Under the big shed they’ve created a space for small shops and pop up sites called SO:ME Space. It’s filled with clothing, accessories, artwork and bikes – a fun place to browse before or after your market grocery shopping.

Some of the designers include previous blog favourites Wet & Wendy and Skinny Nelson at Jane, plus cool bikes and accessories from Bakerlite and a very eye-catching shop display at Stone Glint and Bone.

SO:ME Space, South Melbourne Market, 322-326 Coventry St, South Melbourne

Wed 9am-4pm
Thurs 5pm-9pm
Fri 9am-5pm
Sat 9am-4pm
Sun 9am-4pm

I am a big fan of Melbourne-based bike rental company The Humble Vintage and the limited edition hand-drawn maps coming out of it called Melbourne for Visitors and Casual Cyclists.

Now author and entrepreneur Matt Hurst has written The Casual Cyclist’s Guide Melbourne, a book bringing a fresh perspective to cycle routes in Melbourne interspersed with articles on cycling tips, tricks and thoughts as varied as Taking the Scenic Route and Five Surprising Situations When it’s Better to Take the Bike.

The guide brings together contributions from a range of Melbourne architects, historians, chefs, designers and local identities, including chef Guy Grossi and milliner Richard Nylon.

With hand drawn maps by Matt, design by Studio Pip & Co and illustrations from graphic design duo Tin & Ed, it’s a uniquely Melbourne collaboration. The book is a delightful read and it’s an essential item for the ambling Melbourne cyclist.

Giveaway! Thanks to Hardie Grant, I have one copy of The Casual Cyclist’s Guide Melbourne to give away. All you have to do is leave a comment below by Friday 9 December and the winner will be drawn randomly. The competition is restricted to Australian residents. Good luck!

For the last week I’ve been watching the corner of Gertrude and Napier Streets with interest.

WLG stamped on the walls. Brightly coloured metal chairs lining long tables on the pavement. A dude with an enormous 19th century handlebar moustache working the tables.

The answer? The WLG Wellington pop-up restaurant has landed in Melbourne to occupy salon/bar Rue de Fleurus for 2 weeks only, from 15 November to 27 November.

WLG Wellington pop-up restaurant is a tourism marketing campaign for the city of Wellington, New Zealand. It aims to showcase Wellington’s finest locally sourced produce, wines from neighbouring wine regions, restaurants, cafes and hospitality faces beyond a glossy travel agent brochure, by bringing a slice of the Wellington experience straight to our doorstep.

Tickets for the $35 three course dinner have been selling like hot cakes and in-the-know Melburnians have been clamouring for the 50 or so walk-in spots as well. I was lucky enough to be invited to sample the restaurant thanks to Positively Wellington Tourism.

Wellingtonian chefs, sommeliers and hospitality staff have been brought over especially for the pop-up restaurant’s two-week duration. The 3 course menu has been devised with their input – there’s a taste from each chef in the starters tasting plate and a main course choice by each chef ranging from fish to meat to vegetarian. Everything has been brought over from across the sea – even the award-winning Antipodes drinking water.

Your dinner starts with a shared tasting plate to which each chef has contributed.

Tick off the following:

Manuka salt cured lamb shortloin with  beetroot, walnut and balsamic salsa;

Grilled Marlborough scallops, celeriac puree and pancetta crumbs;

Fried goat’s cheese balls with Manuka honey and Kiwi chutney;

Maple syrup smoked Regal King Salmon with horseradish creme fraiche and tiny capers (the highlight for me); and

Pig’s cheek ‘schnitzel’ with roast lemon chutney.

From the choice of five mains I choose  the the pan-fried Cook Strait groper atop a large dollop of lemon potato puree with baby herb salad and crispy fried white bait with preserved lemons by Tom Hutchinson (Capitol) while D had slices of perfectly judged Horopito-seasoned beef with slow-roasted tomato, potato fondant and green beans by Rex Morgan (Boulcott Street Bistro). The other chefs involved are Shaun Clouston (Logan Brown), Jacob Brown (The Larder) and Terry Lowe (Black Barn Restaurant and Vineyard).

For dessert we tried to the two dessert options. The Whittaker’s Dark Chocolate Pavé with fresh raspberries, Manuka honey cream and damson plum coulis was the ubiqutious ‘something chocolate’ on the menu and we both agreed that the Licoricello pannacotta with vodka lime parfait and pistachio wafer was a more exciting dish.  I particularly loved the texture of the pannacotta – smooth, silky and not a hint of rubber at all, plus the sharp hit of 42 Below vodka.

The hospitality staff have been pulled from various Wellington establishments and service is very smooth when you consider that the staff are working together for the first time.

As a marketing and awareness campaign, the WLG Wellington pop-up restaurant is smart and it works. The food is delicious. The wine is delicious. The atmosphere is young and fun and the guy with the handlebar moustache turned out to be our friendly waiter for the night (and can be found at Duke Carvell’s Swan Lane Emporium back home). Who knew that Wellington could be a gastronomic travel destination?

Plus only after dining at WLG Wellington Pop-up Restaurant was I aware that Wellington was only 3 hours away from Melbourne (and Sydney and Brisbane) and considered by Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2011 to be the coolest little capital in the world – two facts emblazoned on the dining room wall in front of me.

Tickets have sold out but there are walk ins available each night and unreserved outdoor seating. Just go!

WLG Wellington Pop-up Restaurant (taking over Rue de Fleurus for a two-week period) 153 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy, Melbourne
Tuesday 15 November – Sunday 27 November 6pm til late. Closed Mondays

Stuck for a unique, Melbourne-themed Christmas gift or holiday souvenir?

Then make sure you get to Melbournalia, a series of pop up stores open now in the lead-up to Christmas. Over the next few weeks four Melbourne CBD venues and one repurposed newspaper stand will host displays of Melbourne design goodness, with HQ being at Melbournalia Home in an out-of-the-way laneway (naturally) off Franklin St.

Melbournalia Home is a stylish converted warehouse filled with stationery, jewellery, homewares, fashion, coffee, art and design from some of Melbourne’s best-loved boutique design brands.

My covet list includes:

Gorgeous Neighbourhood throw and picnic rugs from Otto & Spike and make-your-own mobile from Ink & Spindle.

Tram roll cushions from Poulier & Poulier.

 Mattt cases for notebooks and laptops.

In 2011 our kitchen calendar is by The Design Files. In 2012 our calendar will be the designed by the giggle-worthy Able and Game.

Tonight Melbournalia Captains opens at Captains of Industry (Level 1, 2 Somerset Place, CBD) with a launch event 6-8pm and everyone’s welcome! Enjoy some wine and browse the Captain’s selection of Melbournalia gifts for the modern gent.

Cheryl takes a photo of the paparazzi

Anyway, it transpired that their tour leader and teacher was Richard I’Anson, a reknowned travel photographer based in Melbourne. I have several of his books at home! Seizing the opportunity, I asked Richard whether he’d be interested in doing a little HOT Chat for this blog in time for the launch of his new book, India: essential encounters. Thanks Richard!

Richard's photo of me

Richard, tell me a bit more about your background and how you got your start as a professional photographer?

I was an avid (some might say tragic) amateur from the moment I got my first camera for my 16^th birthday. After a couple of years at college studying photography, film and television I left to work in a camera shop. A year later I quit and set up my own business shooting weddings, which I did for 5 years, during which time I also starting travelling.

To establish myself as a travel photographer I did lots of trips all over Australia plus two overseas trips. The first was a seven month trip which was a lot of fun but covered far too much ground in too short a time. I now regard that trip as my apprenticeship, as the results were patchy to say the least. However, after a couple of years at home and lots of reading and looking at the work of other photographers I set off on a two year journey through Asia with the goal of building a substantial image collection.

After I got home I went knocking on doors and fortunately my pictures suited the needs of a few companies, including Lonely Planet and World Expeditions, who I’m still working with 20 years later.

What do you think is special about photography as an artistic medium?

Photography has the ability to allow the photographer to capture realistic, yet unique moments in time, by combining a series of technical and creative decisions in order to select and organise elements into a visually cohesive composition.

What are some of the most interesting or challenging shoots you’ve done?

Every shoot is interesting and almost all of them have challenging moments, mainly due to the fact there is never enough time and the vagaries of the weather.

I’ve done a lot of work in the Himalaya. When you’ve got to get up in freezing temperatures, walk for a couple of hours up a great big hill to be in position for when the first rays of sun light hit the mountain tops, it’s always both mentally and physically challenging.

Equally so are the really big festivals in India when millions of people gather to celebrate. The massive crowds, long days and the distance that I end up covering on foot make for very, very intense experiences.

Where are you travelling next for your photography?

At this stage the trips planned for next year include China, Czech Republic and India -  where I’ll be escorting a 22 day trip to  Ladakh and Zanskar in the Indian Himalaya (see www.worldexpeditions.com).

What advice would you give to someone who wants to become a professional travel photographer?

Understand right from the start that travelling to take photographs is very different to taking photos while travelling. Nothing gets higher priority than being in the right place, at the right time, all of the time.

It’s a competitive, challenging business and if you want to be successful you will have to work hard and do it full time. And, you have to be prepared to commit time and money to building a collection that you can licence to image buyers as well as show potential clients what you’re capable of.

Finally, what are your HOT tips for Melbourne where you like to take your camera?

Melbourne’s lanes with their graffiti covered walls are a favourite place and not just for the art, there is always something happening – cafe workers taking a break, kids hanging out, music being played, wedding groups being photographed and tourists wandering around with their cameras – all great subjects to shoot in front of the colourful walls.

Federation Square is another place where there is always activity and the architecture itself is a wonderful subject.

Finally Southbank is a great place to be at dusk for the classic city view.

Richard is launching his new book India: essential encounters in Melbourne next Tuesday 23 November at POP Restaurant, Hardware Lane. To purchase drinks, canapés and a signed copy of India: essential encounters, click here.

Owen, tell me a bit more about your background and how you came to start Hipside Guides?

I’m a relative newcomer to Melbourne, originally coming from London. I married an Australian and we moved here four years ago. One of the first things I looked for when we arrived (after an umbrella and sunglasses) was a guidemap, but none of the ones available met my requirements. So I decided to create my own.

It’s been a really fun way to get to know my new home city and I’m hoping it will also help other visitors and settlers, as well as any locals who want to explore beyond their usual neighbourhoods. It’s easy to take a place for granted when you’ve lived in it all your life, so a fresh perspective can never hurt.

In my previous life, I was a programmer and artist working on computer games, but strangely, map-making does seem to run in the family. One of my father’s first jobs was analysing aerial photographs for the air force and my brother is also a cartographer, mapping everything from wildlife to landmines.

What makes Hipside Guides different from other tourist maps or guides available about Melbourne?

There are mainly excellent books on Melbourne, but these days, who really has the time to read them? A good guidemap can give you an overview of a city in a fraction of the time and you also get a better impression of how everything fits together.

The Hipside Guides Melbourne Guidemap has a slightly hand-drawn look, making it visually very different from other maps that are available, but I’d say the main distinction is in its scope and level of detail. Most tourist maps cover just the CBD or a specific suburb, and don’t actually tell you much more than the location of the major museums and landmarks. At best, a few provide superficial ‘top ten’ type lists of the most popular bars, shops and restaurants. And of course, the free maps are either sponsored by the featured businesses or by local government, which has to affect impartiality to some degree.

The Hipside Guides Melbourne Guidemap covers the CBD, as well as a large part of the surrounding area. It features over 350 businesses and institutions, selected purely on merit. Alongside the usual, well-known destinations, I’ve made a point of including as many of the smaller, quirkier places as possible.

This isn’t a guidemap just about shopping and dining. Melbourne has a really fascinating history, which is clearly visible in its architecture and public artworks, so I’ve picked out the better examples and peppered the map with interesting facts, anecdotes and background stories.

With all its laneway hidey-holes, Melbourne is a city which really rewards those with the curiosity to explore, and that’s something I’ve tried to reflect in the guidemap. The intention was to create a deliberately sprawling and information-overloaded map, designed to be pored over and explored just like the city itself.

There are a lot of places on the map! How did you go about selecting which places to include in your guide?

I began with lots and lots and lots of walking. Then I walked some more. In Melbourne, you have to explore even the grottiest of laneways, because they often contain the best surprises. I try to never pass an open doorway or a shop without exploring inside and I’m sure I’ve sampled far more drinks and meals than is probably healthy. Yes, it’s a tough job, but someone has to do it!

I’ve looked for places that are exceptional or at least unusual. It’s easy to forgive a few rough edges if a place has a unique charm or is offering something out of the ordinary.

Of course, all guides are ultimately subjective, but I’ve done my best to keep its appeal as broad as possible. It isn’t a guide just for tourists or hipsters or any other single group, but for anyone who wants to get an understanding of the city as a whole. I personally may have no interest in poetry bookshops (Collected Works) or spice merchants (Gewürzhaus), but they’re all part of what makes up Melbourne and I find it wonderful that such places exist.

What has been the most challenging thing you’ve faced in starting up your own business? What advice would you give to a small business owner?

I think any independent publisher will tell you that one of the biggest challenges is getting exposure, so opportunities like this interview are really important.

Getting distribution into shops is also difficult, but at least people are getting more used to buying over the internet these days (you can get your copy from www.hipsideguides.com for $12.95 including free delivery).

As for advice to other business owners, I don’t think I’m qualified to give any just yet. Ask me again when I’ve sold my first million!

What are your next plans for Hipside Guides?

As soon as time allows, I want to expand the Hipside Guides website with more interactive features, more updates and maybe even a blog. And, in the long run, I’d like to apply Hipside Guides to other cities.

Finally, where are your HOT places to visit or things to do in Melbourne – maybe an entry that couldn’t fit into Hipside Guides?

The Butterfly Club is one of my favourite spots (204 Bank Street, South Melbourne +61 3 9690 2000). It’s a great little cabaret venue, but it’s also worth visiting just for a drink. From the outside it’s just another respectable-looking old house, but when you venture inside you find every available surface jam-packed with super-kitsch memorabilia. It’s one of the few places in Melbourne that can make even Madame Brussels look a bit on the timid side.

As far as shops go, Lost and Found is hard to beat (12 Smith St, Collingwood +61 3 9419 4477). It’s a real treasure trove of retro clothes, furniture, art and bric-a-brac. It’s a huge place – more of an indoor market than an individual store really – and it’s easy to lose a few hours searching through the all the racks and piles. You do tend to feel your age, though, when you discover your old toys in a vintage store.

One place that I couldn’t quite squeeze on to the map was New York Tomato (24/2-6 New St, Richmond +61 3 9429 0505). It’s a fantastic café, but it tends to be forgotten because it’s a little out of the way and simply because it’s no longer the new kid on the block.

If you really want to impress an overseas visitor, though, just take them to see the flying fox colony at the Bellbird Picnic Area in Yarra Bend Park. Australians barely notice their own wildlife, but to many foreigners a bat is a rare, mouse-sized creature that flits past in the dark and is gone, so the sight of 10,000 monster bats hanging out in broad daylight is quite mind-blowing.

Last weekend my bike obsession reached its peak at St Kilda Cycles.

While most of the hardcore cycling fraternity in Melbourne were battling their way through Around the Bay in a Day, I took the opportunity to visit St Kilda Cycles large showroom. As well as the expected racers, mountain bikes and sleek and shiny bike gear,  St Kilda Cycles specialise in more unique bikes like folding bikes and utility bikes. As far as I know they are the only stockist of Dutch-made Taga bikes in Melbourne.

I won’t go on and on about Taga (you can read all about it here) so let’s just say that it’s a bike that converts into a pram and I have been coveting it ever since I found out about it a few months ago. I’m so enamoured of it that I confess I’ve watched the promotional video quite a few times – it makes me happy and excited :–)

Anyway, I pounced on the lime-green Taga as soon as I saw it and took it around for a spin in the spacious adjoining carpark. While the friendly young staff member who was with me didn’t know too much about how it worked (that’s ok, they don’t stock many of them and I expect it’s a very niche market), he spent a lot of time with me as we figured out all the mechanisms and quick-release adjustments together.

So after about 3o minutes of riding, pulling apart, putting back together, more riding and discussion, I found myself the proud owner of a shiny new bike! It retails for around $2400 and I got the floor stock for $1900 (eek! but we’re justifying the expense by not buying a car in the near future and it fits 2 kids).

Here it is neatly bundled up into the back of a small Honda Jazz Flexicar (More transportation love – honestly, the more I use their cars the more I love them.)

I was really happy with the service that I received from St Kilda Cycles and if they were near me I wouldn’t hesitate to use them for bike maintenance and other cycling needs, especially as they are open 7 days a week, unlike many local bike shops. My parents are toying with buying a folding bike and St Kilda Cycles stock Dahons and Bromptons (currently on sale) with interstate delivery for only $40 – I’ll be encouraging them to check them out.

Finally, I noticed that they also do bike hire, particularly handy I think if you have a lot of gear to carry around and can hire a cargo bike for $60 a day instead of investing in your own.

• St Kilda Cycles, 150 Barkly St, St Kilda +61 3 9534 3074

People are often surprised to discover that I don’t own a car. Well, ever since I moved to Melbourne I’ve never needed one – I’ve always lived in the inner city and worked in the CBD, cycled or caught public transport to get to most destinations, and cabs and rental cars have filled in the gap where necessary.

However, now that I run a small business which sometimes involves hauling a stack of cycling gear from one location to another, it makes sense for me to have a car. Sort of.

I joined up to car-sharing program Flexicar a few months ago (they are in Melbourne and Sydney) and I’ve found it to be a really good service. You may or may not have seen that I’m Flexicar‘s Member of the Month (thank you!) but this post is not sponsored by Flexicar in any way – I genuinely believe it’s a cheap, eco-friendly and convenient way to have access to a car when I need it and it which works well for my needs.

How does Flexicar work? Well, you sign up to a monthly usage plan depending on how much you estimate you’ll have to drive. I have the ‘Biz-Starter’ plan which means I pay $12.95 per hour ($75 daily rate), prepaid monthly credit of $25, 100km of driving and all fuel costs included.

Why do I love it? Firstly, there are quite a few cars within walking distance from my house. The most convenient is literally around the corner (Flexicar‘s slogan is ‘cars around the corner, around the clock’) and seems to have good availability even on weekends.  Secondly, there’s no queuing and paperwork like normal car rental. The website is easy to navigate for information and bookings and every car has an easy swipe lock-unlock mechanism to begin and end your booking, so you can just jump in and get going!

The cars are all automatic, so no fiddling with clutches and hill starts, are in good condition from what I’ve seen and there are a good variety of car sizes – I’ve used the small car, the Honda Jazz, to the largest car, the Subaru Forrester. Fuel cards are provided if you need to top up the tank.

Plus I like their attitude – everyone I’ve dealt with at Flexicar has been friendly and helpful and the website has a slightly quirky, irreverent tone. They are keen to support other environmentally friendly businesses and Melbourne events.

It’s great to see that local councils are supporting Flexicar too – clearly it’s a good idea that deserves to spread!

So when the temporary Lost & Found Hotel Room told me that they had room at the inn for two nights, I jumped at the chance to have a little vacation in the heart of the CBD.

I’ve already blogged about the layout and furnishings of this special Tourism Victoria-sponsored hotel room here, so this post is a more in-depth review of the luxuries of being a tourist in my own city. Sadly, no casual strolls around Melbourne’s laneways or art galleries for this sightseer though.

Day 1

I checked in after work and on entering the hotel room with its big cheerful HELLO sign, clapped my hands in delight (yes literally). I then went about the room, thoroughly uncovering every little well-thought out detail – touching, feeling, sniffing and listening.

These beautiful flowers from Cecilia Fox decorated the high-set glass dining table from Thomas Place, which cast intriguing ethereal shadows on the ceiling.

I invited some of my friends over to check out the room, here’s S trying to work the record player. Eleven university degrees and one professional musician in the room, and not one of us could operate this vintage piece of machinery properly. So no Melbourne music for us.

For pre-dinner festivities, we raided the mini-bar package from the Yarra Valley Dairy. Creamy marinated Persian feta and Spiced Syrian Fig relish on crackers, marinated Mount Zero olives and glasses of Pizzini red wine went down very well.

After stuffing ourselves we then proceeded to stuff ourselves further at cheap and cheerful Singapore Chom Chom.

The evening was perfect for more cosying back at the hotel room. The Koko Black chocolates made the perfect dessert with the Larsen & Thomspon flowering tea as we gave the curious ffixxed double wearable picnic rug a test run…

….constructed elephant puzzles made by Black Panda….

….looked up Youtube videos of our friend on the provided Macbook (an another Thomas Place desk)…

…and after our friends had departed, indulged in a bath with fragrant Aesop products and some uniquely Melbourne-esque bedtime reading.

Day 2

A bath in the morning (!) before heading out for breakfast at Liaison Cafe around the corner. My step was jaunty as I headed to work in my 5 minute commute, already planning my lunch stop at Stellini Bar. I wanted to eat carbs, lots of carbs, just so I could go take advantage of having an available bed in the CBD and having a post-prandial nap! Even though I didn’t get a chance to sleep in the end, I’m glad that I managed to briefly enjoy the room in the daytime , as it was a light-filled oasis of calm compared to the dim cosy ambience of the night before.

And after work that night, back to the hotel room with no Masterchef, no housework, no disturbances, just books and bed.

Day 3

Another indulgent morning soak. Check out. Back to reality. Sigh.

Have a look at some other photos I posted on the guestbook gallery here.

• Lost & Found Hotel Room, Little Collins Hotel, 27 Lt Collins St, Melbourne – Part 2

However, I think possibly an even better way to share the best of the city is to create an experience which is all about Melbourne.

The Lost & Found Hotel Room is a novel concept from Right Angle Studio, the people behind the Lost & Found e-newsletter for Tourism Victoria. The premise is fabulous – a hotel room at the rather shabby 70s style Little Collins Hotel which has been especially appointed by curator Georgina Hobart with all things Melbourne – from the bathroom products from Aesop (each lucky guest receives a Jet Set pack, one of my favourite Aesop products) and ceramics by Shelley Panton…

….the Miranda July pillowcases from quirky Fitzroy store Third Drawer Down, bed linen from Linen & Moore and bedside lamp by furniture makers Pierre and Charlotte…

…a cosy reading chair and tripod lamp by Temperature Design…

…and assorted artworks from gallery Utopian Slumps.

If you’re feeling peckish as you listen to the curated collection of vinyls of Melbourne bands (including Crayon Fields, My Disco and The Emergency) or flick through the culturally enriching reading material, you can delve into the nibbles from Mount Zero, pour yourself a glass of red by King Valley’s Pizzini Wines or sip tea from Brunswick specialist tea purveyors Larsen and Thompson.

Two of the four walls comprise floor-length windows streaming sunshine into the room and provide expansive views of Little Collins Street and the succulent balcony planters built by Flatland and planted by Melanie Stapleton from Cecilia Fox (who also changes the interior flower arrangements once a week).

If you fancy leaving the room (and I’m not sure I would, it’s just such a relaxing city sanctuary) then the cultural concierge is there to help you make the best of Melbourne. Before you check-in you are asked to complete a questionnaire to provide some information about your interests, and the cultural concierge will give you a list of suggestions and ideas for your stay.

Guests are also invited to contribute to the guest book by taking the provided camera and to uploads snaps and descriptions of the places they visit.

What total bliss.  And the price for such a wonderful stay? It’s free!

All you have to do apply for a reservation between 1 June and 31 August. The only catch – as it’s ultimately a tourism promotion you probably have a better chance if you’re from interstate, have a strong social media/online presence and work in the creative industries. They’ve received 2500 applications for every week, so competition’s tough!

Thanks to Lost & Found Hotel Room for allowing me to access the room before it was open to the public. Note that I didn’t get to stay there (my application has been rejected twice, boo) so I can only vouch for the beauty of the interior decoration and can’t attest to the comfort of the bed or whether it gets really cold at night. I got to stay! Here’s a review of my mini-break in the city.

I have never written an advertorial on the blog, but in this instance I am going to make an exception.

Why? Because CycleStyle is my business :–)

That’s right – while you’ve all been reading about my eating, drinking and shopping exploits, I’ve been establishing a little business on the side and I think it’s pretty HOT.

CycleStyle is an online store with stylish clothing and accessories for the urban cyclist. Basically people just like me! I don’t own a car, I ride a bike everywhere and I want to look good on and off the bike. Whether I’m going to work, the shops or the movies I don’t want to dress up in unflattering, flourescent cycle gear – no one needs to see my bum encased in lycra!

And don’t worry, I won’t be constantly bombarding you all with CycleStyle stuff – this isn’t what MEL: HOT OR NOT is about. Occasionally if there’s something spectacular I think you should know about then I’ll post something here. Otherwise you can keep up to date with CycleStyle news via the CycleStyle blog, CycleStyle on Facebook or via twitter.

I’m just starting out so and learning the ropes as I go – so please feel free to send me any feedback/suggestions/comments to  joyce@cyclestyle.com.au.

Over and out!

Today’s HOT Chat is with Matt Hurst, the owner of bike rental service The Humble Vintage and writer and designer of a new quarterly guide called Melbourne for Visitors and Casual Cyclists, issue #1. Thanks Matt!

Matt, tell me a bit more about your background and the story behind your bike hire business The Humble Vintage?

Well, after a couple of years of full time work as a publicist for some major arts venues, I headed off for a month overseas. As with my many other trips abroad, I went hunting for bikes to rent in each major city. Getting home, it was a bit of a ‘what now’ scenario, and my idle mind wondered what bike rental options were available to the traveler who visited Melbourne.

I looked around and couldn’t see what myself or my friends would have wanted from a bike rental on offer – then realised that even when I was overseas I wasn’t finding that bike rental was being done in an interesting way.

So I thought I’d start my own. The idea felt good, and for once, I had the time.

You’ve just launched a very cool map called Melbourne for Visitors and Casual Cyclists. What was your inspiration for designing and printing this map?

It was surprising how many people would ask “so what should we do today?” when renting… and while I spent a lot of time drawing on people’s maps I quickly saw how doing my own would be a great extension of The Humble Vintage offer. Melbourne for Visitors and Casual Cyclists is a hand-drawn map with three suggested riding routes for summer and on the other side it contains little snippets of places to go, things to do and some quirky reading.

People have suggested I take guided tours, but I think of the bikes as an enjoyable way to get from A to B more so than a tourist attraction. As I’m a writer more than a talker, the map and guide is my way of doing the guided tour. So the idea behind the map and guide is that you get a nice old bike, get the map, stuff it in your pocket and off you go.

Have you faced any challenges getting the map project off the ground? In general, what advice would you give to someone starting their own business?

I’m sure as anyone who has attempted would agree, drawing a map of Melbourne from scratch was a bit of a black hole time-wise! Even though it doesn’t have side streets it still took a lot of work. But once I got started, I got a bit addicted too, and likewise with writing the guide.

Funding the printing was a challenge, as the first run of 300 disappeared in a few days, and I had no money from it to print more. Melbourne for Visitors and Casual Cyclists will always be free with rentals, but I’ve done another run which are available at a few bookshops for a gold coin donation, and I’ve almost run out again.

Advice to people starting a small business is tough; if anyone saw how I was running mine they would say that I needed advice!

What are your next plans for the map and The Humble Vintage?

The main aim is to see the guide become a well followed quarterly publication, to make it an interesting read to anyone in Melbourne with a bike, or even without a bike in fact. It’s definitely not just for people who rent bikes from me.

I’m currently looking at getting a well known chef to pen a food-related ride; it might be the ‘ultimate progressive lunch’ for example. There are a lot of ideas, I could go on and on!

For the bikes, I’m currently in the process of lining up a few more pick up points, and trying to accumulate enough bikes to be able to sell a couple here and there as well. I’m always getting asked if I can sell the rentals.

Why do you like cycling, and particularly in Melbourne?

You see more, you take in more, you become more aware of your surroundings and neighbourhood. I still notice new things when riding through these streets I ride around daily. In Melbourne its more often than not the fastest way to get around too, especially if you’re going across town, not into town.

Finally, what are your tips for other HOT places in Melbourne that aren’t in the guide?

A little Japanese run café and store called Cibi in Collingwood. I am in love with the ‘sandwich style’ Japanese potato salad.

Maybe it’s because it’s so hard to get a table, but whenever I’m at Movida Next door I do find myself glad that I am (1 Hosier Ln, Melbourne +61 3 9663 3038).

More often than not it’s a few drinks and snacks in the park which is on the agenda, and Lawson Grove is great as it’s right by the Botanic Gardens and it has supplies to take away as well (1 Lawson Grove, South Yarra +61 3 9866 3640).

It’s in the guide but I really do like what Captains of Industry are doing, their atelier / shoe maker / barber / café collaboration is quite unique (Level 1, 2 Somerset Place, Melbourne).

And I will never say no to a bolognaise at Tiamo in Lygon Street (303 Lygon Street, Carlton +61 3 9347 5759).

Melbourne for Visitors and Casual Cyclists, issue #1 is available for $2 at Metropolis, The Paperback, Eco Innovators Showcase, Readings Acland Street and 1000 £ Bend or you can get a copy in the mail by sending a few stamps to Matt at The Humble Vintage, PO Box 361, East Melbourne VIC 8002.

The centre of Melbourne, with its many alleyways and riverside walkways, is a place which is best explored by foot.

Melbourne By Foot is a recently-launched walking tour run by Dave Carswell. For $25 per person he takes small groups through a three hour stroll through the city sprinkling factoids along the way. The route is still in development but for the moment it covers Federation Square, up towards the Melbourne Cricket Ground, drops into the laneway art around Flinders Lane, through the arcades, up to the Mitre Tavern, along seedy King Street, across to Crown Casino, across the Sandridge Bridge then back along the Yarra to finish up at Federation Square. Phew.

Here are some of my highlights.

Federation Square is the heart of city gatherings now but at the time of construction it was wrought with controversy – running late and over budget and with the choppy design by LAB attracting much criticism. The ground of the square actually covers one giant trampoline. Four thousand springs sit underneath the Kimberley sandstone tiles to cushion the sound of the train lines which run beneath the square.

If you look closely at parts of the square you’ll notice that some of them have words on them. The boxes dotted around nine sites in the square from a piece of artwork designed by Paul Carter called ‘Nearamnew‘ and include text relating the history of Victoria and federation. In addition, there’s a giant swirling pattern in the middle of the 10,000 capacity amphitheatre, and this represents the flooding of the Yarra river that used to occur.

The architect’s brief  stated that the structure of Federation Square must increase the city’s connection to the river and thus the site segues seamlessly into Birrarung Marr. This area celebrates the original Aboriginal inhabitants of this area, which span back approximately 40,000 years and 1600 generations. Dave described the tribal structure of the indigenous population and their interactions with the first white settlers who took the land with boxes of axes and blankets.

I love the backdrop of skyscrapers on the Federation Bells, which ring daily with specially composed pieces by Australian composers.  From that location Dave talked about the importance of sport on the Australian culture, particularly in Melbourne. The Melbourne Cricket Ground was the site of the first test cricket match in the 1877 between Australia and England and the birthplace of the Australian Rules Football.

From there we crossed the tramlines at Flinders St, the route for the first cable tram in Melbourne. Did you know that the Melbourne has the largest tram network in an English speaking country (29 routes with 500 trams)? And Elton John liked trams so much when he visited Melbourne that he bought a W class tram and has installed it in the grounds of his Windsor mansion?

Next stop, ACDC Lane, named after the famous Australian band ACDC who filmed their video clip ‘It’s a long way to the top’ on a flatbed truck down Swanston Street. Here’s a picture of us doing our best air guitar impersonation.

Melbourne celebrates its street art culture even though it is strictly illegal. The councils tolerates the graffiti because they realise it adds character and colour to the cityscape, particularly in otherwise-dingy back alleys. One of the best examples of Melbourne’s ever-changing scenery of street art is found in Hosier Lane, where you’ll find stencils by Blek le rat and Ha-Ha.

After that we strolled through buzzing Centre Place, Block Arcade and the Causeway before settling down to a refreshing drink at Cafe Solarino in Howey Place.

In the last hour we covered a lot of ground – and in fact, I felt that there was a lot of walking with not a lot of pay-off relative to the earlier part of the tour, as there were long segments were there was nothing to see or talk about. I did pick up some interesting factoids:

• the Mitre Tavern in Bank Place is Melbourne’s oldest pub. The owners of hardware chain Mitre 10 actually came up with the name while having a pint at the Mitre (they just thought the number 10 had a nice ring to it).
• Tucket under the Sandridge Bridge (immigration bridge) is a small artwork called Ecophene. This small water wall commerates a long gone waterfall which separated the Yarra’s fresh and salt water segment. It was destroyed in 1883 and this changed the river’s ecology forever. The waterfall’s loss is also symbolic of the loss of a way of life for the indigenous population in Melbourne.

The Eureka Tower is the tallest residential building in Melbourne. The gold at the top of the tower is 24 carat and of course represents the gold rush which brought much wealth to Victoria but was also the scene for the Eureka Stockade, after which is the tower is named.  The red stripe represents the blood shed during that rebellion while the blue and white facade evokes the colours of the Eureka flag.

All in all, the tour is definitely worthwhile for visitors. For me, it provided an interesting insight into my home town and opened my eyes to features I pass every day which I’d never noticed. Dave is very knowledgeable about the city and my only criticism is that the finalised route would benefit from more talking and less walking, particularly if you’re taking tourists around in the heat of summer.

• Melbourne By Foot, every day 9am and 1pm at the Visitors Centre, Federation Square.

The Hive closed off 2009 with a bang as  Tony Wheeler addressed over 200 eager listeners with the story of his journey and his passions as one of the founders of Lonely Planet. In fact, interest was so huge that the event had to be moved to bigger premises at Collins Quarter.

Tony was a self-effacing, down-to-earth media magnate if you consider the fact that he’s the co-founder of the largest travel guide book and digital media publisher in the world.  In 2007, a 75% stake in Lonely Planet was sold to BBC Worldwide (the commercial arm of the BBC). It’s been a 30 year climb for a company which started off with husband-and-wife team Tony and Maureen arriving in Australia with 27 cents in their pocket and deciding to self-publish one of the first backpacker’s guides ‘Across Asia on the cheap’.

Some interesting factoids for Lonely Planet fans:

• The company name comes from a lyric in ‘Space Captain’, a song by Joe Cocker and Leon Russell. The actual words are ‘lovely planet’ but Tony misheard ‘lonely planet’ and liked it.
• Tony’s tips to entrepreneurs? Have fun! Sure, it’s great if you can make some money from your ventures – but even if you don’t, at least you’ve had fun.
• Tony’s been to approximately 140 countries and his next destination of choice  – Congo and Zaire. When asked to name his most inspirational travel experience, he explained that he finds the people that he meets the most inspiring part of travelling.
• Around 25% of Lonely Planet’s content is now sold online via downloads and iPhone apps.
• Tony and Maureen bought their first computer to do invoices, and then discovered the possibilities of…word processing! Back in the early 80s, Lonely Planet was the first company in Melbourne to have a computer for every employee.

After the session my companions (including Miss Kish, Sashaka Fernando and Tim Bull) discussed whether we could start up a potentially multi-million dollar company in this day and age if we were broke, naive but passionate. Frankly, I’m not sure that it’s possible, even if it’s just an internet start-up. Or maybe I’m just an old risk-adverse fuddy-duddy. What do you think?

If you missed the meeting, you can access the podcast feed through iTunes. You can also read the review of a previous event by The Hive, featuring Adioso.com, here. The next event will be held in February next year.

Finally, just a little plug – MEL: HOT OR NOT is now being syndicated on Lonely Planet’s Melbourne website!

• The Hive, Collins Quarter, 86A Collins St, Melbourne +61 3 9650 8500

• Tony Wheeler, the co-founder of Lonely Planet, is speaking at The Hive at The Order of Melbourne on Tuesday 24 November. Read my review of a previous The Hive event here;
• The Rockwiz Christmas special is coming to The Palais, St Kilda, on Wednesday 25 November;
• Preview screening of Steven Soderbergh’s political comedy The Informant! on Thursday 26 November;
• Going shopping from Williamstown through to Footscray with Melbourne Op Shop Tours on Saturday 28 November. Read an interview with Jessica from Melbourne Op Shop Tours here; and
• I’m going ‘In Search of the Perfect Gelati’ with Lin Tan from Trespass Mag on Sunday 29 November….
• …before popping into a street party to close the Bicycle Film Festival on the corner of Peel Street and Cambridge Street, Collingwood on Sunday 29 November 12-5pm.

Unfortunately there’s only one of me, which means I’ll be missing these other great events on this week:

• Suzuki Night Market opens at Queen Vic Markets on Wednesday 25 November;
• Magnolia Square pop-up market is open from 26-28 November at Malvern Town Hall. Check out my review of the previous Magnolia Square market here;
• Northside Makers Markets are open at Northside Uniting Church, 251 High Street from 10:30-3:30pm on Saturday 28 November.

Less than a month till Christmas!

When I first arrived solo at The Order of Melbourne I was very unnerved. I’m normally pretty good at talking to strangers, but the approximately 50+ person crowd at the bar consisted of 90% men and it felt like everyone had come with someone else. I immediately retreated into a shy shell and sat sipping my drink, surveying the surroundings and trying to look approachable, until I finally decided that this was a completely useless strategy if I was going to meet anyone at all.

Fortunately, right near me I overheard a girl say ‘it’s my first time here’ so I immediately said ‘it’s my first time here too, what’s supposed to happen?’. So the owner/graphic designer of Alba Design, the Global Online Editor for Lonely Planet, the owner/PR consultant of Writeway PR and two lawyers formed a little island of females and we chatted about what it’s like to own a small business, our business ideas, our professional backgrounds and our interests. It’s not a bad night if you score four business cards in 20 minutes of conversation!

The guest speakers for the night were Tom Howard and Fern Bailey from Adioso.com, a flexible flight search engine startup (‘like Webjet but better’). They were your typical scruffy-looking web start up guys, two buddies with a great idea. They talked about overcoming hurdles, failing, receiving seed funding, making your business reflect your views and values and enjoying yourself. All good lessons and I left feeling encouraged by their main message – you just have to give it a go, even though there will be lots of people telling you it’ll fail (which it probably will, but hey at least you tried).

If you missed the meeting, you can access the podcast feed through iTunes. Time to diarise the next event!

You can also read my next trip to The Hive to hear Tony Wheeler, founder of Lonely Planet.

• The Hive, The Order of Melbourne, 401 Swanston St, Melbourne