Around Melbourne

I knew this would screw with my mind. The weather here is finally turning to summer. The trees have bloomed, the days are beautiful and the rainy season has pretty much passed. The only problem is that my body and mind are expecting winter. It's tough to explain but all I can say is that the part of my spine that was injured while shoveling snow last winter can feel the one year anniversary approaching and is telling me to buy a snow blower. Now I don't know about you but I think I would look pretty silly pushing a snow blower down the streets of Melbourne.

Speaking of streets, Melbourne has some lovely ones and is an excellent city to be a pedestrian. Summer is breaking and things are looking marvelous so I thought I'd take a few pics of some of the beautiful architecture that is an aesthetic staple around here.

This is Federation Square, which is considered the cultural hub of the city. There's always something going on down here like a free concert, a protest, a book fair or a celebrity meet and greet.

This is Flinders Street train station, which is a well-known landmark. Notice in the background the Eureka Tower, which is visibly still under construction. When completed it will briefly be the tallest residential tower in the world and the tallest building in Australia. We're all very proud. Truly.



No city would be complete without a St. Paul's Cathedral right? This one is beautiful and the picture doesn't really do it justice.

This is a stain glass window at the main entrance to St. Paul's Cathedral. The timing of this picture was great because the sun was setting behind it.

This is the State Library, which is sort of like the Harvard Square Station of Melbourne in that there is always a variety of funky people (young and old) hanging out; skaters, students, professionals, homeless, you name it. It's another common spot for protests (and there have been quite a few actually). There is even a speaker’s forum everyday where anyone can get up and talk about anything at all for a half hour....and they do. Yesterday one man was contemplating the fact that real estate was misnamed because it wasn't in fact "real". I didn't stay long.

This is The Forum, which is a theater that was built in the 1930's. The inside is amazing and it's like stepping back in time to an old-time club setting. Apparently it isn't often open to the public so I was excited to be able get a glimpse when it hosted some of the movies during the Melbourne International Film Festival.

This is the Melbourne Baths, which used to be an old-time bath house but is now it a pristine gym of which we are all members. It is only a 30 second walk from our apartment, which helps motivate me to actually keep going back and not throw away my money. This place is a good example of the constant mix of old and new you get in Melbourne.

I apologize if this blog has been a bit boring but it's all I have right now. School has been taking up all my time. I've written two papers in the last few weeks and have another due in two weeks. Things are a bit nuts and will continue to be so right up until early-December. Once the summer break comes though, the cool pictures and stories from around Australia should start rolling in. However, not before I get a job to raise some traveling funds. It ain't all fun and games here unfortunately.

On that note...see ya next blog!