourne, and reached the coast at Port Campbell, about 150 km away, then turned east onto the Great Ocean Road. This was built after the 2nd world war to create employment for the many service men returning from the fighting. Until that time, communication along this coast was very difficult, but the result now is a wonderful scenic road that seems to stretch and wind for miles and miles. Indeed, the next time we go to Australia, I would love to spend a whole week just on the Ocean Road, visiting the many waterfalls and forest
ed areas. We only had time to purely drive along, stopping now and then to take photos of the extraordinary rock formations. On the day we went, the mist had rolled in from the sea, and shrouded the bases of these rocks, yet the peaks were out in the sunshine, creating a very eerie scene.

I'm sure many of you will have seen the film "Picnic at Hanging Rock". We had just that. A picnic at Hanging Rock. Yes, it really does exist in the Macedon Mountain Range, about 80 km north of Melbourne. It's quite a climb up, but well worth the view when you get there. Barbecues are available in the picnic areas, and crimson Rosellas fly all around you. There is even a "tame" wild kangaroo on site, although he didn't put in an appearance while we were there.

Philip Island Wildlife Sanctuary, about 100 km south east of Melbourne is also another must-see place. Here you can roam among the kangaroos, watch the koalas in the trees, spot a possum up a gum tree, and at dusk, watch the little penguins make their nightly trip up the beach from the sea, back to the safety of their nests. Magic.

There are so many more attractions that I could include here, such as the Puffing Billy Steam train, Healesville Nature reserve, the Blue mountains, Mount Macedon, and the Yarra Valley wineries, all within easy reach of Melbourne, and all worth visits. But you can only fit so much into 2 weeks, so I have tended to concentrate on the places that I actually saw.

The only regret I have is not being able to stand in Federation Square, watching the Rugby World Cup Final, surrounded by a load of Australians! Where was I? Up in the air on my way home! I'd have given my last dollar to have been coming home a day or 2 later so that I could have watched that! Next time, Amanda, I'll be doing the flight bookings, and I will make darned sure that we don't clash with any sporting event!


Still, we WON and that makes al
l the difference!

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