Melbourne "Staycation"
- Apr 9, 2019
- 8 min read
The joys of working in the school system means I get holidays when the students do which means two weeks of chilling, catching up with friends and housework and thinking of places that I would like to go to and how I can knock some things off my to-do list.
The heart wants long holidays every holiday however the bank account says NO!!!! I was planning on just having a couple of 'day-trips' into the city and maybe going to a show because the comedy festival is on and then I started thinking about trying airbnb again (after a not so good experience in Osaka) and having a couple of nights in the city.
It didn't take much to convince Linda to join me on a short 'staycation' in the city and we decided to make the most of it. First choice was a great little apartment/hotel on Franklin St (the Nova Stargate Apartment Hotel ) which was $96 a night and in the perfect spot for me, just off Elizabeth St and one street down from the Queen Vic Market.
Linda had an appointment in the morning and I was free to roam around on my own for a little before we met up. I dropped the bags at Flinders St. Station ( and a travel tip in case you weren't aware of it: they have a travelers aid place between the entrances to Platfrom 9 and 10 which provides travelers with information and a place to store luggage at $6.50 a bag which can be used from 8am until 7.45pm) and I set off walking. As
I head out of Flinders St Station I usually tend to turn left and wander that way but today I decided first stop would be Hosier Lane (which is to the right) to see what was new in the art world (last week's excursion with the kids from school had me wanting to search out more street art)
There was some amazing artwork and after touring the Blender St Studios last week I think I may have recognized a couple of the artists.
From here I started wandering and my walking took me along the religious path, first passing by Scots' Church and St Michael's Uniting Church. (I do like religious buildings, temples, churches, mosques, synagogues,-I don't discriminate, I think they are amazing pieces of architecture, however I don't always feel a spiritual connection to each place which I think is interesting, because there are some places I am just drawn to.)
Scots' Church was the first Presbyterian Church to be built in the Port Phillip area in 1841, although was rebuilt in the 1870s due to concerns about the original structure which was unsafe and too small for the growing congregation. The church spire was also the tallest structure in Melbourne in the late 19th Century standing at 210ft/64m high.
On the opposite corner of Collins and Russel St is St Michael's Uniting Church which was originally called Collins St Independent Church, then Collins St Uniting Church, before it's present name. The original building was built in 1839 and demolished in 1866 to create the building that stands today. It has become a center of liberal theology and I think that if I had realized that before I looked it up this evening I might have been more interested in seeing what it was like inside and gone back to look when it was open.
(Here comes the bit where I may be struck down by lightening-my issue with religion/religious buildings is that they are man made and made depending on the whims of the person who created them or deciphered a piece of text or chose some of the many stories that were circulating at the time and built their beliefs around it. I'm not saying they are wrong, but I'm not saying they are right either and things written 2000 years ago are up for interpretation because times were very different then and when I read the very controversial words that the previous minister Dr. Francis MacNab had to say I thought he was on point, and I really liked his version of the 10 Commandments which have a much more positive ring to it. Look him up if you are interested there are too many web pages to link to)
I wandered past some more street art on Coramandel Place
which I think may have been a commissioned piece as are many of the larger murals adorning many of Melbourne's buildings and I think it is a wonderful idea to beautify some pretty ugly buildings. I think there is also a certain amount of respect given to murals painted as they don't always get tagged the way
some buildings do, and there also is a difference between the laneways that have constantly changing artwork and those murals which is great too.
I peered through the windows of the Princess Theater (which I will be in watching The Cursed Child in about 17 weeks) before wandering through Treasury Gardens.
Interesting fact about Treasury Gardens, the area was left vacant in the 1850s as it was considered to be too swampy and later after planting willow trees and landscaping the ground was turned into gardens but it wasn't until 1929 that it was taken over by the City of Melbourne and became the beginning of the gardens it is today.
The spires of St Patrick's Cathedral called to me and I wandered around and I was amazed that I have lived in Melbourne for so long now and I never really recall seeing St. Patrick's before, I've probably driven past it a few times but never really taken it in which is pretty amazing because it is bloody huge, and then across the road on one side are St. Peters Eastern Hill Anglican Church and the German Lutheran Trinity Church.
St Peter's is the oldest standing Anglican Church standing on it's original site, which was first used for services in 1847 and it has a good standing in the community and today runs a breakfast programme for the homeless.
The building of St. Patrick's was started in 1858 and although the knave was finished in ten years and operating as a Catholic Church the Cathedral itself was not completed until the late 1930s when the final spires and additions were put in
. The grounds are pretty and the Cathedral is massive but I preferred the Lutheran a Trinity Church across the road (although if I was to attend services there I would need to speak German as English services are only held once a month)
The first Lutheran Church was built here in 1854 but the existing structure was completed in 1874 and is a really beautiful bluestone church that I found really appealing.
My wandering took me across the road to Burston Reserve (I have lived in this city for nearly 30 years and seriously didn't know that this little place existed....which is why I say be a tourist in your own town because you might be surprised at what you might find.)
Burson Reserve is home to the sculpture "Great Petition" which represents the monster petition women of 30.000 Victorian women signed and presented to Parliament in 1891 showing their support for equal voting rights for women (which were not granted in Victoria until 1908-although Indigenous women were denied that vote until 1962 which is yet another travesty of colonial history).
After a much needed coffee and coconut passionfruit cake at Father John's Cafe (sticking with the religious theme) I met up with Linda and she was in need of a coffee so who was I to refuse, and as we sat enjoying another coffee shop we made plans for the rest of the day.
First thought of the day was a show for the evening and checking ticket prices and availability and venues which made our decision easy for the rest of the day's plans.
We headed to the Arts Centre via Hosier Lane again (this time for Linda's benefit) and it is
funny how I had walked up this road just a couple of hours earlier and noticed different art on the trip. There is also a little charity shop and cafe here that raises money for the homeless which is well worth popping in just for a look (and Linda managed to pick up a beanie for just $2 which she needed as it was a bit nippy out)
Our next stop of the day was the Ian Potter Centre for some great
Australian Art, with a huge focus on Indgineous art both traditional and modern which I really enjoyed and some really interesting wearable art from young Melbourne design students.
The Ian Potter Centre is dedicated to exhibiting only Australian artworks and design and is a great place for Australians young and old to showcase their talents.
We made our way to the Arts Centre and got tickets for a show in the evening and we were glad we made the walk, because online they said there were no tickets available for tonight and they were more expensive (so travel tip 2 if you able check with the venue of the
availability and cost of tickets than do it because you may get cheaper than you can online-not always- but if you are in the vicinity and enjoying the walk than why not.)
Of course the walk took me over the Yarra River which is always so picturesque and is beautiful night and day, also with the weather and the traffic on the river it is an ever changing display.
Southbank was the next destination for a great paella lunch with a view before picking our bags up from the station and going to our hotel apartment to check in. We headed out again for a few groceries (we got used to those drinks and snacks while we were in Korea so we stocked up again....and funnily enough with Korean and Taiwanese treats) before putting our feet up and enjoying the view of the Queen Vic market from the balcony, only the third floor but it made me think I want a balcony apartment somewhere around here in the future.
Refreshed and revitalised it was time to head out for the evenings adventures.
We had planned on being lazy and catching the tram down Elizabeth St but ended up walking instead and enjoying the early evening sights and sounds of Melbourne.
We made our way to Birrarung Marr which is an inner-city park on the banks of the Yarra River which is home to many different events over the calendar year so keep an eye open for what is happening so you
don't miss it. Thankfully I had checked to see what was on and there was a Chinese Lantern Festival which was free (I paid money to go to one in Dandenong a couple of years ago) and it was really pretty and there were some great street food options to which would have been much better if I was hungry but I wasn't.
We wandered through the festival and down the banks of the Yarra River with the views of the city which is so pretty at night, and as we had time to spare and money to burn we thought we should indulge and have a cocktail.
We chose one of the bars in Federation Square and although it was chilly we sat outside with enjoy the evening cityscape.
we headed towards the Arts Centre and "Single Asian Female", The play was very funny, depicting the life of an Asian immigrant who is
raising her daughters in Australia and the trials and tribulations they go through and I would recommend it to anyway to see.
We wandered through the city and back to the hotel via Elizabeth St and I love the fact that there are so many places open if you still want to eat a late night snack or an after theater dinner. We passed a lot of places that looked really good as we were after one particular place however when we got there it was packed and still had a queue outside so we opted for a ready -made meal from the supermarket rather than walking back down the street or MacDonalds which we popped into the microwave when we got in (although it wasn't so good and maybe we should have had Maccas instead)
It was a wonderful day in the city and I am looking forward to exploring it more.
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