The City Of Melbourne

As it was 3am (Fiji time) when we eventually got to our motel on the outskirts of the city of Melbourne, we decided to take a long relaxed lie in the following day. After our fantastic long lie we got up and took a tram into the city centre. It was an enjoyable ride watching the tree lined avenues and parks flash by as we made our way into the city, passing Melbourne University on route. As we got closer to our stop we kept checking our map to confirm where we were, we must have looked like completely lost tourists as an friendly older gentleman across from us asked us where we were going and helped us confirm the correct stop. He got off at the same stop as us and chatted to us for about 15 minutes about the best things to do in Victoria and around the city. It was great to get some local advice, as we have not planned our trip in to much detail.
 

On our new friends advice we decided to first explore the Royal Arcade, a small beautifully designed shopping arcade, which was Australia’s first ever shopping mall. Under the arcade’s golden arched roof the mall is now filled with unique shops, from a board game shop, to a mystic shop, to a art studio dedicated to Dr. Seuss. We wondered through enjoying the sights, before coming to the Block Arcade, which was home to a fantastic array of smells and good-looking food. With our stomachs rumbling we made it half way down the street before stopping in front of a nice looking Italian, Olio’s, which had seating outside in the sunshine. We took a seat and ate so much good food that by the end we couldn’t eat another bite, even though our plates had food left. After the re-energizing lunch we headed out to find me a replacement jacket, which after some searching were successful. It was lovely to walk around the city, we found Melbourne had such diverse and interesting cultures and buildings it was a joy just to walk.

Not wanting to stay inside on such a sunny, if slightly cool day we headed for the parks on the side of the main city centre. We stopped at Fitzroy Park, which is home to Captain Cooks family home, which was transported all the way from Yorkshire. We took a look inside the small but well put together house and small museum and were blown away by Cooks ability to find places in the middle of the uncharted Pacific. By the time we finished with the museum the sun was setting so we headed back to our motel for an early night before our flight to Tasmania the following day.