I love visiting the mansion. I try every couple years. I bring as many as I can that's never been…read more The restaurant/cafe is expensive. Probably better to take food and have a picnic. (YES ALLOWED). The grounds are impeccable. There's more than the mansion also. The back houses. The farm. There's a trail of art works. Amazing day out. 3 hours in house. 1hr out buildings. Art trail 45 mins. A small bus ride through grounds looking for birds and gliders 10mins. Was the background for The Pirate Movie. Rose Garden available during season rivals any on earth.

If you are looking for that "perfect" place to relax and enjoy your surroundings, Werribbe Park and…read moreMansion is that perfect destination - run by Parks Victoria. It is only 30 minutes from Melbourne by car, with plenty of free parking available and the best part is... entry to this magnificent Werribee Park Gardens and Victoria State Rose Garden is FREE. We strolled through the park and absorbed the well laid out landscape of roses in many colours and took time in smelling their fragrances. Plenty of places where you could sit down on their sculpted seats or pick a spot on their luscious green lawn - the area is huge to walk around that enables you to find a suitable piece of lawn to rest upon, under a shade of tree or sunlight - your choice. I even saw a family kicking the ball - a family-friendly place to visit. Many photo opportunities and then there is "The Mansion". You cannot miss the mansion because it truly is a mansion, it was built during the 19th Century (Victorian era) with Italianate architecture style. They do run tours there where you have the opportunity to see inside the Mansion and the history that goes with it, but we chose not to do it, we were quite happy enjoying the free views of 'The Mansion'. There is also a café located near the mansion where you could buy something to eat, have a cuppa or an ice-cream or why not bring along a picnic basket instead? And yes... they do have toilet facilities there as well. If you had a stressful day, smell the rose that would surely make you forget the past and an opportunity to recoup!

We couldn't walk inside Town Hall as it's closed to the public. But, outside there were clean…read morerestrooms and we found an information center. We were able to get brochures, maps & wonderful suggestions. The volunteers in the information center with very helpful providing us with discounts and suggestions to help us plan our 3 days efficiently in Melbourne.. The building & area were magnificently decorated for the holidays as well. We saw poinsettias & pines, wreaths, nutcrackers, singing penguins and reindeers outside. From 9 until 11 in the evening a light show was projected on the front of the town hall building. It's very cool. Crowds lined up and we are all oooohed and aaahhhhed as the colors changed.

The Melbourne Town Hall, besides being one of the most attractive buildings there is in the city,…read moreis also host to a number of events, arts and entertainment. Its interior matches the elegance of its exterior and it can be booked for a number of functions including wedding receptions and the like. During the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, it comes to life and hosts a number of different acts. We saw Marc Maron from the WTF podcast in the Supper Room (I think). The room was a good size and the acoustics were really good.

A rehabilitated sand mine, the Royal Botanic Gardens at Cranbourne now feature over 100,000 native…read moreplants from 1900 plant varieties. In a stunning setting featuring a central desert with North South garden bed. Peter, our guide led us around the garden home to rare bandicoots, swamp rats, tiger snakes and all manner of native birds. With an encyclopedic knowledge of the plants on show Peter was able to guide us through the many landscapes representative of this giant continent in just 30 minutes seeing Gymea Lilies, Grevillea, Hibiscus, Bottle Brush, Banksia, Kangaroo Paw, Melaleuca, Wollemi Pines and some of the 900 odd Eucalypt tree species including Snow, Scribbly, Spotted, Red, Box and Ironbark gum trees. Peter's knowledge base (including Latin names) was nothing short of amazing matching the breathtaking landscapes we quietly glided past. For lunch we headed upstairs to panoramic views of the gardens and a traditional Aussie BBQ with burgers, salad, caramelized onions and Kangaroo sausages on the menu (Poor Skippy!) washed down with a cool refreshing Lemon Myrtle drink. There's a nice gift shop here too.

I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Not many people know this but... Cranbourne Botanic…read moreGardens is part of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. That's right. The same people who bring you the beauty of the Royal Botanic Gardens in the city, bring you this gem for the Southeast burbs to enjoy. It's definitely a reason to make a day to enjoy Cranbourne. The whole thing is free and they have a lot of features to please any visitor. There's a beautiful Australian garden. You can spend an hour going through the loop, or longer if you want to really get off the beaten track and explore. There are bike tracks (with more than 6km of track) and a Woodlands picnic area. Heaps of walks to choose from: ranging from 400m to 5.4km. Apparently the "must do" is the Trig Point Lookout, a 400m loop. It's a 360 view of Mt Macedon, city skyline, Dandenong Ranges, Port Phillip Bay and Western Port. The whole place is really bigger than you'd think and the car park is right smack in the middle. If you like tours, there are two available: Snapshots of Australia (60 minutes) and the Explorer (an open-air bus that goes for 25 minutes). With a café and a gift shop, this park is rated. Open daily from 9am- 5pm.

I love exploring local museums so I stopped here to learn more about how Australia became a big hub…read morefor immigration. I learned alot and I loved how vibrant the exhibits were.

I visited this museum on my first day in Melbourne in hopes of learning the history of the area…read more This place did not disappoint! For what seemed to be such a small museum actually turned into hours of me poring over every word on timelines and information they gave. Learning the history of the First People's and the colonization of Australia was incredible, but eerily familiar. The parallels between US history and Australian history were shocking and I felt so ignorant not having known all of that. I love the recognition of the First People's and the stories that are being told recognizing the terrible past. In talking to Australians, they admit they have a long way to go. As an American, it feels like Australia is in the future and we are way in the past still denying the truth. This museum was amazing! They also had an exhibit called "Joy" that I was unaware about until I was inside of the museum. I loved it! It was filled with whimsy and color and sound and then went into subjects and posed questions to stimulate introspection. I walked away feeling like I learned a little about myself too. I highly recommend this museum! It gave me an amazing foundation of history that helped me learn more as I explored and visited more museums!

So I worked on this piece of writing recently whereby I interviewed a bunch of people from…read moreAbbotsford Convent about their ghost stories from the place. There are plenty. The main kind of repeated story (four people told me independently of a similar experience) is of a sudden rush of anxiety when climbing the eastern stair well in the main convent building. The anxiety builds to a kind of terror as the people enter the nuns quarters and has forced people to avoid this part of the building altogether. I can't say I experienced this myself, but there are certainly some spooky nooks and corridors in this complex. The convent conduct a walking tour of the place on weekends and though they won't highlight the 'haunted' spots, the place has such an amazing history (from Indigenous meeting place, through the convent and girls-home years, and into its existence today as a buzzing arts and social hub) that it's well worth the few dollars. Alternatively, you can pick up a brochure from the office and take yourself to the south eastern breezeway that cuts through the former laundries of the girls home. Stay after dark... I dare ya.

If you are in need of a weekend away but can't manage it then may I suggest a visit to Abbotsford…read moreConvent? The Convent feels world away from Melbourne despite its proximity to the CBD. There is something about the spacious grounds, historical buildings and range of eateries that promotes relaxation and escape. Maybe it's just after the battle to find a parking spot in nearby streets anything feels serene in comparison. When exploring the various buildings and grounds of the Convent you feel as though you are discovering something new. Whether it be a new favourite dish, a new piece of art in the gallery spaces or a new view of the Yarra. This space is very hospitable. It hosts markets, conferences, tours and you can also book various area's of the Convent for functions. On my last visit a wedding was underway and the happy couple appeared to be in love with the location, and hopefully each other. Grab a table at the Bakery or a spot on the lawn and write me a postcard!

It is designed to be a family friendly historical establishment. I took this into consideration in…read moredetermining the ratings here; they really do care and put a lot on for their families (must be their target audience as opposed to a young person in their early thirties) so therefore, I have tried to keep an open mind here. For me I was a little bored, although I did learn something interesting about the Victorian maritime system; yet there isn't overly too much to look at, so again this establishment is slightly overrated in my eyes; I was bored. However for families that put on special events like family fun day where children can get their face painted and receive goodie bags, and also get the opportunity to dress up as pirates; only to name a few different activities as part of their family fun days which children get to relish. It is popular among families, and expect to be patient when queuing to get in. Luckily there is a cafe pit stop to enjoy the end of the journey, although I cannot comment much on this cafe because I decided to pass on my coffee on this occasion. Still interesting to discover though. Give it a go.

For a start, this place is called Polly Woodside…read more Go on, say it. Poll-eeey Wood-siide. Feels good huh? Secondly, it's a great place to wander around on a day. If you're a budding photographer then you'll find some good spots here and if you fork out $15 you can go poke around on the tall ship. Everyone loves a tall ship!

Plenty of things to see here at the shrine, with lots of history and information. Gift shop here…read morewas kind of lacking. The one problem o had was that their elevator did t go to the top level (or so I was told) so my older people in the group couldn't see the top level because they can't handle the stairs anymore. I'm all honesty I want to give them a 3 especially because of the elevator and gift shop but due to the nature of the place I can't give it lower than a 4.

Normally not my thing, but this one was well done commemorating veterans. It had three levels and…read morehonored fallen soldiers with a crypt, a memorial space, and the museum. Entrance is a little tricky because this is a large pavilion. The visitor entrance is adjacent to the Royal botanic Gardens.

Walk through the giant slate grey box that is the International Gallery, through the spacious…read moreentrance hall, through the stained glass room, and out to the garden. This is one of the lovely free art spaces dotted around Melbourne that are somehow still big secrets. I find that it's a beautiful place to relax, eat a packed lunch, drink a coffee, and just take time to oneself to enjoy the surrounds. The sculpture display changes in the garden frequently, so you can be sure to never get bored with what you see. Yes, I can still here the cars and the trams on the road, and yes, I am not alone in the garden. Yet who cares, when it's a little moment of peace in an otherwise busy day. And it's free!