Ted Ralphs

I’m just about to leave Melborne for Newcastle, so below are some pictures from around the city taken during my visit. I’ve been really impressed with the city and all it has to offer. Tonight, I went to some of the “hidden bars” around the city. There are many such “difficult-to-find” bars (see this map and this Web site) and many of them are quite unique.

Over the Easter weekend, I drove the famed Great Ocean Road along the southern coast of Australia. It was really amazing and beautiful. Below is the first batch of pictures. The more impressive ones of the famed (and impressive) Twelve Apostles rock formations are coming soon.

I just happened to be passing by Bell’s Beach, one of the most famous surfing beaches in the world (it was the one at the end of Point Break, for instance) during the Rip Curl Pro, one of the most well-known surfing competitions in the world. Pretty cool. The surf wasn’t particularly good the day I was there, so it may not look too impressive, but here are some pictures of the action.

Grafitti is a way of life in Melbourne. Instead of discouraging it, it is tacitly encouraged in certain locations. Here is a map of the places where you can see huge collections of grafitti, some of them quite impressive. I only got a few pictures, which I will post as I get to it.

Melbourne hosts one of the largest comedy festivals in the world every fall. Tonight, I went to see Arj Barker, who is an American, but very popular in Australia.

Here are some pictures from the Australian Grand Prix. I saw both Formula 1 and V8 Supercars. Very impressive in person if you’ve never been! The Who was in concert after the race, too.

Pictures from a recent trip to Phillip Island near Melbourne.

Australian Rules Football (“footy” as it is known in Melbourne) is a religion in Victoria. The number of professional teams per capita is more than I have ever seen for any professional sport anywhere. It’s quite amazing. Tonight, I went to my first footy game in Melbourne. Pictures coming soon.

Melbourne has a ton of Asian restaurants (as you would expect) and Thai food is one of my favorites! Today I went to the Thai Food and Culture festival, which is part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. Melbourne has a ton of festivals and events on all the time.

Today, I took a train down to Frankston (where my previous bay ride ended) and then went the rest of the way down the bay to Sorrento. It was a beautiful ride with nice beaches the whole way. It was actually a little hot, which is a nice change from the cool, wet weather we’ve been having. A perfect beach day! Here is the route.