My Favorite Australian City: Melbourne

Without a doubt, Melbourne was my absolute favorite city to visit in Australia. I adventured through the artsy district of Fitzroy, strolled through the People's Market in Collingwood, and frequented the many vegan/vegetarian restaurants in town. I even met a few Aussie friends.

View from my hotel room

Come on guys, is this really necessary? 

Royal Botanic Garden, Melbourne
Per usual, I visited the botanical garden on several occasions. The garden is not as vast as the one in Sydney, but it still has its share of beautiful flowers and serene landscapes. During my morning jogs I loved zipping along the different garden paths which generally had less foot traffic than the main roads:

View from the garden

The People's Market and Fitzroy:
If you're looking for a crowd of young Indie hipsters, then Fitzroy and Collingwood are the neighborhoods for you! I attended the People's Market  on a Thursday afternoon and was a bit disappointed. I had imagined a grand market with a variety of different food stalls and retail booths; instead, I was underwhelmed by a small parking lot of 3 food stations and 4 pop up shops. If I had known this I might have reconsidered the 40 minute walk from the city center:

The People's Market

Other Miscellaneous Fun:
I felt an incredible sense of adventure while in Melbourne. After visiting the People's Market I strolled to a nearby cafe called Proud Mary's. The reviews on Yelp were good and they had something on the menu that appealed to my hungry stomach. I ended up ordering "The Avocado" which is a delicious plate of ripe avocado, goat cheese, and a spicy quinoa salsa on top of farmhouse rye. YUM. That same day while I was walking back to my hotel from a wine tasting in the city square, I saw a sign for a Tame Impala show. I downloaded the band's album "Lonerism" not too long ago and really enjoy their music. I somehow managed to snag a ticket for the sold out show and had a blast!

AMAZING Avocado Toast at Proud Mary

My new Melbourne friends: James and Nick

Tame Impala at the Ford Theater in Melbourne

The amazing food, friendly people, and an ever-growing list of interesting activities makes Melbourne by far the city I enjoyed the most. And it's been a while since I posted show pictures, but here's one taken by an audience member:

Can you find me?