[Sindriss]

So my fellow malazanites, as part of my education I will be studying at Swinburne University in Melbourne from around july to november. I will most likely be in the country from late june to january.

So, since I am going to spend a good bit of time on the continent, I would like to hear recommendations for stuff to see or experience. Also, is there anyone who I can PM if I got some question or if I am left behind someplace down there?

Finally, it would be awesome to meet up with some of you guys and gals and have a few beers. I know virtually nothing concerning australian beer, so I am looking forward to becoming educated

This is all for now, will probably use this thread for future updates once I start my journey.

[MTS]

Haha awesome.

Now, active and semi-active members who live in Melbourne...umm, from what I know, AIJ, lobo and some other guy whose name I can't quite remember (participated in the 2nd drinking comp) live there, so they would be the ones to PM I would think.

I could probably catch the train up to Melbourne and have a drink with ya when I come home to Geelong (city just down the highway). I don't really know Melbourne that well though, so I wouldn't be much help in directing you or telling you places to go and all that. However, I will say that you must go see a footy game at the MCG. It's a brilliant experience. And you'll be in Oz for the Grand Final! That's a must see if you have the dough.

Will you be traveling around much? Or just staying in Melbourne?

This post has been edited by MTS: 10 March 2010 - 12:47 PM

[Abyss]

I know it's all trite and touristy, but go see Ayers Rock, the Daintree rain forest, and the Great Barrier Reef (scuba if you can). The people are insane alcoholic horny fun, the cities are great, the beaches are awesome, hell, even the food is good, but those are, more or less, the three utterly unique places in Australia and it's sort of a waste to be there and not see them.

- Abyss, spent a year and it wasn't long enough.

[caladanbrood]

 

MTS, on 10 March 2010 - 12:46 PM, said:

However, I will say that you must go see a footy game at the MCG. It's a brilliant experience. And you'll be in Oz for the Grand Final! That's a must see if you have the dough.

QFT! I saw an Essendon-Hawthorn game there, and it was amazing. Ended in a draw, which was pretty cool, and quite rare, made it even better.





I stayed in Melbourne for 4 months on my gap year, and had a great time. Definitely worth taking a few trips - along to the Apostles, and down to Philip Island in particular I enjoyed a lot. As has been said, definitely try and get a footy match. I don't know if they do it anymore, but I also went to a recording of Rove Live and had a brilliant time 

[MTS]

caladanbrood, on 10 March 2010 - 05:36 PM, said:

 

MTS, on 10 March 2010 - 12:46 PM, said:

However, I will say that you must go see a footy game at the MCG. It's a brilliant experience. And you'll be in Oz for the Grand Final! That's a must see if you have the dough.

QFT! I saw an Essendon-Hawthorn game there, and it was amazing. Ended in a draw, which was pretty cool, and quite rare, made it even better.

I stayed in Melbourne for 4 months on my gap year, and had a great time. Definitely worth taking a few trips - along to the Apostles, and down to Philip Island in particular I enjoyed a lot. As has been said, definitely try and get a footy match. I don't know if they do it anymore, but I also went to a recording of Rove Live and had a brilliant time 

No, Rove ended last year.

I suppose if you're willing to travel an hour or two you could hit the Great Ocean Road and see the Apostles like Brood said, or go see the rainforest and lighthouse at Cape Otway. Too bad you're not here in the summer, there are some great music festivals.

[Fist Gamet]

Yeah, if you get out and about I would heartily recommend a trip up to Brisbane, maybe go past Byron Bay, visit the Australia Zoo and find your way to Cairns to do a bit of diving (which, admittedly, isn't the greatest place to dive - if you are into that you should look into Cod Hole, iirc)
Wasn't keen on Uluru and thought Kings Canyon was better although sleeping out under the stars around a fire in the outback was pretty awesome.

[Centzon Totochtin]

Good News Week is better than Rove anyway

Get to Sydney if you can, it is touristy and all but worth the trip in Oz. If you make it up to Brisbane there are a few of us here that can show you about... 2 of us even work at a uni here

I also agree with Abyss, those places are pretty unique to Oz and totally worth seeing, I would add Kakadu National Park too, it is an awesome place to visit and I can recommend a good tour operator there

[Roldom]

lol is there anywhere in perth to see? ive just flown over 3 days ago on my 1 year workin visa lol so far im absolutley loving it lol

[Centzon Totochtin]

Perth is awesome, you have to go to Fremantle, the beach is nice there... actually there are many good beaches in WA. I liked Kings Park and the Mueseum as well. Margaret River is worth a visit as well, great wine and nice fruit preserves and stuff.

That is the extant of knowledge of places worth seeing in Perth though... I was drunk the rest of my time there

[MTS]

Centzon Totochtin, on 10 March 2010 - 10:59 PM, said:

Good News Week is better than Rove anyway

Much, much better.

[caladanbrood]

Re: Perth. I didn't in there, but I did in to a place about half way up the west coast, there was a bay, and some dolphins and sharks and stuff. Pretty much in all the tourist guides, I'm sure you'd be able to find it easily enough, even though I've forgotten the name... Well worth a visit if you have the time and the money. Probably much easier to get to from Perth than it was from Brisvegas too

[Ain't_It_Just_]

Damn good to hear. Which campus is it? There's one near me.

Go see an AFL game at the MCG-it's a great use of a day. Also, go through the actual city-along Little Collins and suchlike. I hate to sound cliched, but there's a lot to find. Especially food-wise.

The beachs are OK, but it's getting kinda chilly so you'll probably want to give it a miss. But Docklands in the city can be vry nice. Have yo'self a ball, Bwoodus.

[MTS]

Ain, on 11 March 2010 - 11:07 AM, said:

Have yo'self a ball, Bwoodus.

Uh...it's not Brood that's going, it's Sindriss? Brood was here a while back...

Oh, and I would like to plug the Queen Vic Markets. Tons of stuff on the cheap there. In fact, probably should go put that in the other thread about Aussie gifts...

[caladanbrood]

Ooh, who's paying for my flights?

[Cold Iron]

Good News Week is fucking awful, McDermott is horrendous.

As far as recommendations, I would buy an old car or van and drive it from Melbourne to Cairns. Stop in the snowy mtns, jervis bay, sydney, byron bay, gold coast, brisbane, glasshouse mtns, noosa, fraser island, magnetic island etc.etc.

On a side note, I'll be in Qld from Easter to end May and happy to get drunk in the valley if anyone's interested?

ETA: If you're interested in the convict history at all by far the best place to visit is port arthur in tasmania. The settlement was abandoned because of publicity about the horrendous acts committed there. Some of it was dismantled but most stands as it was when abandoned as opposed to other convict settlements that became cities and no longer bear any resemblance to the time when convicts actually lived there.

This post has been edited by Cold Iron: 11 March 2010 - 11:44 PM

[maro]

We need to do a mini poll of Aussie posters.

I'm in Sydney

[Tsundoku]

Darwin (currently on course in Adelaide).

Don't even think about going to Darwin until the dry season (mid April - Sept/Oct). Otherwise you will drown in your own sweat. Not as fun as it may sound.

[Ain't_It_Just_]

MTS, on 11 March 2010 - 01:46 PM, said:

Ain, on 11 March 2010 - 11:07 AM, said:

Have yo'self a ball, Bwoodus.

Uh...it's not Brood that's going, it's Sindriss? Brood was here a while back...

Oh, and I would like to plug the Queen Vic Markets. Tons of stuff on the cheap there. In fact, probably should go put that in the other thread about Aussie gifts...

Oh damn, I could have sworn I saw him saying he was leaving.

[Abyss]

Centzon Totochtin, on 10 March 2010 - 10:59 PM, said:

... I would add Kakadu National Park too, ...

Totally.
The monster bats are kind of freaky.

Roldom, on 11 March 2010 - 12:27 AM, said:

lol is there anywhere in perth to see? ...

I don't know exactly when but if you can get out on the water when the whale shark migration is happening, it can be awesome.

Someone upthread meantioned Great Ocean Road, which is beautiful at points.

All the islands - Fraser, Magnetic, the bunch in the Whitsundays, are great. I don't know if it's still the isolated/protected thing it used to be, but Hinchinbrook Island was neat too.

- Abyss, all nostalgic now.

[Roldom]

by the way, wats the best book shop to by DoD in oz?