Melbourne Menu

             My dear readers, I am going to be your hostess and present Melbourne to you as an exquisite 5 course dinner, which I am sure you will enjoy to the fullest. You have 2 options. You can have it a la carte ( Visit Melbourne-Tourism Victoria website) or table d'hote ( Come Alive in Melbourne videos ) ... with me. 

             We have crunchy , tangy Pani Puri for starters. Melbournians' warm , joyous spirit is infectious. City is not just the art, architecture and infrastructure but also the citizens' culture. Melbornians are accommodating and possess large hearts. They mix up genuinely with foreigners, without any inhibitions. This is totally evident in the following video.

                               Why George Columbus loves pani puri  

                

For the main-course we have richly rich history .Let's revel into the golden past of Melbourne, which is literally GOLD, with gold-mining history. Melbourne is founded by John Batman and John Pascoe Fawker. Governor Bourke named it Melbourne in 1837 after the then British Prime minister William Lamb, 2nd  Viscount Melbourne. 

Gold was discovered in 1851 and the resulting gold rush transformed Melbourne. The accelerated population growth and the enormous wealth of the goldfield ushered in the era known as Marvellous Melbourne. Melbourne was the national capital of Australia from 1901 to 1927. In 1956 Melbourne hosted The Olympics. In 2003 Melbourne was named as a UNESCO City of Literature.

 Tanmay and Rohan go back in History

            I am sure all of you enjoyed the historical main course. Now it's time for the present. Melbourne hosts the majority of Australia's contemporary festivals , thrilling world-class events, art-culture-music shows etc. Tourism is a major industry. Have a look at what makes Melbourne Australia's second largest city  modern , commercial-financial center, cosmopolitan, elegant and chic ... the most livable as well as lovable city in the world. 

Next on the platter is ' Melbourne in 1 word - Awesome ' which consists variety entertainment for all in the family. Thrilling experience of the Great Ocean Walk, Melbourne Cricket Ground, different types of Australian wildlife, especially Penguin parade at Phillip Island, Cruising the streets of Melbourne and enjoying delicious meal in the Colonial Tram car restaurant, Hot air ballooning , Segway-rides, wonderful vineyards of Yarra valley, crossing the West Gate Bridge for amazing view of the Melbourne city. 

              Finally it's the time for nutty , sweet desserts. Let's fall in love with Melbourne as Shantaram did with our Mumbai. *Shantaram is a blockbuster novel by a Melbourne-born author Gregory David Roberts. He got addicted to heroin when his marriage broke. He was a convicted bank robber who escaped from prison and fled to Mumbai, lived for ten years as a fugitive. He established a free medicine clinic for slum-dwellers. Simultaneously he worked as a counterfeiter, smuggler ,gunrunner, and street soldier for a branch of the Mumbai mafia. Recaptured in Germany, he served out his sentence there and in Australian prison. After his release, he established a successful multimedia company, and since the publication of Shantaram, he is a full-time writer. 

            In 2003 G. D. Roberts wrote the novel 'Shantaram'. The novel is a smashing hit all over the world in general and Mumbai in particular for it's in your face portrayal of fast n furious life in Mumbai. The book's name Shantaram is derived from the name his best friend's mother gave him, which means "Man of Peace,". Shantaram loves Mumbai as his own so it's quite natural to reciprocate the love with Melbourne. Shantaram has literally given his blood and soul for Aamchi Mumbai.

            Do we have any other option but to fall head over hill, in Love with Melbourne? There is so much common between Mumbai and Melbourne. I wish Prime Minister Narendra Modi declares Melbourne as the sister city of Mumbai. It will promote cultural, commercial ties, foster friendship, understanding between different cultures, and will encourage trade as well as tourism.

( This post is a part of a contest with Visit Melbourne and IndiBlogger )

Contest for Readers 

Which of  these places   would you want to visit in Melbourne and why ?

The best answer will win a gift voucher worth Rs. 500 /-

Contest ends on 5th Jan 2015 

Please answer in a comment box.

Thank you all for participation. Heartiest Congratulations to D.Nambiar for winning the Melbourne Menu contest. Kindly inbox your contact details by tonight.

*Reference : Wikipedia- Shantaram