Meet me under the Clocks!

In India, Cricket isn't just a game. It is a religion. A religion where cricketers are Gods and every victory is a festival that is celebrated big! Because of the recent Test matches with Australia happening at MCG and International Cricket Council (ICC) announcing Melbourne to be the prestigious host of opening ceremony and finals venue for the most expected cricket event of next year 'World Cup 2015', I've been hearing about 'Melbourne' quite often these days. Being a  cricket fan and a curious traveler myself, I did a bit of reading about this cool cultural capital of Australia. Guess what? as I read more and more about this city, I virtually fell in love with it! Now my bucket-list certainly has a new city to meet and greet for its friendly attitude!!

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"Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody."

~ Jane Jacobs

First and foremost, everyone knows that cities are defined by its people and not by its numerous tall buildings. People can help define their city only if the city is capable of providing them all the support. Only few cities in the world meet this success criteria and to my surprise Melbourne has been successfully snatching the coveted title of "World’s most livable city" for the fourth straight year awarded by Economist magazine! This is a fascinating news for anybody who wishes to visit this city in terms of friendly people, places to satisfy varied interests, safety and sustainability; literally ticking off all the basic expectations in a traveler's checklist! Hear it yourself from the horse's mouth :)


Next, not every person travels to a place with similar interests. There are different kind of travelers with multitude of interests! From all my reading about this city, I can definitely say it has all it takes to satisfy different kind of travelers! In fact, I was astonished by the choices in offer for people with different travel interests! Hmmm as a traveler I think it is wonderful to be spoilt by choices!! :)


Now as a budget traveler myself with multitude of interests ranging from culture, history, photography, food and adventure, here are my top picks why I think Melbourne is cool and lovable!

First of all what attracts me is that public transport is cheap and well connected for any kind of traveler to get around the city in an economical way. Imagine getting a whole day pass for less than $10 for a unlimited travel around the city!! Very notably, 'the vintage' city circle tram goes around the city connecting all the iconic places offers hop-on hop-off service totally FREE OF CHARGE :) I think this is a golden egg for anyone who wants to get around the city and get a feel of it in the first place!!

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Next, there are plenty of local attractions both indoor and outdoor to keep a tourist busy on a family vacation! My favorite picks in this category would be

Eureka Skydeck 88, the highest viewing platform of the southern hemisphere that offers indisputably best views of Melbourne! It would certainly feel crazy to be standing at the very edge of the building and watch the entire Melbourne slowly crawl below!!

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Old Melbourne Gaol, for a fun historical trip to a old prison to understand the earlier OZ system of crime & justice and especially for those fun photo-opportunities with its old prison & cell setup :)

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Queen Victoria Market to observe and shop the way Melbournians shop for the local produce. For me, it is a wonderful way to understand the lifestyle of the local people!

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The shark and ray center for a truly unique experience of standing in the knee deep water and feeding the sharks and rays. Sounds crazy isn't it? :)

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No trip to Melbourne is complete without a visit to MCG or "The G" as the locals call it! :) Their museum with extensive and exclusive collection of sports items will truly satisfy any sports loving person! It will be a dream come true for any Cricket fan to sit and watch a game of cricket played by their favorite team. I can only imagine how the atmosphere would be during the 'World Cup' next year!! Only wish I could be part of that crowd!!

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It is said if you walk up to any Melbournian and ask what makes their city? undoubtedly their answer would be 'art and culture'! Being a cultural capital of Australia, art and culture makes this city truly unique. As a lover of arts, I adore the impressive urban street art of the Hosier Lane, could easily spend hours together appreciating the art work at National Gallery of Victoria and Australian Centre for Contemporary Art. And most importantly Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) with its rare collection of film, TV and digital media for an unique experience on moving media! I can't imagine all these being in a single area - 'Fed Square'! As if it is not enough there are plenty of free entertainment events for public that happen there through out the year! Now tell me who wouldn't want want to spend all their evenings there??

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For those who love exploring the city by foot and prefer to get lost like me, Melbourne with its safe narrow alleyways is a treasure trove of hidden secrets to explore! I would love to roam around the alleyways and arcades exploring, shopping and getting the local taste of the city in my own sweet pace :)

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Melbournians love their food and wine! So a foodie like me could very well celebrate my vacation treating my taste buds to sumptuous food and exotic wine. From authentic local cuisine to international cuisines there are plenty of restaurants to satisfy people with different budgets. Imagine there are even exclusive trips for strawberry picking and wine-tasting at some of the finest vineyards!! Another typical and local way to enjoy food in Melbourne is by doing the famous Australian barbie - Yep, the BBQ!! Oh god, don't I just love it!!


Ok, that's not the end of story. As if the local attractions are not enough, there are many interesting locations within an hour of driving distance. When one can go wine tasting at a vineyard, have a comfortable swim, drive a section of the great ocean road and then drive back to the city, it certainly explains the accessibility of all these great locations from the main city!

Nobody would miss the Great Ocean Road, the scenic west coast ride with the iconic 12 apostles and many interesting heritage towns. With just driving distance away from the main city, such places arouse the nature lover in me and will be a great treat for photography. It will be fun beyond doubts to take the great ocean walk to enjoy the rugged coastal scenery peacefully.

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Another place that is so of my type is the Yarra valley!! It will be dream-like to raise high up in the sky over the vast stretch of beautiful vineyards and enjoy the sunrise from a hot air balloon. One of a kind of experience that is not available in many cities with such easy accessibility. Now imagine getting down from the balloon to taste some exotic wine!

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Dandenong Ranges is another place that kindled the explorer in me with its vintage train passing through heritage villages and pristine forests. A perfect place to escape the hustle bustle of the city and enjoy hiking through secret villages and towering forests!!

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Beyond all this, at the end of day, vacation is meant for relaxing! Melbourne is a perfect place to even do nothing and relaxing :) With its undying love for Coffee, it is just the perfect place to sit by a cafe, relax with a cup of coffee, converse and just do people watching!! One of my favorite pass times when I am bored of doing a lot over a vacation.

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Uff these are just a few places that I found already matching my mindset and would love to visit when I get to visit Melbourne. But I am sure there are plenty more to explore and experience. So if you are still with me, I am sure you'll accept Melbourne has a lot for every kind of traveler to bring the feeling of world in a compact place!

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It is for this multitude of choices and the flexibility to plan and do things based on my own interest and pace I fell in love with this city even before visiting it!! And I would certainly love to visit it one day! :)

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Ok my dear reader! Here is an interesting contest for you, are you ready??? :)

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Go grab your favorite beverage, sit back and enjoy watching all the fascinating videos of Tanmay & Rohan's travel across different places in Melbourne! Then tell me by commenting to this blog post, if you get to visit Melbourne, which of these places would you want to visit and why?

It's that simple!! The best answer on every valid entry will win a gift voucher!! Awesome isn't it??? So hurry up before the contest closes on 4th Jan 2015!

If you are wondering at my title for this blog post "Meet me under the Clocks!", well, it's a famous phrase that fun loving Melbournians use to describe their favorite meeting spot under the clocks at Flinders Street Station! :)

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If I get lucky, I would certainly love to visit this place, meet a few OZs and interact with them for a grand personal experience!! :)

This blog post is entirely based on my own research on Melbourne and places I found interesting already. But there are plenty more to this place to suit your own interests and needs. If you are interested, you can refer to the official Tourism Victoria Australia website here (http://www.visitmelbourne.com/India.aspx).

This post is written for IndiBlogger campaign "What's your reason for falling in love with Melbourne, the most livable city in the world?"