Marvelous Melbourne (1/2)

Whenever Australia as a tourist destination comes to mind, we usually think of merely two images: The Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. While both Australian icons are well worth the visit, wouldn’t you like to think that there are additional exciting territories in the “Land Down Under” to explore and enjoy? Well, here is something different for a change. Imagine the Victorian setting of London fusing with the historic pizzazz of Boston and you see the quaint city of Melbourne in the Australian State of Victoria.

Melbourne is Australia’s second largest city after Sydney with a population of 3.4 million. The city’s heart is about 3 kilometers inland on the northern bank of the brown Yarra River. It took my family nearly seven hours to drive from the Australian capitol of Canberra (where my father, Ambassador Willy C. Gaa, previously served in the Philippine Embassy, he is now posted in Beijing, People’s Republic of China) to reach Australia’s “Second City.” Before we were to rendezvous with our cozy room at the Holiday Inn, we gazed at the kitsch and very elegant 19-century architecture which graces Melbourne, standing alongside the modern skyscrapers decorating the skyline.

Once we arrived at our hotel, we met up with Alvin, a Filipino bellboy who would be our tour guide throughout our entire Victorian state exploration. As we settled into our room, I was quite amused hearing some of Alvin’s stories of how Melbourne and Sydney are the prime Australian city rivals (albeit a friendly rivalry) when it comes to size and entertainment. This metropolitan competition is so akin to the way New York and Los Angeles vie for the championship title of THE most exhilarating city in the United States to live in!

If you’ve ever frequented Boston, you’ll experience deja vu as you walk around the City center and surrounding areas overlooking the Yarra River. I fancied at how its conservative ambiance boasts striking similarities to Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As I donned my light jacket, being that Melbourne was quite breezy San Francisco style, I saw people strolling around who were as diverse from the well-dressed intellectuals to the vibrant youth exchanging words with each other. There is also the choice from an array of shops and restaurants. I honestly couldn’t pick where to start, so I decided to hop from one store to another as I strolled down the walkways at both sides of the River (the South Bank is across the City Center).

Among the city’s treasures I ran into were the Victorian-era St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Melbourne Exhibition Center, the Melbourne Aquarium, the Crown Casino and the town’s prestigious Melbourne University. Throughout my solo venture, I couldn’t help noticing so many white seagulls flying around in different sections of the city, the same way pigeons flock together in New York. Now many people presume that where there’s smoke, there’s fire; well I surmised that where there are seagulls, there are delicious seafood restaurants nearby!

If its nightlife you’re after, Melbourne offers some absorbing opportunities. A few minutes walking distance from the Holiday Inn, I witnessed a fun water fountain show along the Yarra River walkway that really sparkles in the evening, sort of a mini-version of the dazzling fountain showcase at Las Vegas’ Bellagio Hotel (if you’ve ever been there, you’ll know what I’m talking about)! Further down the walkway near the Southgate shopping complex in the South Bank, I delighted myself in watching a local band perform music by famous Aussie singer Kylie Minogue. You’ve probably heard of her, she was featured in the Nicole Kidman film Moulin Rouge and has her own MTV fan market back home in the Philippines. During their show, a local Melbournian female even offered to dance with me as a friendly gesture!

Adventurous travelers longing for an internationalized environment in Australia need not look any further than Melbourne, for I found that the city is a multicultural as one can expect New York to be, minus the fact that many people don’t vocally subscribe to the notion of living in the “Capital of the World.” I found that Melbournians have a very cosmopolitan outlook on life; you could just tell this by carrying on a simple conversation with them. This stems from the fact that many of them are well traveled. A shining role model of a real culture Aussie is Melbourne-bred actress Cate Blanchett, who gave riveting performances in such critically acclaimed films as Elizabeth and Lord of the Rings.

City immigrants include those who hail from China, Cambodia, Vietnam and Europe. I’ve heard that this city has the largest population of Greeks outside of Greece itself! And yes… there are a number of immigrants from the Philippines! Melbourne is host to the second largest concentration of Filipinos in Australia after Sydney. Roughly 20 percent of the nearly 100,000 Philippine-born population in the country call Melbourne their home. This is so similar to the trend in America where many of the Philippine immigrants tend to settle down in the major cities like New York and Chicago.

Speaking of the Philippine community, we had dinner with its local leaders, including the Honorary Consul Maina Walkley herself, at a very tasty Thai restaurant located somewhere near the City Center. I had a very lively conversation with Walkey’s daughter, who was very much a Filipina-Australian in her cultural identity. Having been born in the Philippines, but raised in Melbourne for the majority of her life, she spoke with a very distinct Aussie accent. So it felt good for me to converse with someone of the same age and ethnicity who had grown up in a foreign society and culture like me (she teased me how thick my American accent was!). She kept me entertained with stories of how Melbourne is the sporting capitol of the world and that the city played host to the 1956 Summer Olympic Games.

Right before we were to depart back to the quiet tree shades of Canberra, we embarked on a journey to the enigmatic and mystical 12 Apostles rock formations in Port Campbell National Park, Victoria along the southern Australian coast. From Melbourne, we drove a three-hour trip along the Great Ocean Road with our ever-loyal tour host Alvin. The Road is nearly 150 km. long, extending from the Victorian towns of Torquay to Warrnambool (don’t you just love those tongue-twisting Aboriginal-sounding names?!) on what is practically the most southern coast of mainland Australia. It was constructed in the early 20th century under tremendous pressure by returning World War I servicemen and was built as a tribute to those who perished in that conflict.

While the skies were mostly cloudy and the wind a bit gusty at times throughout our drive, we did view several rocky beaches and an endless array of “Fish ‘N Chips” eateries along the Road. Now Australians are particularly known for having hearty diets when it comes to such fast food, and me being an addict of fish and chips, you could visualize how much at home in heaven I felt! But for those who prefer other cuisine, fear not because an assortment of Chinese restaurants and the like could also be seen along the Great Ocean Road (I know how much of a torture it is for some Filipinos who cannot withstand long hours without rice!).

to be continued..