Spring Break in Melbourne

Within two days of arriving home from the Blue Mountains, Sarah and I were on the road again. This time on a plane headed to Melbourne. We'd been planning the trip for weeks and I was so excited for my first glimpse of Sydney's rival city (and to escape the noisy group of campers that had moved into McCredie for the week).
I hate to say that upon arriving in Melbourne, Sarah and I were greeted quite coldly. We left the sunny 22 degree weather in Sydney only to be faced with a rainy 8 degrees as we exited the plane. Not exactly the start we were hoping for. However, we did find our bus easily and in less than an hour we had been deposited at the doorstep of our hostel, the Miami Hotel. (Now, technically, the hostel WAS a hotel, but since it was a budget hotel with shared bathroom facilities and since we found it at hostelworld.com, to me, it was a hostel. Besides, I don't think I've ever stayed at a hotel with such an incredibly small bedroom. When we opened the door to our room, it barely missed hitting the first bed!) Seeing as it was past 10pm, the only thing we wanted to do at that point was crash. So after making contact with my friend Linda (from uni), who we were meeting in Melbourne, we decided to call it a night.
We spent the next four days exploring downtown Melbourne. From what I had been told of the city, Melbourne is much more artsy and trendier than Sydney, with loads of shops, cafes, galleries, and museums. Our first stop, then, was Federation Square, home to the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, the Ian Potter Centre (part of the National Gallery of Victoria), and AbbaWorld. One of my classmates at uni who was also headed to Melbourne for the break had mentioned that there was a Tim Burton exhibit being displayed at the ACMI. Thanks to our early start on Wednesday morning, we were among the first in line to get tickets and spent the better part of the morning viewing sketches, costumes, prop pieces, and 3D models from nearly all of Tim Burton's films, including Batman, Alice in Wonderland, Planet of the Apes, and Edward Scissorhands. The sheer volume of his work was absolutely overwhelming. I think the thing that impressed me most is his seemingly endless stream of creativity and the uniqueness and individuality of each of his projects. (And seeing the Batmobile was pretty cool, too.)
Over the course of the week we walked (and rode the tram) over most of the city, venturing into Chinatown and briefly into Little Italy. We also spent most of the day Saturday in Fitzroy, a very young and hip suburb of Melbourne teeming with art galleries, boutiques and restaurants serving everything from vegan to African. It's also home to the Fitzroy Market and the Rose Street Artist Market. Unfortunately, since I'm a poor, wandering student I could only afford to window shop, but it was great to simply stroll around and enjoy the atmosphere. Many of the houses have a very obvious French influence and actually resemble the French Quarter down in New Orleans. All in all, it was definitely one of my favorite areas of Melbourne.
One of the few places I could afford to make purchases was the Queen Victoria Market located down the street from our hostel. It is the largest market in the Southern Hemisphere and hosts over 600 vendors every week. You can find anything and everything at the market and I was able to pick up a few souvenirs and some yummy fruit, cheese, and fresh-baked bread while we were there.
The highlight of the trip, however, was the one day driving tour Sarah and I took to the Great Ocean Road. The road runs for 151 miles along the south-eastern coast of Australia and is home to the famous 12 Apostles limestone stack formations. We were picked up from the hotel on Friday in the wee hours of the morning and then were off. Over the next 14 hours we traveled from Melbourne to Port Campbell, stopping off for a stroll around Bells Beach, a hike through the Otways rainforest, and a quick koala search at a campground along the way. (While we did spot several koalas, it was the parrots who swarmed us once we arrived. One even decided to ride around on my head!) The best part of the trip was definitely saved for last, as our final stop was the 12 Apostles, the Loch Ard Gorge, and the London Bridge--all fascinating limestone formations created by the erosion of the massive cliffs along the shore. The scenery was breath-taking and the sun, which had hidden itself for most of the day, finally made a dramatic appearance, turning the seaside ethereal. It was almost as if we had stepped onto the backdrop of some fantastic flight of the imagination. Or into an epic fantasy adventure. Have a look at the pics and video to take a peek for yourself!
We filled the rest of our time with random activities. We met up with a group of people that Linda had befriended at another hostel and went to dinner and then dancing. We saw a show at The Arts Centre--Sugar, a musical version of the movie Some Like it Hot. (You can't go to the cultural capital of Australia without seeing a show.) We strolled through the Ian Potter Centre. We visited St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Parliament building. In other words, we did a little bit of everything.
Of course, it all comes down to the question which city is better, Melbourne or Sydney? The rivalry is very real and the Aussies were eager to know which we preferred. For me? I'm a Sydney girl. I love being so close to the harbour and that we have the opera house. I love the Rocks and the beaches and the warmer weather. BUT, Melbourne does have the edge when it comes to the arts and the Theatre major in me will always probably lean a little more towards that city. So, there you have it. Sydney is my home and Melbourne is my muse.
Click the link to check out the photos of our trip and below is a short video showing a few of the sights I've mentioned.
Cheers!