Goodbye Melbourne

I woke up extremely early to have my breakfast at Victoria Market. Bought the donuts home for sis to taste, and of course the baby tomatoes. Then it’s straight back to the hostel to pack everything. Soon, I was checked out of my “home” for the last nine days and walking toward Spencer St station. This station will be renamed as Southern Cross Station as soon as the redevelopment complete, for the Commonwealth Games.

I bought my bus ticket to the airport, and was soon on the way to finishing my journey here. The television on the bus is running trailers about the Commonwealth Games. I really want to come back. But realistically speaking, only Biao Shu will be here.

I reached the airport way before the check-in time. So while wondering around the airport, I took pictures of the airport. Then I sat there reading my book bought in Melbourne City, “The Other Woman” by Jane Green. By the time I finished the book, there is still plenty of time left. I ended up shopping for more books at Newslink.

Lunch was at Hudsons Coffee, my last cup of Australian coffee at least for the next two years.

After checking-in my luggage, I walked around the airport once again. One of the café there was named “Hightide”. Hahaha! Soon, I settled down out the gate where I was supposed to board the plane. A Aussie uncle approached me for a survey. With plenty of time to kill, I say down with him and answered all the questions. He seemed surprised that I would take on such a holiday trip without friends.

After that, I curled up on one of the couches there and returned to my book. And I have the luxury of two seats on the flight back. On an 8-hour flight, I even managed to watch “Pride and Prejudice” twice.

This is a journey which I would not forget in a long time to come. And hopefully, I can do this again, in UK.

Melbourne Observatory Deck

The Melbourne Observatory Deck is the only place that I would visit on all my trips. Like the Great Ocean Road, this place has a certain hold on me and I had in fact, put aside some money to take this ride up.

Funny that I have never thought of taking photo of this building, even though I couldn’t stop taking pictures from the top, capturing the sights of all my favourite places in Melbourne from the highest point in the city.

The Casino is one place which I chose to miss this time. No point going there alone and there would soon be one back home. Still, I heard that the Exhibition Centre next to it will be the IBC for the Commonwealth Games. I really hope I can be part of it.

The MCG and the other sporting arenas are another familiar sight from the Observatory Deck. Visiting these venues have been the highlights of my trip here. Had there been company, I don’t think they would want to make the tour in these venues with me, other than Aunty Wendy. Don’t worry, I bought for you the Australian Open Cap.

Flinders Street station is another one of my favourite place here. To me, this is the place where you could blend in to be one of the locals. The heart of the entire train system, I could never get sick of this train station even with other grander and newer stations around.

Of course, not forgetting the all-time favourite for all – Victoria Market. This is one place where I really, really want to bring mum. She would love this place to bits and would want to return to this market everyday, just like me. Speaking of which, I would make one last trip there tomorrow morning.

Last but not least, the beaches here have brought me great joy and peace this time. Of course that includes the never-ending walk along the Albert Park. It was really good workout, had not for the sun.

As the sun sets, I told myself, I will be back. Next time, I will really backpack and go to Tasmania on the Spirit of Tasmania.

The Cosmopolitan Walk

Abandoning the Lanes and Arcades Walk, I once again made my way into Bourke Street to search for the Weathervanes. They are not too difficult to find if the sun is in the right place. They are four different types of animals that faced different directions.

Below these weathervanes are the three businessmen who brought their own lunch. They are three of Melbourne’s founding fathers, Batman, Swanston and Hoddle.

Walking into Little Bourke Street, I wandered into Chinatown with the old shops, mission halls and secret laneways. Turning into Hefferman Lane, I finally witness the walls of the Methodist Mission that warn: Commit No Nuisance, together with many others.

Along this part of Lonsdale Street, are some great Greek restaurants and is teeming with cafes and cakes shops, rich with the aroma of coffee and oregano. I remembered sis liked the desserts here, so I bought some to bring them home. Not sure if she would like them. When it comes to desserts, we have such different tastes.

Back in Chinatown, I was not tempted by the wide range of Asian food available. Even though there was the Shark Fin House, the Dragon Boat and the Flower Drum. I was beginning to miss mum’s cooking. Guess it’s really time to go home.

At Cohen Place, I turned into the main entrance of the Chinese Museum. I didn’t get to go as it has closed for the day. But I heard that it was home to the world’s biggest dragon.

In the heart of one of the oldest Chinatowns in the western world, this is the lane or street where the hardworking goldminers, herbalists and cabinetmakers settled down in the 1850s.

Turning into Little Bourke Street, I walked past the Gordon Place, now a luxury hotel apartment building but for many years a lodging house for homeless men.

After crossing Exhibition Street, I reach Her Majesty’s Theatre alongside the Chinatown Arch. Her Majesty’s has staged over 100 musicals since 1934. And there I reach the Tianjin Gardens, which according to the locals, is the place where Chinatown starts.

At Spring Street, right in the heart of the city, stood the famous Hotel Windsor – the grandest surviving hotel from the 1880s. The traditional afternoon tea is almost an institution. And at the Cricketers Bar, the discerning drinker can enjoy a whiskey and soda everyday from noon.

Rushing for the magic hour, I ran all the way to the Melbourne Observatory Deck on Collins Street. I guess it wouldn’t hurt for me to stay out till the sun goes down on my last night here in Melbourne.

Arcades & Lanes Part II

Back in the hustle and bustle of the city, I began my walk of the Arcades & Lanes at Flinders Street station, a traditional meeting place “Under the Clocks” at Flinders Street Station.

Crossing Flinders Street, I turned left and walked on before turning right into Degraves Street. It was the place where William Degraves’ steam flourmill pumped away in the 1850s. Nowadays, it’s espresso.

Over at the Degraves Espresso Bar, the seats are recycled cinema seats and benches from a former magistrate court. At the end of Degraves street, on the other side of Flinders’ Lane stood the Majorca Building, still as stylist as it looked in the 1920s.

Centre Place is a breeding ground for cafes – some so small that one can barely stretch to stir their coffee. Stepping up into the Centre Way, this building is an early steel-framed building with a modern makeover.

Crossing over to Collins street, is the exquisite 19th century Block Aracade. The arcade was named after the fashionable Collins Street block between Swanston Street and Elizabeth Street where 19th century Melburnians liked to promenade or “do the block”. Today, there are still activities there with its mosaic floors and the fascinating shops to explore.

Skipping the Block Place, Royal Arcade, I reached Melbourne’s shopping heart at Bourke Street Mall and I turned left to pick up the public purse, just outside The General Post Office.

Near to the public purse was the Underground Public Toilets. The men’s were built in 1910 while the ladies waited longer until 1927.

Entering into Little Bourke Street and crossing two laneways later, I came to a group of 1880s warehourse at Niagara Lane, with the barrel hoists. The lane was named in the 1860s after the Niagara Hotel in Londale Street.

Round the corner, after a short walk up Lonsdale Street, bustling Hardware Lane epitomises Melbourne’s laneway renaissance. With cobbled stones underfoot and café umbrellas overheard, the alfresco seating, the fascinating facades and small specialty shops.

From Hardware Lane, I ventured into Little Collins Street before reaching the delightful Howey Place. The western side of Howey Place was part of Cole’s Book Arcade, which stretched from Collins to Bourke Streets and was probably the biggest bookshop in the world with over two million books between the 1890s and the 1920s. But there is not even a book in sight.

Walking through the historic Manchester Unity Arcade and to Manchester Lane, to find Manchester Café there. Haha! Now I’ve got Liverpool Lane and Manchester Lane. And Chelsea is actually a train station!

More churches & history

Turning out to Lansdown Street, I carried on the Walk in the Park. Opposite Lansdown Street stood a lonely tower of what is the remains of St Patrick’s College.

Venturing on, I took the Pilgrim Path to St Patrick’s (Catholic) Cathedral, the architectural triumph of William Wardell. The cathedral was built between 1858 and 1897 with spires added in the 1930s. During restoration work in the 1990s, a stonemason secretly carved a gargoyle in the image of recent Victorian Premier Jeffrey Kennett.

Leaving the Cathedral, walking down Macarthur Street, towards the towering city buildings, I went past the Lutheran Church built in 1853.

Cutting through the Treasury Reserve, I “met” John Cain at the end of Premiers’ Way. The Jeff Kennett State Government introduced Premiers’ Statues for premiers serving 3000 days or more in the office.

Then the sound of water once again caught my attention. Following the sound, I saw these fountains of water spraying up from the grounds. All tourists and locals could not let go of this photo-taking moment. Neither could I. There was a pavement where you could stand in between the sprays and yet not get wet. And this is me…not getting wet.

After which, the camera battery had ran low. I had to return to my room. On the way back, I went past a hidden street that says Liverpool Street. Hahaha! I took a picture of the street sign and went on to buy a disposable camera to carry on with the rest of my walk.

Fitzroy Gardens – revisited

Crossing Lansdown Street, I once again entered into Fitzroy Gardens. Following the green signs to the graceful conservatory built in 1930, I walked around inside to admire the blooms inside and the statues outside.

Walking past the Model Tudor Village, the Fairies Tree and the Temple of Winds, I reached the Old Bandstand that was constructed in 1864 and was used for a variety of musical performances including regular recitals by military band. Today, it is a popular location for wedding ceremonies. My wedding perhaps??

Continuing my walk eastward, I was taken back by the grandeur of the Grey Street Fountain. Created in the early 1860s, it sits on the top of the Grey Street Walk where halfway down the Walk we could find the remains of the statues and sculptures placed throughout the Gardens in the 1800s.

Turning north, I walked towards the River God, which was the first fountain to be introduced into the Fitzroy Gardens in 1862. This feature was only possible after the introduction of piped water to Melbourne in 1857.

Walking westward, I arrived at the People’s Path, made from thousands of tiles decorated by members of the public as part of the 1978 Victoria Craft Festival.

The Dolphin Fountain was introduced into the Gardens in 1982. Other than the bronze dolphins, there are various other sea creatures placed amongst the rocks. Sotong maybe?

English Elms in Fitzroy Gardens are among the oldest and finest in the world. This is my version of the Elms Avenue, and it so happens that I managed to find such an avenue after I came home. Though I can’t walked down this avenue at home, I realised I have been driving along this route for longer than I knew. It’s just that I never took the time to slow down and enjoy the view.

Treasury Gardens

Once again, I stepped into the greenery of gardens as I don’t think I will even do that at home. I came across the monuments to Scottish poet Robert Burns and the assassinated American president Johm F. Kennedy.

Attracted by the noise coming behind, I turned around and saw a group of men in suits playing cricket in Treasury Gardens. This is something I would never witness at home. It’s just too humid to do it. But the Ang Mohs here do it! In fact, I believed they were having so much fun that it will probably allow them to enjoy their work later. Though they might smell.

Old Warehouses & Grooviest bars

Near the Swanston street entrance, I walked past the statue of Matthrew Flinders. I googled him later and realised he was a British explorer. From 1802 - 1803, Matthew Flinders circumnavigated the continent in a leaky and rotting vessel, 'Investigator', producing a map of remarkable accuracy on which for the first time the word ‘Australia’ was provocatively inscribed.

Flinders proved there was one landmass: the east, New South Wales, was joined to the west, New Holland. He had already proven that Tasmania was separated from the mainland by a navigable strait. Matthew Flinders gave Australians their geographic identity, a necessary precursor to political federation a century later.

From Flinders’ Street to Hoiser Lane, I laid my footsteps all over the cobblestones to Flinders Lane. Flinders Lane was once the home of the city’s rag trade. Today, the old warehouses and factories hide the apartments, artisans and galleries and some of the city’s grooviest bars. From No. 129-131 stood the Levy and Robinson’s Warehouse that dates back to 1857.

Near Spring Street, is the Milton House that was built as a hospital in 1901. The Aboriginal Art Gallery on the corner of Spring Street and Flinders’ Lane is one of the many temptations for browsers and collectors in Flinders Lane.

St. Paul Anglican Cathedral

After the cooling ice-cream that actually left me freezing in the sun, I braved on to Walk No.1 – A Walk in the Park. Opposite the Federation Square stood the St. Paul’s Anglican Cathedral, of which I have never stepped inside despite my fourth trip here.

So this time, I walked in. The Chapel of the Ascension features a beautiful altar screen made of glass mosaics, portraying the ascension of the risen Jesus.

Prayer focus was dedicated in 1995 as a place to pray for people affect by HIV/AIDS, their friends and families. It is also used for other prayer needs.

Over at the Chapel of Unity, where Pope John Paul II prayed on his visit in 1986, I lit a candle and made some donations. Though this cathedral was going through restoration, it brought to me the calm and peace I have never felt in my life. Perhaps it’s this journey, or the things I have been through in this trip. I think this trip is certainly worth it as it has made me grown and see things in different perspectives. I hope everyone feels the same.