Melbourne - City Tour

We slept in a bit.  Dwayne was up at 7 a.m. which would have been 3 a.m. in Bangkok.  He took a shower and kept quiet so as not to wake the others.  Carla got up about 8 and Janet about 9.  Brian rolled out of bed shortly before 10.  We had coffee and cornflakes for breakfast before heading to the metro for our ride into Melbourne.  Our Myki pass cards cost us $6 each and we needed another $7 per card added in credit to each card for fares.  Trolley service was free once in downtown Melbourne.  We wandered about a bit before heading down to the Docklands to see what the area had to offer.  The big ferris wheel is located there, as well as, high end condos and shopping.  We ate lunch there at a restaurant which had $10 lunch specials (not including drinks).  The food was fine enough and a piano man kept us entertained with music while we ate.  The shopping left much to be desired as there was nothing special about the outdoor mall.  We headed back to the downtown area hoping to catch a walking tour.  However, we got there too late and were on our own.

Decorative Features of the Block Arcade

We went into the State Library of Victoria to see what it had to offer and get a larger scale map of the city.  There was an exhibit on the history of Victoria Provence on the 5th floor; however, the elevator to get us there failed to operate and we weren't willing to hike up to the 5th floor hoping to find it worth the effort.  The librarian suggested we head down Swanston Street where we'd find some interesting sites.  Of all things, we found ourselves in Melbourne's Chinatown.  Having just left Asia, we didn't need to see any additional Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese restaurants or shops.  We suppose the librarian thought we'd find the neighborhood interesting.  Melbourne's Chinatown is reputed to be the longest continuously functioning Chinese settlement in the western world dating back to the 1850s with the discovery of gold in Australia.  I guess she never heard of the Chinese who came to California during our gold rush of the 1850s.  We ended up finding a gem of a shopping venue a few blocks away - the Block Arcade.

Chinatown - Melbourne

Block Arcade

The Block Arcade was built between 1891 and 1893 to produce something similar to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele in Milan, Italy.  It was the premier shopping district in early Melbourne but lost its appeal until luxury condos began to sell in the downtown neighborhood.  Now, it is a revitalized, trendy spot for locals and tourists.  One shopkeeper whose family has run their business in the Arcade for over 75 years has seen the rents quadruple and will be forced to relocate to a lower rent area.  The tile floor and ceiling art were interesting.  The mosaic floors were imported from Italy and covered with felt during World War II to prevent damage from the boots of the thousands of soldiers who visited the Arcade during the war.  The Flenders Street Railway Station is nearby and the hub of transportation even today.

Mosaic Floor - Block Arcade

St. Paul's Cathedral was an imposing structure with three steeples.  We wished we could have entered for a view of the interior.  However, it was closed.  Across the street, we went into the Flinders Street Railway Station which is an Edwardian railway station and metro hub much like Grand Central Station in New York City.  Again, we had hoped to see the interior but were limited to the main entrance area unless we used our transit system passes to pass through the gates.  A few blocks down we spied another building which looked interesting.  It was the Forum Theatre which was built in 1929 as a "motion picture palace".  Today, it is used for live concerts by renown artists.  It too was not open for us to view its interior.  So, we crossed the street again and entered the Australian Center for the Moving Image (ACMI).


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forum_Theatre

Flinders Street Railway Station

St. Paul's Cathedral

Forum Theatre

We had fun at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) which is a combination of exhibits on the history and development of moving images from flip cards to computer action games.  The primary emphasis was on early motion pictures and television.  Dwayne was able to pose with some of the Marvel superheros and sent a copy off so the grand-kids could see he was traveling in good company.

Captain America, Dwayne and Friends

Our next stop was just down the street from ACMI.  The Duke of Wellington Hotel had a Happy Hour special and it was 5 p.m. when we arrived for refreshments.  A duet was playing songs we which were familiar to us and from the 21st Century.  The Duke of Wellington Hotel is the oldest hotel in Melbourne.  The public bar was nice but also from the 21st Century.  Still, it was a nice break before heading out again to jump on the tram for our final stop before heading back to St. Albains.

Royal Exhibition Building

The Royal Exhibition Building was built to host the Melbourne International Exhibition 1880 - 1881.  The building also served as the first Parliament of Australia.  We walked through Carlton Gardens which surround the Royal Exhibition Building and the modern Melbourne Museum which was closed before we arrived.  There was a lot of activity around the Royal Exhibition Building as tents and exhibits were being erected in preparation for Melbourne Fashion Week.