I went to VicRoads to have my Kiwi licence converted for use in Victoria. I called and made an…read moreappointment - the closest appointment was 2 weeks from the date of my phone call, so obviously it's a pretty popular place. On the phone they listed off a bunch of paperwork to bring and told me that I absolutely could not be late or terrible things would happen (ie I would be turned away and have to rebook my appointment). The building is pretty well marked and I was easily able to find my way to the correct waiting room for my appointment. Upon arriving upstairs a nice lady checked my name on her form and confirmed that I did actually have an appointment, before giving me a form to fill out and guiding me over to a chair. After about five minutes of waiting my name was called (right on time!) and I was greeted by a cheerful man who seemed to know what was going on. After providing the correct paperwork and identification I was asked to sign a few things, pay for the licence, and have my picture taken. The whole thing probably took under 15 minutes and I walked away with a temporary licence, a real one to come in the mail in 10 days time. After making an appointment, arriving on time and bringing the right paperwork, my experience with VicRoads Carlton was nothing but positive. I have a feeling that if you don't have an appointment, are late, or don't bring the right stuff, you're going to be in for a frustrating time.

I have been putting off my licence renewal for longer than legally recommended, its boring, its $$…read moreand .......I needed a new photo. Which means foregoing the convenience of online payment and visiting the bureaucratic nightmare that is Vic Roads. Take a number, take a seat, wait, fill this out, wait, wrong queue, fix this, wait, pay, wait, leave. I suggest going with a friend for morale support. I recently went with a friend who also had to pay her registration and the experience was better than anticipated. Our staff member Stacey was actually super helpful and we didn't have to wait longer than 10 minutes to be seen. There was a complication that was dealt with cooly and we were out of there in around 30 minutes total. HOWEVER...as we were leaving we realised we had just beaten the lunch/afternoon rush and people were queuing 10 deep stretching back to the stairs. Like roadworks a visit to Vic Roads is unavoidable, don't go if you need to be somewhere in a rush and bring a book.

The Treasury building was under wraps but we were able to walk inside & tour. On the first floor…read morewe saw the history of Melbourne & the aboriginal people. A docent explained that the aboriginal people were here for thousands of years, she showed us in photographs how their land was taken from them once the Europeans arrived. We talked about how the native Americans have had a similar story. They were exhibits about women's rights and jobs that are no longer needed in Melbourne. Downstairs we went into the gold vaults. There were films and displays about the Australian gold rush. We spent about 30 minutes exploring the treasury, admission was free.

Everyone in the consulate was polite and helpful which made the process a lot less intimidating…read more The only problems I had were the long waiting times (I would have been able to leave about 90 minutes after my scheduled time, making the total time spent there 105 minutes - I would advise against making hard plans afterwards in case of delays) but also being asked to wait to be called up to pay a fee, only to never be called up. This may have been easily avoided if I raised that I had read on the site that there was no issuance fee associated with my visa type, but I wasn't 100% sure so decided to wait instead of ask. If unsure, ask at any counter when they are free, they are friendly and will help you.

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!

Victorian Consumer and Business Centre is the place to go for information, help, and anything else…read moreyou could possibly need when it comes to setting up your own business or organisation. I went in when I first founded my group, hoping to pick up a pile of leaflets that would tell me, in detail, what it was I had to do to register and run (legally) my group. I got lots more - I got printouts of the details on their website, forms, advice, a tip on what to apply for and help with the process of application. When I came back a few weeks later, money in hand and name in mind, I found it really easy to register the group and to become incorporated. The lady behind the counter was patient as we dealt with the issue of the name I wanted being taken, she let me call my second in charge and talk it out without trying to send me away or make me feel small and disorganised. It was a really positive experience and I recommend going in person rather than doing the whole thing by post.

We were originally scheduled for Thursday, perfect weather but was rescheduled to a rainy, cold…read moreFriday. Our tour was cancelled because the van was in the shop, we later heard maybe it was because they didnt have a lot of people going since they combined us with Friday and it still wasn't at max. There was a parade in the city that the driver was aware of, but didnt provide for. We were supposed to be picked up at 1 and we finally got picked up at 4, three hours later. Since we were picked up so late, we missed out on half the tour. We didnt get the chocolate factory, nor did we get dinner. We were also rushed at the animal sanctuary, given 15 minutes to tour the entire place versus the hour advertised. I feel like this tour was a waste of our last day here and also the money spent, since we didnt get to do everything. If we had known our tour was going to start at 4, versus 1, we could have planned for some other things. On a side note, the driver was very friendly