More Melbourne highlights

You might remember pictures of this location from when I was here on Australia Day - but this time it was the place I was purposely visiting.  The Shrine of Remembrance was built as a memorial to the men and women of  Victoria who served in World War 1 and is now a memorial to all Australians who have served in war.  It is a site of annual observances of  ANZAC Day (25 April) and Remembrance Day and is one of the largest war memorials in Australia.  The Shrine originally consisted only of the central sanctuary surrounded by the ambulatory.  The sanctuary contains the marble Stone of Remembrance, upon which is engraved the words "Greater love hath no man".  Once a year, on 11 November at 11 a.m. (Remembrance Day), a ray of sunlight shines through an aperture in the roof to light up the word "Love" in the inscription.  Beneath the sanctuary lies the crypt, which contains a bronze statue of a soldier father and son, and panels listing every unit of the Australian Imperial Force.

 The central sanctuary

 The crypt

 Looking down on one of the forecourts of the Shrine

On the balcony of the Shrine, looking towards the city

The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum here in Melbourne. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum, and houses an encyclopedic art collection across two sites.  It is also home to the world's largest stained-glass ceiling in the NGV's Great Hall, designed by Australian artist Leonard French.

A special exhibit for the summer, in the sculpture garden at the NGV

A special exhibition at the NGV right now is by Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei, including a premiere of two major new commissions from Ai Weiwei, including an installation from the Forever Bicycles series, composed from almost 1500 bicycles; and a major five-metre-tall work from Ai’s Chandelier series of crystal and light.

Part of the permanent exhibit collection is one piece by French artist and composer Celeste Boursier-Mougenot.  In this piece titled clinamen, more than one hundred white porcelain bowls float on the surface of an expansive, intensely blue pool.  The water is heated to optimize the porcelain’s acoustic resonance.  Swept along by submarine currents, the floating crockery circulates gently, and when the pieces collide it acts as a percussive instrument, creating a resonant, chiming soundscape.

The NGV is part of an area in Melbourne known as the Arts Centre, comprised of the NGV, a large outdoor amphitheatre and two other theatre complexes where the Australian National Ballet and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra perform.  The Arts Centre is unusual in that its theatres and concert hall are built largely underground.  There's no doubt that this magnificent spire is the focal point of the Arts Centre.  It was originally built in 1984 but then replaced in 1996 after signs of deterioration were becoming apparent.  It reaches 162 metres and the metal webbing at the base of the spire is said to be influenced by the billowing of a ballerina's tutu.

Looking out over the Yarra River towards the city, from the Arts Centre

 The Queen Victoria Markets, open in the evenings on Wednesdays in the summer.  Lots of food and live music - and some continuing celebrations for the Lunar New Year

The Old Treasury Building was constructed between 1858–62, from wealth accumulated during the Victorian Gold Rush to house the state gold vaults.  The building now houses two permanent exhibitions; "Victorian Archival Treasures" and "Built on Gold".  "Victorian Archival Treasures" presents a rich narrative of Victoria's history from the 1830s, highlighted by key documents and artifacts from Public Record Office Victoria.  These documents and artifacts once held in the Old Treasury Building gold vaults explore themes of Indigenous Victorians and first white settlement in 1835, Ned Kelly and Criminals, Victorian Democracy, Victorians at Work and the Gold Rush.  "Built on Gold" is particularly inspired by the epic story of the Victorian gold discoveries from 1852 to 1862.  In those ten years Melbourne was transformed from a struggling settlement town into a bustling city of international reputation.  "Built on Gold" traces this story through historical themes and explores the economic, cultural and recreational aspects of the city's life, then and now.

 Part of the exhibits was a pictorial panorama that had been done for Australia's centenary in 2013 - the top panel is Melbourne in 2013 and the bottom panel is the exact same panorama of Melbourne in 1862

A bit of trivia that I found interesting is that one continuous use of the building since its construction in 1862, is the office of His Excellency the Governor of Victoria, who still holds weekly meetings of the Executive Council, consisting of the Governor and at least two Ministers of the Crown, that is, the leaders of the governing party. The Governor in Council as this meeting is called, is the formal enacting of legislation when the Governor's signature and the Great Seal of Victoria is put in place on the bill.

 They're called "Lady Midnight" - one of the best busking bands I've ever heard

Along the Yarra River

I took a side trip for a couple of days to see friends who live in a little town called Castlemaine, about an hour and a half outside of Melbourne.  We spent nearly the whole time I was there just sitting, talking, eating (and drinking) and getting caught up so I really didn't get out to explore the town at all, but I did manage these couple of photos.  Castlemaine is one of the many little communities where gold was discovered and now has a population of about 7000 with a strong 'artistic/alternative' flair to it.

The old goal in Castlemaine

My last day in Melbourne found me back on the beach again (no surprises there), this time starting my walk at St Kilda and walking up to Port Melbourne.

The lighthouse at St Kilda

Melbourne's Luna Park is a historic amusement park located on the foreshore of  Port Phillip Bay in St Kilda.  It opened in 1912 and has been operating almost continuously ever since.  This was the first of the five Luna Parks that were built in Australia, of which only Melbourne and Luna Park Sydney are still operating.  The main historic features of the park include the iconic "Mr Moon" face entry and flanking towers (1912, restored 1999 and the Scenic Railway (1912), which is the oldest continuously operating roller coaster in the world.

 Good timing - I caught a bit of the dragon dance celebration for the end of Lunar New Year

The Palais Theatre in St Kilda first opened in 1927.  It seats over 2000 people and was formerly a movie cinema and is now a concert venue

St Kilda beach is a beautiful, sandy beach about a kilometre long, not far south of the city centre, and is probably Melbourne's most famous beach.

The St. Kilda Pier is another landmark. The pier is terminated by the St. Kilda Pavilion, an eccentric Edwardian building in the mould of English pier pavilions.  It was first built in 1904 but unfortunately burned to the ground in 2003.  It was recently reconstructed and listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.  The pier has a long breakwater which shelters St Kilda Harbour and is home to a little penguin colony.

With an average adult height of 33cm, Little Penguins are the smallest of the 17 penguin species.  Although these little penguins are usually only seen at dawn and dusk, some careful looking in between the rocks did reveal a couple.

And back to walking along the beach again...

The last beach area I was at before leaving was Port Melbourne.  Today, Port Melbourne serves as a transport hub for passenger and cargo vessels.  Many luxury liners, naval vessels and ferries arrive at Port Melbourne, including the daily ferry service, the Spirit of Tasmania. Unfortunately neither the ferry nor a cruise ship was in port when I was there, but it was fun to watch this huge ocean freighter coming in.