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MELBOURNE - First Weekend

Ipapashiwe: 02.10.2017

My first week in Ballarat went great! Scott, my host dad, took a few days off so that I wouldn't be alone with the kids @home right away. The other days also went well and the kids started to warm up to me. We spent my first weekend in Melbourne! :) Jenna's sister lives there with her little family, and I always have a free guest room to stay in so I don't have to drive all the way back to Ballarat late at night. She's really nice to me, and I'm really lucky to have such an open family who all consider me a real family member. I also lucked out with the weather in Melbourne, because we didn't even have to wear a sweater sometimes and the sun was out.

A few days after I arrived in Australia, I met Michelle through a post in a Facebook group and had made plans with her for this weekend. She brought a friend along, we went out to eat in Melbourne together, and we hit it off right away. Both of them are also from Germany and have been here for about 2 months, so they knew other au pairs that we met up with at St. Kilda Beach, my first visit to the beach! :) We all had a great afternoon, and before we headed home, we did a bit of shopping at the outlet. And that was the end of my Saturday.

St. Kilda Beach Melbourne
St. Kilda Beach Melbourne


On Sunday, like in Dubai, I went on a sightseeing tour of Melbourne by myself because there's a tram that goes in a loop around the city and provides an audio guide in English about the sights at each stop. With this guide and the help of other travel blogs, I was able to visit a lot of hotspots and landmarks in Melbourne in just one day and really experience the atmosphere of the city. First, I went to Federation Square, right at my train station 'Flinders Street'. It's the most popular meeting place in the city. You can find many restaurants, stands, museums, etc. around the square, and there are hundreds of events held there every year, like public viewings, festivals, or markets! From the square, you have a great view of the city center and the Yarra River.

A small part of the view
A small part of the view on a clear day

Then I took the mentioned 'City Circle Tram' to Queen Victoria Market, a huge open-air market (7 hectares) in the CBD (central business district). It's the only market from the 19th century that still exists there and offers a variety of food, like fruits, meat, and fish, as well as clothing, souvenirs, and handicrafts at affordable prices. It's perfect for me to browse around! In the summer months, there's a 'Night Market' on Wednesday evenings with small concerts and more, which I definitely want to visit in the future! Around the market, you can find small side streets with professional graffiti by Australian artists, which I found very impressive because they always tell a little story as a memory.
Graffiti
Graffiti
Queen Vic Market
Queen Vic Market
Inside the market
A part of the inside of the market
Street music at the market
Great street music at the market
My food
My food


About 1-2 hours later, I went to the Eureka Skydeck! A 300m tall skyscraper that was completed in 2006 and is the second tallest tower in all of Australia. It's located along the Southbank Promenade along the Yarra River. I was able to ride up to the 88th floor (285m) for about €18, in under a minute, and enjoy the view of Melbourne from above. It was definitely worth it! While it was a bit closer than on the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, it was still totally worth the price. A nice idea are the little telescopes that are distributed throughout the 360° tour and point to different landmarks, so you know exactly what you're looking at.

City skyline
City skyline

City
City

Ocean view
Ocean view

Telescope
Telescope

My next stops were the Shrine of Remembrance and the botanical garden, which are next to each other. The shrine is one of the largest war memorials in Australia and was built as a tribute to the men and women who served in World War I and to all the people who died because of the war (about 60,000 Australians). On ANZAC Day, the memorial day on April 25th, there's a gathering of a large crowd for the veterans' march. In the shrine, you can find the 'Stone of Remembrance' (marble stone) on which it says, "Greater love hath no man". The stone is positioned in such a way that on the day of the armistice (11.11) at 11 o'clock, a beam of light falls on the word 'Love', which I think is a beautiful idea and personally touched me. There are more memorials and mementos in the shrine and in the park, but I don't want to list them all here!

You can climb up steps to the shrine and get a new view of the Melbourne skyline from there.

Shrine of Remembrance on a hill
Shrine of Remembrance on a hill

Shrine
Shrine

Skyline
Skyline

Skyline
Skyline

The Royal Botanic Gardens (38 hectares) is overall a large and beautiful area where you can find a herbarium, a tropical greenhouse, and eucalyptus trees, among other things. The garden was financed by several foundations and private individuals, who can be found everywhere on small plaques that are often placed at their favorite spots. You can enjoy picnicking here and peaceful walks or runs!

Map
Map

1
1

2
2

Lovely memory
Lovely memory


And that was my first weekend in MELBOURNE! :)

Phendula

Ostreliya
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