Icon: the Melbourne Cricket Ground

Melbourne is the capital city of the state of Victoria and with a population of close to 4 million, it is the second biggest city in Australia. 

Melbourne is most well known for its cultural and sporting events, such as the 1956 Summer Olympics and the 2006 Commonwealth Games. The city is filled with Victorian and contemporary architecture, parks and gardens as well as reliable tram services.

The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) (pictured) was the stadium of the 1956 Olympics. Every September, the MCG hosts the Australian Rules Football finals and grand final. Meanwhile, the Australian Open is held at Melbourne Park.

History of Melbourne

Melbourne was settled in 1835, about 47 years after the first settlers of Australia arrived. Melbourne rapidly grew into Australia’s largest and most important city within 30 years. However, the city of Sydney overtook Melbourne as Australia’s largest city during the 20th century.

The CBD is popular for its arcades and shopping areas as well as its hidden lanes, and café culture. The most famous lanes and arcades in Melbourne are Block Place and Royal Arcade.

The inner city of Melbourne's municipalities comprises the city of Melbourne, Docklands, city of Port Philip and the city of Yarra. 

Catholic Melbourne

28.3% of the population regard themselves as Catholics according to the 2006 census. If you are visiting Melbourne and looking for the Catholic Cathedral, you'll need to visit Saint Patrick’s Cathedral.

The Archdiocese of Melbourne is responsible for the Diocese of Ballarat which oversees 52 Parishes in the western half of Victoria, the Diocese of Sale which is in the south eastern part of Victoria, and the Diocese of Sandhurst, whose cathedral is located in Bendigo.

The people of Melbourne are known as Melbournians.

To find out more about the Days in the Diocese in Melbourne, visit www.did08.com

Image courtesy of the evil monkey (Creative Commons License), Flickr.