Joshua (August 2009)
Even in the heart of winter, we were active. The top photos were taken at Melbourne’s only city farm – the Collingwood Children’s Farm. There were lots of farm animals, farmers markets and much more…
It is located only 5km from the centre of Melbourne, nestled on a bend of the Yarra River, and is made up of seven hectares of paddocks, gardens, orchards, rustic buildings and shady trees. Established in 1979 the Collingwood Children’s Farm is a not-for-profit community resource providing country experiences for city people. It is open every day of the year from 10am and 4pm. Visitors can milk the cow at bottle feed young lambs (seasonal), wander around, feed the animals, help with farm chores, go into the paddocks with the sheep and goats, cuddle a guinea pig, waddle with the ducks, feed the chooks, look for eggs or just sit and unwind under a shady tree or on the banks of the Yarra river.
We also spent some time at the Melbourne Museum located in the Carlton Gardens, adjacent to the Royal Exhibition building. It is, apparently, the largest museum in the Southern Hemisphere. The museum has seven main galleries, a Children’s Gallery and a temporary exhibit gallery on three levels, Upper, Ground and Lower Level and was constructed by Baulderstone Hornibrook. The Touring Hall is where temporary exhibits are displayed. The Big Box is part of the Children’s Gallery. The Discovery Centre, on the Lower Level, is a free public research centre.
What was so surprising was how child-friendly and child-oriented it was. Definitely worth another trip.