Ten New Places I Have Now Visited Because of the Melbourne Romp.

1. St Patrick's Church up at the top end of town. At the back of the church is a great fountain that runs down the steps through a sort of memorial type garden. It is quite lovely, modern, and juxtaposes well with the classicism of the church.
2. Argyle Square in Carlton. This is actually a lovely square with some very interesting features. Its the one off Lygon Street—you always see it but possibly never go to it like me. It has a great star clock in the middle of the spiral stonework. Work out which number is missing. Chuppa-chupp to the first person to 'comment' the answer.
3. Cussonia Court. Melbourne University. There is something inextricably lovely about Melbourne Uni isn't there—even the seventies buildings seem lovelier there. This little square has a magnificent fig tree and off course a Cussonia tree. It was a nice place to sit for a little while and get your bearings, including longitudinal and latitudinal, height above sea-level ...
4. Trades Hall. It has concrete steps worn by the tramping of the feet of the proletariat—how can you not love the building. Each different trade has a room for its representatives and a preserved board has all the trades listed with their historical locations. Just because it isn't what it used to be doesn't make it any less fabulous.
5. The Women’s refuge at Melbourne Central. Although I am not sure if running madly through it, with only the merest neck turn, and envy pang, at the table where kids were having the Melbourne Romp passports stamped, qualifies me as ‘being in’. I did see new parts of Melbourne Central though. They have a flight simulator. And astro turf.
6. The cafe with the chess board (is that still there) opposite the Town Hall. It always looked like a good place to stop for a cuppa. We did just grab a traveller so the visit was brief and the impression not overly memorable
7. The Polly Woodside. I am a little ashamed to say that in the thirty years that I have lived in Melbourne, I have never visited the Polly Woodside. There is an argument for it being a fairly open sort of entity, and so displaying is loveliness from outside, dispelling the necessity to go on board. I have to admit—ashamedly—that I have never taken the time to admire its attractiveness from the outside either. It is a very pretty ship. I’d circumnavigate the globe in it, no questions asked.
8. The stuffed animal exhibit at the Melbourne Museum. I don’t recall it from the time that I did visit the museum previously. I think its technical name may be something other than ‘the stuffed animal exhibit’. There is something weird about stuffed animals isn’t there? Maybe it would look less disturbing if they stuffed them in the postures of death, rather than in an attempted animation of life. We know they are dead, let’s just face it. The last time I did go to the museum they had a great exhibit in a very long case—it was a collection of dead animals and they looked dead. I liked it much more. I didn’t throw my wig at it though so there may be a tainted history for the poor stuffed animal display with me.
9. Seaman’s Mission. Anyone who’s ever let me crap on at length would probably have allowed me to get onto the bit about how I was once ‘this close’ to living here. It is a little off therefore that I have never been inside. It’s quite lovely. Oldish, rundownish, atmospheric. There is a public bar which it was probably good I didn’t know about when I was doing probation. Our mission, if we chose to accept it, was in the room under the dome. We got to sing. Which was all well and good, mucking around, the Sound of Music, until you realised that you were with a trained opera singer. And then I felt a tad embarrassed.
10. Degraves street restaurants. A lovely lane. The shops on it are sweet (meant as the highest of compliments). I may have snacked or coffee-d there once, but have never dined. It was a lovely way to finish the day and chill. The bathroom was horrible and hot though, so go before you go.