5 of Melbourne's Quirky Hidden City Bars

Melbourne is the land of laneways, so it makes sense that some of the best and quirky little bars in the city are hidden down them too. Boasting little to no signage but great word of mouth. So whether you are looking for a rooftop, a laneway or a hidden cellar there is always something for everyone. Here is a guide to some of my favourites I quite literally stumbled across...

Derbyshire - Chatsworth House

Chatsworth House has to be, by far, one of my favourite places in Derbyshire. The grandeur, the expansive grounds, the events they hold. As a child my parents would take my sister and I up to play on the adventure playground and see the farm yard animals after a walk through the house. For me, it's history and mine, like many others I imagine, are intertwined.

The Grampians - Reids Lookout and The Balconies

When visiting The Grampians Nadine and I pulled into a lookout not knowing what to expect only to find out I had visited the balconies before, over a year ago, so obviously I couldn't help but take a photo to document the occasion. There is something about reliving my past adventures at the moment that I am enjoying, I suppose I am carrying a huge sense of nostalgia with me.

The Grampians - Mackenzie Falls

At the weekend Nadine and I decided to escape to the Grampians and get out of the city as we were both feeling a little overwhelmed and in need of some time off the grid, on an adventure. We had heard that Mackenzie Falls was the largest waterfall in the state of Victoria and so at a moments notice off we went.

Sydney - Vivid Sydney

Heading to Sydney for Vivid was a really last minute plan for me as I hadn't even realised it was on until the weekend before I went and was in two minds about whether to go or not because of funds. In the end (aka the next day) my need for adventure won and an early flight as booked giving me almost 2 full days in Sydney.

Melbourne - Sea Life Aquarium

Last friday I headed into the city to meet Clare for a day of wander round the sea life center in melbourne. For Clare this would be her first weekend back in a big city after being on the farm and honestly I remember how confusing making your way around that can be when you are used to one street towns for 3 months. For me it was a perfect way of distracting myself from my friend Sara having left Melbourne and had an enforced day off work as I had be trail blazing and gone into work-a-holic mode again.

Melbourne - Brighton Beach

On the run up til Easter my wanderlust has been hitting pretty hard and with all the talk in my house of going away for the weekend I just wanted to escape the city. I think I need to organise and escape from the city every few weeks to explore the city, while I love it, or I might go crazy and fall back into my old habits in the UK of not going anywhere and feeling perpetually bored with life. Needless to say as I am a wanderlust at heart, reluctant or otherwise.

Melbourne - Queen Victoria Summer Night Markets

Every Wednesday during the summer the Queen Victoria Markets hold a special night market, where lots of local restaurants come out and put on food stands, vendors sell their jewellery, clothes and gifts and the people of Melbourne come out in force to see what is being laid out for them.

Darwin - Deck Chair Cinema

After a few days of sickness in Darwin that made me just want to curl up in a ball in my hostel I decided it was time to get some fresh air. I had heard about the deck chair cinema and when I googled to have a look what was on I saw they were playing Begin Again that night, so I pulled my sorry self up and went down.

Darwin - Mindil Beach Sunset Market

Something I wanted to do even before I first arrived in Australia was visit the Mindil Beach Sunset Markets. I had heard they had a wide choice of food and that the sunsets were incredible. I wasn't disappointed.

Melbourne - Eureka Skydeck

I took myself to Eureka Skydeck 88 yesterday as I always love seeing cities from different perspective and I am a bit of a sucker for a good view. After Top of the Rock in NYC and The Shard in London Eureka seemed like an obvious choice and at $19.50 is more reasonably priced than The Shard and Top of the Rock.

Melbourne - Hamer Hall and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra

On Friday night (12.09.14) my friend Hannah took me to Hamer hall to watch Melbourne symphony orchestra preform clasics by Beethoven and Tchaikovsky. I met Hannah 5 years ago (we think) when on a trip to Rome so it was really good to reconnect and get to spend time with a local.