Melbourne Places

There has been some water seepage from Guilfoyle’s Volcano.  To address this, the water has been drained and a new liner on the bluestone wall is being installed.

At the time of writing this – mid July -it is a chance to look inside the crater of this folly and see what an enormous space it [...]

The nice thing about doing this blog is that I keep learning more interesting information about Melbourne from the comments people leave on my posts.  I have written about this beautiful and tranquil garden before in the The Pioneer Women’s Memorial Garden Post. Julie has left a comment asking about the  capsule that is underneath [...]

I joined friends for lunch at the Terrace Cafe in the Melbourne Botanical Gardens on a wet weekday morning.  It was a long standing date and we went despite the rain.
The easiest way to reach the Terrace Cafe that overlooks the ornamental lake is to enter the gardens from the corner of Anderson Street and [...]

Something wonderful has happened to the roses in the Alister Clarke Rose Garden in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens.  Well, it is wonderful to me.  Some lovely person has identified these roses and now they have name plaques.

There is something about looking at a rose and knowing its name.  It adds an extra pleasure.  With [...]

A pair of magpie-larks or mud-larks, as they are sometimes called, have honoured the Rainman statue in the St Kilda Botanical Gardens by making a nest on his arm.

They look very much at home and secure as they fly to the statue and settle on their nest to keep their eggs warm.

I haven’t seen many [...]

Albert Park and Albert Park Lake have moved into spring with the cutest and most  beautiful baby swans (cygnets) sifting through the grass and gliding around on the lake. Some are very young – just balls of pale grey fluff and it is amazing to see them staggering about on their little legs.

One family of [...]

The camellia collection at the Royal Botanical Gardens Melbourne is planted in an imaginative way.  The area is a sort of square with a twisting path that wanders between the plantings giving a touch of magic – almost as if you were in a private room of camellias.

Turn right after this beautiful tree and  you [...]

The St Kilda Botanical Gardens are in winter mode.  It is a lovely time to visit and see the gardens preparing for spring and summer.  Occasionally you see a sign of things to come with clumps of bulbs sending up their first spring shoots.

The ambiance in the Alistair Clarke Rose Garden is different at this [...]

Guilfoyle’s Volcano sits on top of the highest corner of the Royal Botanic Gardens and from here you can look over the rest of the gardens and to Melbourne’s CBD.
For years this strange wonder was hidden under an uncared for wilderness.
It was built in 1876 by William Guilfolye, who is quoted as saying, “ Combine [...]

A summer’s day and the heat is up.  You pant a bit then fan yourself with your hand,  a light wind wafts around.  It is refreshing and with it comes an instant love of this movement of air.  It is easy to worship the wind on such a day.
In the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne there [...]