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Australia's second-largest city, Melbourne, capital of Victoria,
is the most European in style with trams rattling through streets
past Victorian buildings, parks and outdoor cafes. The city centre
is laid out in a simple grid pattern, the long, wide north-south
streets gently sloping down to the Yarra River, crossed by a mix of
narrow lanes, and the main shopping streets such as Bourke and
Collins Streets. The CBD is easily navigable by foot, and if a rest
is needed after a session of sightseeing or shopping there are
numerous parks nearby, such as the Royal Botanical Gardens, Fitzroy
Gardens and Carlton Gardens. Alternatively, you can take one of
Melbourne's signature attractions, a tram. The burgundy-coloured
City Circle tram is free, and is a good way to get your bearings as
well as explore the inner city, while for those wanting to go
further afield the tram network extends about 10 miles (15km) into
the Melbourne suburbs. Melbourne's population of over three million is made up of a
variety of cultures, including Chinese, Italian, Vietnamese,
Lebanese and Greek, who have all added their touch to this thriving
city. A fierce rivalry exists between the cities of Melbourne and
Sydney, but local residents bask in the satisfying knowledge that
Melbourne beats Sydney hands-down on the cultural front, noted for
its wide variety of high standard performing arts, as well as its
sport. The city plays host to world-renowned sporting events like
the Melbourne Cup, Australian Open Tennis and Qantas Australia
Grand Prix. Around the city, within an hour's drive, there are
numerous places worth visiting, including the Macedon Ranges, which
is Australia's spa capital with its world-renowned mineral springs,
as well as the spectacular Great Ocean Road along the coast, which
passes stunning rock formations such as the Twelve Apostles. One of
the most popular self-drive routes for tourists to follow is the
circular Great Southern Touring Route, which includes spectacular
scenery and takes in some of Victoria's most beautiful, scenic and
cultural attractions.

Chinese Museum,Melbourne
The Chinese Museum was established in 1985 to preserve
and display the history of Chinese Australians since the mid-1800s.
It has become a living part of Melbourne's modern Chinatown, with
its five levels of galleries, showcasing artefacts and photographs
depicting the life and culture of Chinese Australians. The museum
is also the home of Dai Loong, the world's largest dragon. There
are numerous other museums catering to different national cultures
in the heart of Melbourne.
Admission:
A$7.50 (adults), A$5.50 (children)
Opening time:
Daily 10am to 5pm

Cooks' Cottage,Melbourne
This cottage was originally built in the village of
Great Ayton in Yorkshire, England, in 1755 by James and Grace Cook,
the parents of Captain James Cook. When the cottage was offered for
sale in 1933 it was bought by a prominent Melbourne businessman,
Sir Russell Grimwade, for 800 British Pounds. He arranged for it to
be taken apart brick by brick and transported via ship and train to
Melbourne. In early 1934 the cottage was rebuilt on its present
site in Fitzroy Gardens, East Melbourne. Today it provides visitors
with the opportunity to glimpse what life was like in 18th century
England.
Admission:
A$4 (adults), A$2 (children); concessions
available
Opening time:
Daily 9am to 5pm

Yarra River,Melbourne
A visit to Melbourne would not be complete without a
good look at its main river system, the Yarra River. Often the
centre of many jokes due to its brownish colour, it is actually not
dirty, just muddy. The Yarra has become the focus of much
development in the central business district, with many new
buildings, walks and parks having been created along its banks in
recent years, including the relatively new Riverside Park. For the
best view of the Yarra River walk to Princes Bridge, St Kilda Road,
or take a cruise along the river from Princes Walk (below Princes
Bridge).

Government House,Melbourne
Government House is the official residence of the
Governor of Victoria, located within the Botanical Gardens. The
house is built in the style known as Italianate, and is one of the
finest examples of this type of architecture in Australia. The
house was built during the gold rush and is said to be the grandest
house in Victoria. Tours of the state apartments start from La
Trobe's Cottage (home of Victoria's first Lt Governor, Charles la
Trobe) on the corner of Birdwood Avenue and Dallas Brooks Drive,
South Yarra.
Opening time:
Visits are by advance booking only and tours operate
on Mondays and Wednesdays

Old Melbourne Gaol,Melbourne
Victoria's oldest surviving remand prison gives
visitors a chilling insight into prison life in a model
19th-century gaol. Behind the thick and forbidding walls Ned Kelly,
the infamous bushranger, was one of 135 men and women who were
hanged on the gaol's scaffold. Visitors can view the Hangman's Box,
the Particulars of Execution book and other exhibits relating to
this grim period of Victoria's history, as well as the death masks
used in the study of phrenology to predict criminal behaviour. The
Women in Prison exhibition reveals the fascinating stories of the
crimes committed by the female inmates. There are free performances
every Saturday of The Real Ned Kelly Story - Such is Life at
12.30pm and 2pm, and night performances on Monday, Wednesday,
Friday and Saturday with hangman 'Michael Gately' as he recounts
stories of the gaol by candlelight (not for the faint hearted or
children under 12 years of age).
Admission:
A$12.50 (adults), A$7.50 (children). Concessions
available. Night tours: A$25 (adults), A$16.50 (children under
16)
Opening time:
Daily 9.30am to 5pm (Closed Good Friday and Christmas
Day)
Royal Botanic Gardens,Melbourne
Established in 1846 by the first Governor of Victoria,
Melbourne's Royal Botanic Gardens are considered one of the worlds
finest. They contain extensive landscaped gardens covering 35
hectares (86 acres) and are home to more than 51,000 individual
plants, representing over 12,000 different species. The gardens
have become a natural sanctuary for native wild life including
black swans, bell birds, cockatoos and kookaburras, filling the air
with their distinctive song. Free guided walks are
available.
Admission:
Free
Opening time:
Daily 7.30am to 8.30pm (November to March); 7.30am to
6pm (April, September, October); 7.30am to 5.30pm (May to
August)

National Gallery of Victoria,Melbourne
The National Gallery collections are divided between
the redeveloped gallery at St Kilda Road, which houses Victoria's
impressive international collections (including Picasso's Weeping
Woman) and the Ian Potter Centre, the spectacular new home for the
country's most important Australian collection.
Admission:
Free. An admission is charged for special
exhibitions
Opening time:
Daily 10am to 5pm (closed Mondays except when a
public holiday)

Ballarat,Melbourne
This historic town of great elegance and charm is the
gateway to the goldfields. The name is an Aboriginal word meaning
'resting place', which is well suited because a tranquil lake and
botanical gardens are the focal point of the city. The main Avenue
of Honour is lined with 4,000 trees as a memorial to citizens who
served in World War I. The city is steeped in the history of the
Gold Rush era. Visitors enjoy the Eureka Trail, a two-mile (3km)
walk that retraces the route taken by the police and soldiers
during the Australian rebellion of the Eureka stockade in 1854. It
is also possible to undertake a self-guided Heritage Walk through
the inner city's streets.

Great Ocean Road,Melbourne
From Melbourne one of the most popular self-drive
routes for tourists to follow is the circular Great Southern
Touring Route, which includes spectacular scenery and takes in some
of Victoria's most beautiful, scenic and cultural attractions. The
first part of the route hugs the coastline going south along the
Great Ocean Road, renowned for its coastal scenery, passing lush
Otways rainforests and on to the magnificent limestone rock
sculptures known as the Twelve Apostles in the Port Campbell
National Park. Other attractions along the Great Ocean Road include
the historic villages of Port Campbell, Queenscliff, Portland and
Port Fairy, as well as resort towns and coastal cities such as
Torquay, Apollo Bay, Geelong and Warrnambool.

Grampians National Park,Melbourne
The lofty summits and ridgelines of the Grampians
region provide for some inspiring natural beauty in a park that is
home to a variety of habitats, unique wildlife and more than one
third of all plant species found in Victoria. The park is
particularly well known for its colourful displays of springtime
wildflowers, particularly during October. There is an abundance of
wildlife in the lowlands, including emus, kangaroos, possums,
koalas, wallabies and more than 200 species of bird. The park also
has some interesting Aboriginal art sites among its 167,000
hectares of woodland, heath, swamp, forest and sub-alpine
zones.
Moomba Waterfest,Melbourne
Melbourne's biggest and brightest annual event, with a
hearty tradition of free family fun, pays tribute to the important
role water plays in citizen's lives. Each year the programme for
the four-day fair grows bigger and better, with activities like
open-air movie shows, giant sand sculptures, waterski and wakeboard
championships, Dragon Boat races, the crazy 'Birdman Rally' and a
spectacular fireworks display, to name but a few. Highlights are
the Moomba Parade and the Waterfest Carnival. Contact the Melbourne
Moomba Waterfest at waterfest@melbourne.vic.gov.au for more
information.
Date: March 2008, TBC
Venue: Swanston Street, Melbourne CBD
Time: Moomba Parade: 11am to 12pm
Australian F1 Grand Prix,Melbourne
Motorsport fans have a real treat when it comes time
for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at the superb modern
Albert Park Lake circuit. The main race is the first on the annual
Formula One schedule, and forms the centrepiece of four days of
events from karting through all racing categories and off-track
entertainment.
Date: March 2008, TBC
Venue: Albert Park Lake, near St Kilda
Melbourne International Comedy Festival,Melbourne
Visitors come to Melbourne from all over the world for
a good laugh during the city's International Comedy Festival, when
the downtown precincts turn into a melee of mirth provided by comic
artists in a feast of funny stand-up, theatre, cabaret, street
entertainment, art exhibitions, film and music. This is the only
event of its kind in Australia, and one of the largest (and
funniest) in the world, reflecting the city's well-known comedy
culture. For more information, email info@comedyfestival.com.au or
call (0)3 9417 7711.
Date: April 2008, TBC
Venue: The Town Hall precinct, Victoria Hotel, Hi Fi Ballroom,
Capitol Theatre, The Forum, Duckboard House and peripheral pubs,
clubs and theatres

Melbourne Cup,Melbourne
Melbourne's premier turf event is not just any old
horse race. The annual Melbourne Cup has been variously billed as
'the celebration that stops a nation', and 'Australia's most famous
Tuesday'. The race is the biggest in the Southern Hemisphere, and
draws interest from elsewhere in the world besides Australia. The
race was first run in 1861 and carries a proud tradition. It is the
highlight of the four-day Melbourne Cup Carnival.
Date: 6 November 2007
Venue: Flemington Racecourse
Time: 3pm

Melbourne International Arts Festival,Melbourne
Melbourne's International Arts Festival is recognised
as a leader of its kind in the country, presenting unique national
and international experiences of dance, theatre, music, opera, and
visual arts, most of it free and offered outdoors during October
each year.
Date: 11-27 October 2007
Venue: Various

Australian Open Tennis Championships,Melbourne
What started out as the Australasian Championships in
1905 has become what is known today as the Australian Open. It has
been staged at six different venues: New Zealand, Melbourne,
Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth. Since 1972, the tournament
has been held every year at Melbourne Park. The Australian Open is
one of the four tennis championships that make up the 'Grand Slam,'
and a coveted prize for the top professionals.
Date: 14-27 January 2008
Venue: Melbourne Park

Melbourne's Big Day Out,Melbourne
The famous Aussie touring label crashes into
Melbourne's Princes Park South for a festive day in the sunshine
every year. Some of the biggest names in popular world music
entertain the crowds with the latest tracks from the commercial and
alternative music scenes.
Date: January 2008, TBC
Venue: Princes Park South
Time: 11am