Open House Melbourne is on this weekend and I nearly missed out. Fortunately I am in Melbourne at the moment and I sat down at lunchtime today (Saturday) to read my emails. I opened the 'Weekend Reads' email from Readings bookshop which opened with information about the program for Open House Melbourne which is for sale at Readings bookshops. After a hasty look at the list of … [Read more...] about Open Buildings This Weekend in Melbourne
Victoria
Review: The Riddle of Father Hackett by Brenda Niall
Brenda Niall’s biography of Irish-Australian Jesuit priest, Father Hackett, is absorbing from the start. Niall starts by sharing her musings as she walks through Kew cemetery in Melbourne where Father Hackett is buried. She shares some memories of the cleric who often visited her home when she was a child and her thoughts as she sifts through that third cemetery in which the … [Read more...] about Review: The Riddle of Father Hackett by Brenda Niall
The Corkman Hotel and the Problem of Illegal Demolition of Historic Buildings
Last week Melbourne residents were appalled at the news that an historic pub in inner-suburban Carlton had been illegally demolished. The Corkman Irish Pub was opened in 1857 as the Carlton Inn and was one of the few surviving buildings of that era. It was demolished a week after a fire damaged it. The Guardian reports that the developer claimed that damage from the fire made … [Read more...] about The Corkman Hotel and the Problem of Illegal Demolition of Historic Buildings
A Jewel in the Australian City of Literature
I have had the pleasure of doing some research at the State Library of Victoria while in Melbourne for the birth of our granddaughter. Melbourne was the second city in the world to be designated a 'City of Literature' by UNESCO. Melbourne has had a long love of books. The State Library of Victoria was one of the first public libraries in Australia (officially opened in 1856), … [Read more...] about A Jewel in the Australian City of Literature
A Gleam of Hope
I am in Melbourne for a few weeks for someone very special. Our first grandchild was born a couple of weeks ago. It was not only the first grandchild on both sides of the family, but the first great-grandchild for all great-grandparents. She is so calm and quiet when we are around although the parents have had some sleepless nights. She squawks a bit on the change table but … [Read more...] about A Gleam of Hope
