A Peep into Melbourne

A visit to Melbourne no doubt makes you feel that it is a part of a country whose economy is said to have one of the fastest economic growth rates in the developed world.

- Suneet Paul

Although the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the original inhabitants, the city and country has migrants from over 200 countries. The second largest city of Australia, Melbourne is a fast evolving and exciting metropolis which witnesses an eclectic blend of nineteenth and early twentieth century architecture to the contemporary international style of design. Located in the State of Victoria, it enjoys all the benefits of being its coastal capital with some luring beaches with colourful bathing cabins as they are called. A city having been attuned to a traditional past, is today responding with an energised city planning configuration that caters to the changing demands of the day, whether it is in lifestyle, cultural activity, sports or then education. A tourist-friendly city, Melbourne has a well-organised public transport system – buses, trams, taxis and the metro rail, which surprisingly is not connected to the international airport. There are certain zones where the trams are free to travel in, thus making commuting hasslefree with the jump-in and jump-off flexibility.

Melbourne’s heritage is worth a probe. The journey from a tent city to the present has a lot of history stored in the buildings that came up over the decades. A heritage walk in the Royal Botanical gardens brings you closer to the beliefs of the ancestors of this land. There is a 15-year heritage strategy plan to protect the identified buildings and complexes. Amongst the many that have been declared as ‘heritage sites’ are the Royal Exhibition Building, the Old Melbourne Gaol, the Shrine of Remembrance, Parliament of Victoria, Cook’s Cottage and such others which make a statement of the culture and life of the bygone days. The good part is that all these buildings are well protected and maintained.