Melbourne!!! 2010/09/21-22 Day 2

 
An early overcast gloomy weather greeted me when i set out for my official mission. The place i’m heading to is just near this magnificient victorian style bluestone building, now the Victorian college for the deaf. Since i was at the place i’m supposed to visit WAY earlier than i thought, in the cold i went around to explore this building.


What a contrast!!!! haha


I wasted ~1-2 hrs waiting because… anyway, happy to see some faces on the same mission too. In fact one of them was from Adelaide too, haha.

Finally we got to wait inside the hall. It’s a pretty big hall with many rooms and kitchen, 2 living rooms. As seen on the far left pic, the hall was extended to accommodate more people.



After all the waiting, ….etc. I’m finally released, haha. I have been eyeing what to see along the way in the tram, so i decided to walk partially on the way back which is one of the best way to explore. And luckily i did!!! Saw this strange building with a big dome on top (left pic), which look attractive to me and thought it was some sort of administrative buildings because many of the victorian/edwardian/english buildings usually housed government work place or some sort of museum etc. However, it turned out to be a jewish church call a synagogue!!! I was quite surprised to find that, it’s the 1st time i came upon a jewish worship place!!!





Another beautiful building which i saw along the way is actually the Melbourne Grammar school!!! My 1st impression was WOW, what is this?? And i was actually quite shock to know it’s actually a school!!! Don’t you want to study here?? It’s a bit like harry potter?? Not that i read/watch harry potter, haha. It’s an independent Anglican day and boarding school predominantly for boys. The clock tower is call Witherby tower. This bluestone building dates back to 1858!!!

 
This place is huge and there’s a church and a chapel in there!!! I love the little chapel!!!


The next obvious building which one will not miss it is the Shrine of remembrance war memorial located on top of a hill, a building to remember the Australian who serve for war. This memorial is huge but still nothing to compare to the one in Canberra i heard.

  
I really like feel of the granodiorite stones engraved with words used to build the war memorial!!!


Ceremonial Avenue, looking towards the city of Melbourne from the shrine.


Another direction viewing east of Melbourne.


One of my favourite…the Gallery of Medals!!! Looking at all the shinny medals, haha.

  
Inside the Shrine is the Sanctuary, a high vaulted space entered by four tall portals of Classical design. The inscription is part of a verse from the Bible (John 15:13) "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends". The Stone is aligned with an aperture in the roof of the Sanctuary so that a ray of sunlight falls on the word LOVE on the Stone of Remembrance at exactly 11 a.m. on 11 November, marking the hour and day of the Armistice which ended World War I. Since the introduction of daylight saving in Victoria, the ray of sunlight is no longer in the right place at 11 a.m. A mirror has been installed to direct sunlight onto the Stone at 11 a.m. During the rest of the year, a light is used to simulate the effect (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance).

Beneath the Sanctuary is the Crypt containing a bronze statue of a father and son, representing the two generations who served in the two world wars. Around the walls are panels listing every unit of the AIF, down to battalion and regiment, along with the colours of their shoulder patch. The Crypt is hung with the standards of various battalions and regiments, listing their battle honours (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance).


Malaya was one of the many country in scripted on the tower outside which OZ have send forces to.


All in all, although i did not really explore every corner of the memorial, but it’s really a worthy place to visit. The sanctuary does give you a bit of “da vinci code” or “angels and demons” kinda feeling. So divine!!! 
There’s also a visitor centre at the foundation, education centre, a remembrance garden which i somehow did not find the exit to it, haha.



A magnificent building standing proud in the heart of Melbourne!!!


Some floral attractions along the Queen victoria garden including the famous floral clock which was donated n 1966 to the City of Melbourne by a group of Swiss watchmakers.

Melbourne like Sydney has many parks and gardens which is a PLUS for the city as the parks really make the city looks greener and many use the parks to exercise, or relax. Tourist like me love them, haha. These parks are all well-maintained.

Creative architectural designs, another selling point for Melbourne. Indeed, Melbourne is trying to make the city a city of arts!!! All the stupid, funny, cool, fantastic designs have been drawing tourist to Melbourne to see them.




The building on the left pic attracted me due to its creative use of colours to beautify the building instead of a single turquoise glass colour.

Melbourne, city of arts and festivals can’t do without all the theatres, art galleries, entertainment complex…etc!!!

Indeed, the national gallery of Victoria (NGV) is a huge one and packed with people!!! The oldest and largest public gallery of Australia!!! This one here is the NGV international, located on St Kilda Road, in the heart of the Melbourne Arts Precinct of Southbank. The entrance is creatively designed with water flowing down the glass windows!!! This gallery houses International galleries, old and modern.


One of the features of the gallery buildings are famous for is the Leonard French ceiling, one of the world's largest pieces of suspended stained glass. The ceiling casts colourful light on the floor below (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Gallery_of_Victoria). Indeed the stained glass ceiling was so mesmerizing!!!

 
Walking back to Franklin St./Flinders st. The Eureka tower and the Flinders st.Railway station looks impressive in daylight.

   
Inside St.Paul Cathedral which is just opposite of Federation Square. Looks alike with every church/cathedral i went in, haha except for the stained glass door in the middle (left pic).  The right pic depicts the sandstone buildings of federation square in daylight.



The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, the first public art museum dedicated to Australian art. This building is on the corner of the federation square. Here, one can see heaps of Aboriginal arts too. While there, i was lucky to visit 2 temporary awesome galleries, the one on top, John Davis presence while the one following on from Mari Funaki objects. Both were very creative and inspiring for me, given that i like art!!! Moreover, these arts are something out of the blue!!!


 

Art from other galleries. Hmm…..i really like the painting of the right pic, unique and creative. BUT….is the one on the left pic a piece of art??????????? LOL


Federation square…wondered why so many Indian pics on the building? It’s to do with all the bully and murder of Indians in Melbourne 1-2 years back. In order to show that Aussies and Australian government condemn the act of some gangs, they put the pics up to express their support for the Aussie Indians.


Inside ACMI – Australian Centre for the Moving Image, but i didn’t end up watching any screen or play here.


Some fascinating buildings in Melbourne CBD. This one used to be a theater.


One of the more famous buildings smack bang in the CBD (left pic) with its tall clock tower. The right clock tower is part of the Melbourne city hall.

Something that turned from vandalisms into a popular street art in laneways of Melbourne CBD is now a MAJOR tourist attraction!!! These graffiti have somewhat turn into free public galleries which many youngsters like and took picture with them. If done properly, me too supports the street art!!! LOL, Why not?? they looked AWESOME!!!!


My favourite of all the graffiti i've seen with the light box installed on top!!!!


I snapped this picture to later kinda annoyed the guy, lol. Luckily he didn’t rush up to me to take my camera!!! But somehow with him and the dog, the picture looks more meaningful and portray street life in the back alley and laneways.




Nothing is spared from Graffiti!!!! LOL


 
 
All these graffiti were a collection of various locations around Melbourne CBD that i walked tirelessly to find them, lol.

Poster pasting on the walls are a common thing, but when many mono colour of black and white, somehow the spot turned into an attractive spot!!!


Melbourne library!!!! One of the grandest library i’ve ever seen, too bad i have no time to explore, but heard good comments on it.

 
RMIT building…again trying to be creative!!!Somehow weird things can get people's attention if it's not the best too, haha.

Bikes ride is a good way to explore the city if you don’t to take the bus yet don’t want to walk too. All you need to do is insert coins!!! Of course, riding a bike here is MUCH safer than back in KL, LOL. I wouldn’t really want to explore KL in bike ride, haha.

 
Chinatown of Melbourne CBD is consist of a main lane and several cross section laneways, full of restaurants to pick from!!! Many chinese restaurants, in fact too many that it causes confusion of which to choose, lol.

One of the older theatre (on the right pic). Because entertainment like play is a culture here, theatre can survive here.

My 1st Korean meal since i came over to Oz…haha. Yummy and it’s time to catch my flight….the tiger terminal experience was an unpleasant one…pretty much a low cost terminal but way crappier than what i thought!!! Oh well, what to do….cheap flights comes with cheap terminal too here!!!