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This article is from the soc.culture.australian FAQ, by Stephen Wales with numerous contributions by others.

11.4.8 Places of Interest in Melbourne

[CP]

Melbourne is one of the top restaurant cities in the world however it
doesn't seem to have adopted the North American fashion of brew pubs
and microbreweries. If you want to you can buy bottled beer at a
bottle shop and take it with you to a BYO (Bring Your Own, ie bring
your own liquor) restaurant. There are LOTS of these in Melbourne.
Many pubs serve inexpensive counter meals but usually have fairly
restricted dining hours (eg 12-2 and 6-8pm). If you really want to
explore Melbourne's dining scene pick up a copy of either "The Good
Food Guide" or it's spinoff "Cheap Eats in Melbourne" in one of the
bookstores downtown (there are several along Bourke St., Swanston St
and Elizabeth St.).

"Must see" sights? Melbourne has a lot of interesting things to see
but doesn't really have any truly compelling sights. The Victoria
Market (Elizabeth and Victoria streets) is a large farmers market that
may be of interest. It's open Tuesday and Thursday mornings, Fridays
till about 3:30, Saturday till 12 and Sunday till 5. There is no
produce sold on Sunday.

The Melbourne zoo is worth a visit (far more so than Taronga zoo in
Sydney!). The arboreal primate exhibits, small feline exhibits, great
flight aviary, butterfly house and platypusary are some of its best
features.

The Botanic Gardens are a very fine example of formal gardens and
contain numerous native plant species along with imports from the
Northern Hemisphere.

The Shrine of Remembrance, adjacent to the botanic gardens is a grand
memorial to those who have died in various wars. Some of the statues
around it are quite interesting. There is a really good view from the
parapet!

Outside Melbourne you could visit the Dandenong Ranges and see Fern
Tree Gully national park, the Ricketts Sanctuary and the state
Arboretum, a little further away is Healesville with it's native
animal zoo (the Healesville Sanctuary). A few miles north of
Healesville (up Myers Creek Road) Mt St Leonard offers a spectacular
view of the Yarra Valley. The walk to the top goes through some
magnificent forests. The Great Ocean Road to the south-west of
Melbourne is a wonderfully scenic weekend trip.

The two biggest tourist day trips from Melbourne are probably to
Ballarat and to Phillip Island. Ballarat has much to do with
Victoria's gold mining history. It's easy to spend a day at the
Sovereign Hill Historical park there. Phillip Island has the "penguin
parade" when fairy penguins come home to feed their chicks and
scramble up the beach oblivious to the crowds of tourists watching
them.

There are lots of National parks within 6 hours drive of Melbourne. If
you have no idea what to do or where to go visit the Victorian Tourist
Bureau in Collins St near Swanston St and they will give you LOTS of
ideas. Alternatively check with the RACV (Royal Automobile Club of
Victoria), they have reciprocal arrangements with many foreign
automobile associations (eg AAA in the US) and will provide maps and
information on production of your membership card.

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