Melbourne Zoo

Melbourne Zoo
Opened on this site in 1862, Melbourne Zoo is the oldest zoo in Australia. It is believed to be the eleventh oldest zoo in the world. It offers more than 350 animal species from Australia and around the world are on view just 4 km from the centre of Melbourne, in a botanic garden setting of 55 acres / 22 hectares. Special attractions at the Zoo include the African Rainforest, Asian Rainforest, Great Flight Aviary, the fur seals pool and penguins pool. The Zoo is open every day from 9am to 5pm, with a Zoo Twilights program extending the viewing hours on selected evenings in January, February and March. Melbourne Zoo is an historic zoo with an innovative master plan that displays a representative sample of the world’s fauna and flora in a series of bioclimatic (or habitat) zones (more…)

Scots and St Michael’s churches

Scots and St Michael’s churches
Located on the corner of Collins and Russell Streets, St Michael’s is a unique Christian presence in the city of Melbourne. It offers a wide variety of experiences for growth and change. It is a place which affirms and encourages the best expression of who you are and who you can be, through relevant theology, Sunday Service, numerous support programs and its commitment to counseling and psychotherapy. It is one of Melbourne’s architectural treasures Its impressive facade and splendid interior makes St Michael’s a truly magnificent venue for a wedding, baptism or other special event. (more…)

Queen Victoria Market

Queen Victoria Market
If you only have time to visit one place in Melbourne, then it should be the Vic Market. But try to visit while all the produce stalls are operating (Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings) because they make up the real heart of the market. This is a working market with meat, fish, bakery and delicatessen sections as well as scores of fruit and vegetable vendor’s stalls and general merchandise. The Queen Victoria Market is more than just Melbourne’s shopping mecca – it is a historic landmark, a tourist attraction and an institution for Melburnians. There are more than 1000 stalls, most of them set up outdoors under tin roofs with iron gables. The market has a separate meat hall and a delicatessen area renowned for Greek, Italian and Polish food. The area where the back open-air sheds stand used to be Melbourne’s first cemetery. (more…)

City Baths

City Baths
Melbourne City Baths is a total health, fitness and wellbeing centre. A triangular piece of land on the corner of Swanston and Franklin Streets was chosen and the City Baths was opened on 9 January 1860. People flocked to the baths and it was reported that 79,096 men and 2,950 women enjoyed the facilities in the first year.
Set in a beautiful and historically significant building, the Melbourne City Baths boasts one of the largest and most diverse ranges of services, activities, equipment and programs on offer in the heart of the city.
Melbourne City Baths aims to promote an awareness of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle and to provide quality opportunities to enhance the health, fitness and wellbeing of the people who work, live, study and visit the City of Melbourne.

State Library

State Library
The State Library of Victoria’s Picture Collection forms a comprehensive visual record of the state and its people. The 650,000 images in the Collection constitute the oldest visual historical collection in Australia, illustrating the development of Victoria from the 1850s to the 1990s. Also included are some interstate and overseas views.
Of the Library’s Picture Collection, over 160,000 images have been digitized and made available online via the Library’s Pictures Catalogue. The Pictures Catalogue also contains some images from the Australian manuscripts, map, rare books and other special collections (more…)