Monday April 4th to Wednesday April 6th, 2011
Just for reference, one of the first things I saw when I arrived in Melbourne.....Starbucks. While yes it is true that you don't see them on every corner like you do in other cities......you never have to go more than 3 steps to find a coffee shop. Melbournians are total coffee junkies.
Monday, April 4th, 2011
But forget that. I finally made it Melbourne after what can only be described as a very long overnight bus ride. The french girl next to me kept falling asleep on me. And there was no space to spare. Lucky for me I had the aisle seat so could stretch my legs out a bit. I slept a lot but not a good sleep. I got into Melbourne by about 0800 which as far to early to do much so I slowly found my way to my hotel. I couldn't check in yet but I was able to dump my bags before heading out. I found a latte (not hard in this city) and some brekky (yes I've been in Australia long enough that I can call breakfast that) and then made my way to see a few things.
Naturally I found Parliament House First.
One of the beautiful lamps that sits out front of Parliament House.
From the steps of Parliament House here is a look at the City Circle Tram. If you don't know, Melbourne is home to a tram network, that run like buses, but drive like trains. The City Circle is a free tram that travels by (or at least close) to many of the cities tourist attractions. There is also some commentary to give tourists a bit of information about the city.
I did have to wait a bit (they don't actually let you inside until just before the tour starts. I'm not use to that. Most Parliament Houses are public spaces so you can come it whenever you want......you just can't wander around) but eventually I made it inside and onto a tour. The building is very beautiful. It was constructed between 1856 and 1930. As most, it was completed in stages (when there was money). You can certainly tell when they had more money as some rooms are a lot fancier than others.
The front entry way. Through those doors you will find Queen's Hall.........dedicated to Queen Victoria.
This is the Legislative Assembly (The Lower House) of Victoria. But of course you knew that already (because of the green carpet) and if not......you clearly do not actually read this blog.
A few of the Waterford crystal chandeliers that decorate the Legislative Assembly. Each one contains 3972 crystals, 42 light-bulbs and weigh 2 tonnes. The Assembly Chamber was constructed in 1856 in the middle of the gold rush. It happens to be decorated with 23 karat gold leaf.
Inside Queen's Hall. This room is actually a hard place to visit as a tourist. It is very often hosting functions like press conferences and meetings and even weddings.
This is the Legislative Council (The Upper House). Not decorated as much as the Assembly chamber because by the time they got to this room, the gold rush was over and they had no money.
The outside of Parliament House.
Once my tour was over I was.......well very tired. So I took a nap for a few hours and then headed to the city centre for some food. Melbourne is a great city with lots of cafes and coffee shops and most things are open late.
Lots of things to see in the city so I have a lot of busy days ahead.
Tuesday, April 5th, 2011
Today I woke up with the plan to visit a few different places. My hotel was about a 15 minute walk to the centre of the city (very nice price for such a close proximity). My walk took me through Fitzroy Gardens. A very nice quiet place, where you're not allowed to ride bikes so you can stroll quietly without the risk of being run over (which often happens with bikes......apparently in Australia, no where is safe for pedestrians, not even the side walks).
This is the model Tudor Village you will find in Fitzroy Park. This model was a gift from the people of Lambeth England to the people of Melbourne in thanks for them sending food during the food shortages after World War II.
My destination was the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. It is free to get into but I was heading there, and was planning on paying to see the temporary exhibit. Of course I couldn't take pictures inside but that isn't actually an issue because most of you will already know most of the images I saw.
Favourite museum exhibit ever!!!!!!! And quite possibly the best museum exhibit ever!!!!!
The Disney exhibit takes you through the history of Walt Disney from Mickey Mouse's first appearance in November 1928 to the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in December 1937 (the first feature length animated film) to the most recent releases including some of my favourites like The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast and the The Princess and the Frog.
The exhibit was broken down by each movie and gave information about the creation of each film, how the animation has changed, the origin of each story and of course a sampling of the movie (mostly the music). It was a lot of fun but a little hard not to sing along with all the songs. I never get tired of the songs.
I really enjoyed reading the comparisons between the Walt Disney version of the stories and the original much darker Brothers Grimm version of the stories. The Brother's Grimm wrote their stories based on old folk lore so the stories were often very scary and even gruesome. Obviously Walt Disney made the stories a little more family friendly.
I smiled when I saw some of the videos with Walt Disney (the man) talking about animation methods and some of the things the studio was doing. I smiled because I had seen those videos before.....on Sunday nights back home in Canada as a kid. Watching the Wide World of Disney on Sunday nights was a routine in our household.....and I'm sure many other Canadian homes as well.
Once I finally left the exhibit, I made my way to the rest of the Centre. I can't lie, I didn't enjoy it as much. It was really loud and there was too much stuff going on in one place. I went into stimulation overload and just couldn't handle it. But I took a look at everything and then moved on.
My next stop was at the National Gallery of Victoria (Ian Potter Centre). One of the many free galleries in Melbourne (and right next door to the Moving Image Centre), it certainly was a very different atmosphere to the Moving Image Centre. So quiet and so relaxing. Here are a few pictures from it.
This is John Olsen's "Summer in the you beaut Country". Olsen is an Australian born artist who spent many years living in Europe and North America. This is one of the many works he completed upon his return to Australia.
This is "The king is in his counting house" by New Zealand born artist Colin Lanceley. I think it looks fun.
This is "Model for a sunken monument" by Ricky Swallow. In the background on the wall you can see Peter Booth's "Winter".
These are difficult to see but they are pictures of disappeared aboriginal peoples. The collection has been put together by Brook Andrew. They are Galang-galang (locust), Dhaaguun (earth), Muuruun (life), Buunan (dust), Galiyn (rain), Ngalan (light).
A look at the evolution of men's fashion. Looks kind of like something Don Cherry would wear.
This is Inge King's "Black Sun" and Stanislaus Ostoja-Kotkowski's "The Planet". Do you know which one is which?
The view from one of the back windows. Yes that is a Ferris wheel. No I didn't take a ride on it.
That is Thomas Robertson's "Hobson's Bay". Not sure what the one in the background is.
This is "Father and Child" by artist Yosl Bergner. Born in Warsaw, Yosl fled Nazi Germany as a young man arriving in Melbourne in 1937. He resided in Australia until 1948. According to the museum information he moved to Israel in 1950 (not sure where he was for a couple years) and is perhaps still there today.
At the bottom of the stairs you can see "Perseus" by Lenton Parr I think it is a perfect place to put a piece of art.
Once I left the Gallery I tried to head to the other National Gallery of Victoria (International).....but it was closed on Tuesday (who knew) so I would have to go another day.
Outside the International Gallery. They seem to be pointing at something.
Perhaps it is this they are pointing at. It was in the right direction. I never got the name of either of these 2 pieces. There were a few others in the area as well.
One of the many clocks of Flinders Street Station. Flinders Street Station is one of the main railway stations in the city. It's been around since the early 1900's.
Wednesday, April 6th, 2011
Wednesday morning I got up early and made my way into the city to meet a tour van. If you don't already know, Australia is quite the little wine producer and there are a few different areas of the country the make a few different types of wine. The Yarra Valley is just a couple of hours outside Melbourne, so I took an afternoon to hop in a van and get driven around to a few different wineries.
Actually a pretty good deal, you get your transportation, tastings at 4 or 5 wineries (we made it to 4) and lunch at one of those wineries (and a full glass of wine with lunch) all for a decent price. Makes for a great day.
This is the first winery we visited, Oakridge. A very pretty spot.
It is good to note that at each of these 4 wineries we could be expected to have the opportunity to taste 10 or more different wines. So it was important that we all pace ourselves. I learned that the hard way. Much different from wine tastings in other parts of the world where you only try a few.
A few of the vines in the area. Don't ask me what type of grapes they are growing.
A view from one of the other wineries. Sorry I don't know which one but after Oakrdige we visted Dominique Portel, Tokar Estate (where we ate lunch) and De Bortoli (where we also tasted some cheese).
I like the one in the middle. Sadly I couldn't afford it.
In the gardens of Tokar Estates. A beautiful place.
Lunch. An amazing lamb shank. Just melted off the bone. Scott would have been impressed. And it was certainly welcome after all the wine. Plus once we left here there was still one more winery to visit.
I managed to find one wine to bring home (well send home....I'm not heading back to Darwin just yet). I bought a bottle of La Boheme Act III - Prino Gris and Friends (the friends are Riesling and Gewurztraminer and a few other varieties.) It tasted good at the tasting (although I did have a whole lot of other tastes before that) so hopefully it will be just as tasty when I actually drink it.
And well, after all the wine and the food, I was ready for some sleep. Thursday was going to be another very long but enjoyable day.
Julie
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