Melbourne Moments

A bit of an erroneous title as I went beyond Melbourne on my recent two weeks there, making pleasurable forays to Castlemaine, Ballarat and Bendigo. I could not have picked a better time to visit. Autumn in Melbourne is delightful and I was blessed with 14 days of it. Walking everywhere was a joy under blue skies, a hint of warm sunshine and the softest of breezes. Golden carpets of newly fallen leaves settled under trees or lay scattered on the roads. Other leaves, once golden but now leached of colour, spread across footpaths, crackling underfoot, while windswept leaves piled up in heaps in the bluestone gutters.     

On my first day, I did a presentation for the Wheelers Hill library group, the actual reason I went to Melbourne. It was so much fun as I always love talking about Macpherson Robertson's life and his chocolate empire, even 20 years after my book was published. Everyone in the audience of 60 people seemed interested and asked lots of questions afterwards, so it was a rewarding experience. 

Here I am getting ready before the talk...

... and during.

The following day I ventured to Fitzroy to explore my old haunts and to catch up with Mike from the Fitzroy Historical Society and his wife Nolene. We had a delicious lunch at the French bistro Bon Ap' in Brunswick Street. Afterwards, we wandered past former MacRobertson factories. This photo is of the General Office building.

An exciting development is that the newly-established publishing department of RMIT are going to reprint copies of my smaller version of MacRobertson: The Chocolate King as an on-demand book.

I had another wonderful day meeting my friend Kim who brought along former colleagues who I hadn't seen for at least 18 years. We had so much fun catching up on our lives, discussing books, travel, and our interests, that I forgot to take any photos. I think we were all quite happily exhausted when we parted ways, vowing to keep in touch. 

One day, Kate and I took the train to Castlemaine. A great day. I loved the old buildings and the autumn streetscapes... 

... but I especially enjoyed the Botanical Gardens. Developed in 1866, they are one of the earliest of Victoria's provincial gardens. This fountain was built in 1878, selected from a book of fountain designs. 

Lots of autumn colour and fallen leaves - and well-behaved dogs.

Afterwards, we visited the Forest Creek Tattoo parlour.

 Back in Melbourne we went out one night to a local Japanese restaurant. Fabulous food. I include these photos as a wonderful reminder of an enjoyable night.

Next day I was back on the train again, this time on my own, to visit Ballarat. A bit of a surprise - all the cafes were closed. It was a Saturday and the whole central city seemed dead! I loved the splendid gold rush-era buildings. 

An interesting corner shot.

The railway station was very stately. 

And there seemed to be a lot of statues.

I spent a couple of hours at the art gallery. 

Old favourites.

Tom Roberts' 1886 A summer morning tiff'.

Hans Heysen's The Three Gums.

Russel Drysdale's A Football Game, 1943.

Newer favourites.

Norman Lindsay

John Olsen and Howard Arkley.

And some contemporary work. 

There was a photography exhibition featuring mid-century homes in Palm Springs, Nevada against photos from Australia under the heading 'Is Canberra the Palm Springs of Australia'. Hmmm.

Palm Springs.
The stars were amazing but don't show up so much here.

Canberra

On Mothers Day Kate and I did a beautiful 'forest meditation' walk through the Melbourne Botanical Gardens with a small group. No talking, no photography and a very slow amble - wonderfully relaxing, as we spent time touching leaves, feeling bark, listening to the sounds of water spilling over rocks, and sitting in quiet contemplation overlooking the lake. It really was a calming and meditative experience. I managed to take two photos before we set off.

The following day I wandered to the St Kilda Botanical gardens - stopping on the way in Ackland  Street for a well-deserved cream cake!!!!

The gardens were peaceful and varied.

And now for my favourite day - a train trip to Bendigo to see the Paris exhibition with friend Michael. Because many Melbournians have moved to the country, firstly because of Covid, and now due to rising housing costs, many people commute to the city; subsequently train fares have dropped dramatically. The return trip cost me exactly $5.30. 

First up, a walk through Bendigo with its gracious buildings...

and a successful visit to a secondhand bookshop. Who wouldn't want to spend time browsing here?

And now to the exhibition: Paris: Impressions of life 1880-1925. This was a collection of art, photography, film, posters, clothes and artefacts representing Paris in the Belle Epoch. The exhibits are from the French museum Musée Carnavalet, a museum which celebrates life in Paris from its beginnings to the present day. This particular exhibition had its detractors: 'It's enchanting and escapist' a reviewer declared, 'but shies away from depicting the less glamorous side of Parisian life' - as there is no mention of the political unrest and the socio-economic woes of the poor. So we see exquisite dresses worn by the wealthy, souvenirs of the opening of the Eiffel Tower, glamorous shop furniture, pictures of people parading by the Seine, everyday encounters in Parisian parks, boulevards, the theatre and locales such as Montmartre. I loved it in all its 'enchanting and escapist' glory. I have to say that some of the paintings were not in the leading Impressionists' league but they certainly depicted life as it was.  The themes were curated beautifully in different rooms.  

Here are some of the paintings.

And the fabulous clothes.

Just what I need for a night out at the theatre.

In the 'shop' section, two items caught my eye. This fabulous gilded snail was originally perched atop a shop that sold escargots! Can you spot it on this black and white photo?

And this beautiful piece of furniture was a counter in a perfume shop. Oh how I would have loved to stand behind it serving customers. 

Posters were huge in this era and yes, Toulouse-Lautrec was represented...

I even managed to sneak a photo of Michael observing them. 

How cute is this.

In each themed room was a small screen on which was shown documentary films depicting views of Paris and people going about their everyday business. I was amazed that a photo I took of the film of people walking along the Seine actually works as a still photograph.

This next photo shows people going about their business outside the Moulin Rouge.

One small room was devoted to the opening of the Eiffel Tower in 1889 with souvenirs in a glass case (a fan, a jewellery case and a small model of the tower), paintings, and souvenir programs.  

After nearly 2 hours we reckoned we had seen and absorbed it all, so popped into the Australian gallery where I found a Grace-Cossington Smith - Door Into the Garden, 1959 ( a different angle to the painting of the same name she did in 1947).

Two final photos: Kim making me an omelette on my final evening and Kate having just finished a fascinating jigsaw entitled Dinner With Monét.

What a packed itinerary I had. I enjoyed every minute. Friends, food and fun. What more could I want. 

****************************************