I arrived to Melbourne quiet late and promptly went to bed so I could enjoy a fully enjoy tomorrow. Woke up rather early, probably because I was so excited to explore. My hostel was in a great location and within easy walking distance of lots of parks, which was perfect for me as a hang out spot.
My first day, I lucked out and woke up to sun and serious heat; I was in heaven! Since I started off early, I just tried to get lost and then would find my way back. This turned out to be a great plan as I stumbled across the park above and then ended after a good walk in the city center. The city had such incredible architecture and even had a familiar mode of transportation (below), a trolley!
It is the mixture of architectural styles is something I love to see when walking in the city. This church below stood out amongst all the modern architecture really shone.
Leaving me surrounded by gorgeous buildings and right by the Contemporary Art Museum. Unlike in the States, the museums are free with the exception of special exhibits.
Right outside the museum there was a huge interactive art piece that you could walk in (above) and around (below).
Wandering around the museum was a dream, it was very elegantly laid out.
There was an incredible aboriginal art exhibit, some examples shown in the next three photos below.
The paintings were massive, filled with patterns, lines and designs. Or lots of mini dots in an intricate pattern.
What really "Wowed" me were the colors and how vibrant the paints were.
I felt this way throughout the museum and stumbled upon an exhibit about modern media, rock and urban street culture. One of the showcases of was a couple walls of urban T-shirt designs (below), which had a wicked sense of humor and twist of satire to them. I blew up the picture so you had a chance to really see them yourself.
I spent a good bit of time slowly wandering around here because each art exhibit had something to say or
would make me smile.
I loved seeing styles mixed and artist explore the boundaries within styles (above).
Often pieces were whimsical and could have multiple interpretations sculpture. I really enjoyed seeing the range of styles and even how artists would mix media and film into the same piece (below).
After spending a good bit of the day in the museum, almost two hours which is easily the longest I have spent in one for a long time. I had to get back out into the amazing sun and enjoy the warm day. The museum is right on the square which really blew me away it was very modern! The city was lovely and walking around just felt so nice.
I found the mini "Eiffel Tower" in Melbourne (above) and wish I had a picture of it. Walking along the river was great and very scenic. The city skyline looked wonderful (below), people are out and about and there are a bunch of boats on the river too.
Starting to get hungry I worked my way into the city alleys and found myself in a food heaven(below). A couple of tiny alley ways that were filled tiny restaurants, food shops, cafes, and desserts. There was a great chocolate shop called Haight that really finished off my lunch.
Afterward, I just kept walking around the city constantly exploring. Found my way to some serious shopping, a few more galleries and managed to complete at least two laps of the city. Headed back to the hostel with a bit of food to cook completely astounded that it was past 9pm and felt like 3pm. The sun just would not go down! It was past 11pm when it finally started to look like the sun was setting and the dark was slowly creeping in.
So the next day since it was even hotter that the previous, I went to St. Kilda's beach. The train ride was easy and straight forward and dropped me off just two blocks from the beach. Just before the beach was one of the original Luna Parks (above). An amusement park just like any, nothing major but a nice small place boardwalk style. It was but the entrance that really took my breath away.
Once I reached the beach (above) I was in heaven! The sand was soft, the sun was high and hot! The water was calm and cool but warm. Best of all, it was quiet and relaxing! No where near as crowded as the beaches in Sydney, I spent twice as long as I meant to here but that's OK. When you are in a city that the sun never goes down, it is easy to loose track of time.
It was when I started to get hungry that I realized how long I had been there and took the train back to the city. Continued to wander around and enjoy the city, including a very modern, playful and funky building below.
I had to crash early since the next day I had a tour schedule of the...
Normally I do not like tours but I have to see all the famous great beaches. I got to go "Bell's Beach" (below) where all the famous surfers go and a lot of competitions are held. Sadly we did not get to spend much time here, especially since the beach was empty and waiting for us to take it over.
I couldn't help but run down to the beach, into the water and try to enjoy myself. I am a sucker for an empty beach. Then the tour moved on and really drove by so many good stops. Often just stopping for a moment for us to take a picture (BOO!). Regardless the whole coast was just stunning and the color of the ocean so blue (below right).
The tour of the coast also took us through the eucalyptus trees to see koalas in the natural wildlife. This sounds more exciting than it is, they are big lazy creatures that mostly stay and lounge in trees. It is actually hard to spot them at first since they are brown and blend into the tress. Some of my best shots of the cuties are below.
Kinda looks like someone left a stuffed animal up in a tree right? Afterwards, we drove on to get lunch at the lighthouse (below). Which was nice because we actually were able to stop for a bit.
Our lunch was good, simple fare but rather delicious... though when it is so hot and you started so early anything would taste great. While everyone was melting, I was sun tanning and loving the fact that it was over 100 degrees.
Yet the moment you entered into the lighthouse, the temperature dropped dramatically by 30 degrees or more. It was so cool I got goose bumps and hurried through it. Naturally I went to the top, and then peeked into where the light rotates (above). It looks like a fun house up there!
I really liked the view from the window portal (above) and the view of the coast line (below).
Then after a good stint, the longest break we had (and in kinda the most boring places of our stops)...we were back on the road and driving quickly to make up time. Before I knew it we were pulling up into the Gorge and it was breathtaking!
Thankfully, we were allowed to take a real stop here and the view really was something else (above). Having to take two shots, one far to show off the cliffs (above left) and one closer to show the beach and the gradual color change of the water (above right).
I ran down the stairs on the cliff to the beautiful water below. The
sand was scorching and one hand to run from shade to shade to make it to
the wet sand and into the water (above). I was thrilled to be able to enjoy 40 minutes of swimming, floating and relaxing in this clear chilled blue water. Then it was back in the van and on to the next stop, the highlight of the trip; the 12 Apostles, sign below.
Walking into the park it was so warm and there was not a hint of wind. It was not until you got out to the cliffs that the gusts would try to knock a person over and sent my hair flying out of control (below). It was a struggle to walk out there, to hold the camera steady or anything!
The apostles were stunning and just one of the best things I saw on the trip, see the two photos below:
I got home around 10, got food and rest because the next day I was flying out. Since I was not getting picked up to go to the airport until 1pm. I took off in the morning to do the last bit of exploration. Checked out the hippy funky neighborhood below and go hunting for street graffiti art; something Melbourne is famous for. See my favorite photos below.
Then, it was in the shuttle and off Cairns the "Great Barrier Reef".
