Melbourne Australia trip

[mdrburchette]

It looks like I'll be able to go to Melbourne for the 2011 PGA President's Cup in November. I won't be at the golf scene unless I have to so I'd like to get some advice from our Aussie brethern on things to see and do in this great country. If at all possible, I'd love to meet some of you guys too! My tentative plans will have me in Melbourne from November 13-20.

[Curly]

We're about 70 miles east of Melbourne Denise, but I'd love to catch up with you and show you around whilst you're down here. Let me know your itinerary and accommodation details when you have it all sorted, and I'll find a time when we can meet up.

[mdrburchette]

Awesome, Curly. I'll keep you posted on our plans.

[Curly]

Denise, I believe the President's Cup is being held at Cheltenham which is a nice, south-eastern Bayside suburb of Melbourne about 11 miles south of the Central Business District. From there it's an easy train ride into the CBD where you can experience all the cultural venues, shopping and sights that a 4,000,000 people-sized city has to offer.
November (spring time) is a great time to visit Melbourne, the weather is usually very conducive to outside activities and top-down motoring . Melbourne is the second largest city in Oz and built around Port Phillip Bay. The eastern side of the bay is the more affluent side and has many nice beaches as well as Albert Park where the Melbourne Formula One GP is held each year.
A visitor to Melbourne (pronounced 'Melbun' by the locals) is not complete without a tour of the city on the free City Circle Trams (similar to the San Franciso trams) which stop at all the points of interest in the CBD. Melbourne was established during the 1850s gold rush in Victoria and many of the magnificent buildings from that era of immense prosperity still remain. There's also the Yarra River which is hailed as the only river in the world where the mud flows on the top of the water . Melbourne is known as a 'Garden City', the Botanical Gardens are extensive and the city has beautiful tree-lined avenues with lovely old homes and gardens some which are open to the public as well.
Away from the city there are many places of interest including Australian wildlife sancturies, temperate rain forest ranges, scenic coastal drives, wineries and verdant farmland - all within a day's drive.
If you let me know what sort of things you're interested in doing, I might be able to recommend some places to go.
I'm sure you will have great time Down Under.

[mdrburchette]

Melbourne sounds like a great place to visit. My sisters just got back from Sidney, but all I recall from their stories of their two week vacation was how expensive the beer was. Ron and I are hoping to visit the Outback and tour the city. He'll arrive a week before I get there and leave a week after I get home, so I'll have a chance to meet up with some Fiat buddies if we can swing a date.

[azruss]

get to the point, denise. ask them where you can rent or borrow a spider

[Curly]

Melbourne is about as far from the 'Outback' as it's possible to be - both figuratively and in a physical sense. The 'Outback' is central Australia - Alice Springs, Uluru, Broken Hill, and the vast, sparsely populated interior of the continent. To get there, given your time frame, it would be best to fly to Alice Springs and do a bus tour of the sites for one or more days.
The Alice and Uluru are dinkum Aussie and certainly worth seeing if you can manage to fit them in.

[adrians]

Denise, if you are going to end up in Sydney at all .... send me a PM.


PS - Beer isn't expensive .... it's just full strength, no low cal Bud or anything like that for us ! !

15oz Glass in tha club $3.30 - in a Pub $4.30 ..... in a up market bar $6 to $7

[mdrburchette]

Flying to Alice Springs and taking a multi-day bus tour sounds like just the ticket. I'll look into it.
Russ, it's probably best if people just offer me a ride in their Fiat. I don't know if I could drive on the wrong side of the road on purpose. Of course, a few of those cheap, full strength beers oughta do the trick, huh?

[Curly]

You will find living costs expensive compared to the US, especially food and drink - but at least we don't tip. Our dollar is now worth about $1.05 US.
SPYDUH and the AC will be available for tourist rides, I might even see if we can get access to our local hillclimb circuit where it doesn't matter what side of the road you drive on
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IheDRZ0-Zs4

[131]

Melbourne's a great city to visit, it's easy to get around, good public transport, good food, shopping and entertainment. A good day trip out of Melbourne is a ride on puffing billy through the dandenong ranges. http://www.puffingbilly.com.au/ You'll have to go to Koko black in the royal arcade off bourke street, they do chocolate to die for, their chocolate mousse martini should be listed as a drug!

[mdrburchette]

That looks like fun, Curly! Nice course.
131, the Puffing Billy and Koko Black will be on my to do list. I do love my chocolate. I'm excited about this trip but I might have to extend it a bit longer than 10 days!

[Gunsmith]

Denise don't be foolish, if you can extend your trip at all, DO IT!! How often are you going to get over there? The only really important thing you have to do besides that silly job thing of yours is post up lots of pictures of our Fiat loving Oz friends and their rides. I have always wanted to go there myself but of course one thing always leads to another and I can never seem to pull it off so many of us will have to live vicariously through you, so you can't rush it! You owe it to the rest of us to go do and experience everything and make long descriptive posts about the whole adventure. If you don't do this I would hate to imagine what would happen to your Fiats while you where out of the country and could not protect them. I am so jealous!!!

[mdrburchette]

You are absolutely right. It may very well be the one and only time I get to visit such an awesome place.. It's a trip without my kids and that's what makes it hard. I'll definitely take plenty of pics!