I love Melbourne, especially its artsy atmosphere. The central city is a pleasant mix of amazingly talented buskers, rustic trams, graffiti-ridden streets, and modern buildings. It’s basically an awesome place for creative, chilled-out folks. Quite contrary to the business-y atmosphere of Sydney. It was a mix of Europe and Australia and that’s why I loved it. We were in Melbourne for only two days, out of which one day went towards a great ocean road tour, so we technically had only a day to explore.
Here are my top 5 things to do in Melbourne city for a day, which won’t even cost much:
1) Check out some graffiti
Melbourne city is well known for its amazing graffiti alley-ways, where some seriously creative art-work is displayed. The graffiti keeps changing every now and then. When I visited in 2014, there was a huge Ganesha graffiti painting adorning the wall. It was so much fun to click pictures with the various paintings!
2) Sit for an alley-way lunch
Melbourne has some of the best restaurants, and I heard it’s one of the cheapest places to eat in Australia. Tiny alley-ways here are covered with cozy cafes and dining hubs. I had some of the best Italian food ever in one such restaurant, although the name escapes me now.
3) Take a free tram ride
The city offers a free City Circle Tram ride to all the important, touristic spots. In fact, trams are a very distinguishing figure of the city (as you can see by my keychain). The tram itself looked incredibly traditionally and cute.
4) Check out a gallery at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image
Unlike conventional art galleries, ACMI portrays art through videos. Spectators can engage with the art pieces. Every week or so there is a different theme. When we went, the theme was the evolution of music videos. It was super epic as I’m a huge music buff. The best part is that this place is completely free to enter.
5) Appreciate buskers along the South-Bank
The south bank is known as the soul of modern Melbourne. It’s a perpetually busy area — hosting several markets and amazing buskers. You will find the best of Melbourne’s local talent here right from musicians to magicians. The food along the river-side is amazing as well.
Source of keychain: Souvenir shop in Melbourne
Menaka Writes 