george's tale - australia, home: Yes, Melbourne

Friday ... and a long walk in the rain this morning .. :)

The street covered today is Little Bourke Street, from Spring Street (Parliament station) to William Street as shown on the map on the right.

(photos from Friday 11/02/2011)

Distance : less than 2km Time : 25 minutes Parliament House

In 1851, even before the colony of Victoria acquired full parliamentary self-government, Governor Charles La Trobe instructed the colonial surveyor, Robert Hoddle, to select a site for the colony's new parliament to meet. Hoddle selected a site on the eastern hill at the top of Bourke Street, which at that time, when few buildings were more than two storeys high, commanded a view of the whole city. A competition was held for a design for the building, and John Knight's design won the first prize of £500, but was not used. The government architect, Charles Pasley, subsequently came up with a design of his own. Subsequent observers have suggested that he borrowed heavily from Leeds Town Hall, which even today is widely considered to be among the finest civic buildings in the world. The design was later modified by an architect in his office, Peter Kerr. Construction of the project was managed by John Knight who was also on Casley's staff. The building is an example of Roman Revival architecture.
Parliament house, Melbourne

The first sign showing Chinatown is not far away.

City Limits Hotel Serviced Apartments

Her Majesty's Theater

Her Majesty's Theatre is a 1700 seat theatre in Melbourne, Australia. Built in 1886, it is located at 219 Exhibition Street, Melbourne. It is classified by the National Trust of Australia and is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.
Purchased in 2000 by Mike Walsh, the theatre was restored and refitted to accommodate larger productions.
Her Majesty's Theatre

Chinatown

Melbourne's Chinatown was established during the Victorian gold rush in 1851 when Chinese prospectors joined the rush in search of gold. It is notable as the oldest Chinatown in Australia, the oldest continuous Chinese settlement in Australia, and the second longest continuous Chinese settlement in the western world, only because San Francisco's Chinatown was nearly, but not completely destroyed by the 1906 earthquake.
Chinatown, Melbourne

There are gates on each side of an intersection. They might have a meaning but I didn't find any information.

If you want to taste the Chinese cuisine you must come here during the day ...

The weather was not so great today - I think a good moment to take some photos here is during the night (I think there should be some activity here and the lights should be great) .. or in a sunny day .. The Chinese New Year festival might be interesting too..

Once Chinatown ends, the street loses a lot of its colors...