| Melbourne is Australia’s most English city and it knows how to party. Midsumma Festival is the second largest urban queer gathering in Oz, pipped only by the Sydney Mardi Gras. OutUK correspondent Ernie Areldete has been checking out the Melbourne scene. | |
| Midsumma is a three week event in January/February where lesbians, gay men and their friends put it out there with community events, theatre, arts, cabaret and a great street fair. For one night of the year Commercial Road in Melbourne’s southside gay precinct, is closed to traffic and the lesbian and gay community descends en-masse. The venues along the strip provide entertainment on stages, rooftops, awnings, anything strong enough to withstand a drag queen and a posse of dancing boys. There’s bootscooting, tattoo competitions, art, street theatre and an awful lot of meeting and greeting going on. |
The Midsumma Cruise.
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WET ON WELLINGTONBoys will be boys the world over, and in Melbourne boys certainly like their baths. The best known in town is Wet On Wellington, better known by its initials, WOW. WOW boasts all the facilities and amenities party minded men demand.They have their own Licenced Bar Cafe where the cuisine is Modern Australian, a delicious fusion of Asian and European influences with indigenous ingredients. Enjoy an old-fashioned meat pie in a flaky crust like you would get at any pub, exotic South Pacific seafood, or a mild Thai Curry, among dozens of menu items and daily specials. WOW’s centerpiece is a long rectangular, indoor pool. Perfect for swimming laps, or just taking a dip. Adjacent to the pool sits a ten-man Jacuzzi. The left side of the colossal room housing the wet facilities is enclosed by floor to ceiling glass walls that can retract entirely, creating one continuous area between poolroom and adjacent landscaped terrace, and patio that can be utilized for special events serving up to 300 guests. WOW is totally attitude free. Virtually everyone is friendly. Every inch is sparkling clean, tastefully designed and visually enticing. |
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Club 80 is one of the largest sex clubs in the Southern Hemisphere. Four floors of facilities are nothing short of spectacular. There’s an authentic jail, with cellblocks on three floors, enough for every naughty faggot in sight. Stairs and hallways are constructed of see through iron grills, so you can feel like the warden walking his beat, rattling the cages of depraved inmates with your night stick, with virtually unobstructed vision through every level. Ironic, perhaps, that prison cells are a form of adult play in a country settled by English convicts! |
The cells at Club 80. |
SHOPPINGFederation Square has rapidly become the unique and uncontested signature structure on the Melbourne skyline. It is a fantastically modern mall (the entire attractive façade is composed of zinc, sandstone and glass in whimsical pinwheel patterns) erected to celebrate the recent (2001) national centennial. Until 1901, there was no Australia as such, just a collection of separate colonies that were federated that year. Located right alongside the broad and vibrant Yarra River, Federation Square is loaded with restaurants, shops, a tremendous out door amphitheatre, and the National Gallery of Victoria housing a superb collection of Aboriginal and Torres Islander Art. | |
BED & BOARDThe best place to stay is at the landmark and very gay-friendly Prince of Wales Hotel in St. Kilda, a five-minute walk from the bay. The Prince houses: Circa, the best restaurant in Melbourne. Il Fornaio Bakery and Cafe featuring al fresco dining. Prince Wine Shop, stocking the most sought after Aussie vintages. |
Midsumma Festival is Melbourne's annual month long LGBT celebration. Photo: Sam Bianchini |
| Prince Bar, a predominantly Gay and Lesbian venue on Wednesdays. Mink Bar features 43 varieties of Vodka and the best Cuban cigars. The Band Room features live music. Aurora, largest spa in Oz, offering a variety of treatments and an Olympic-size swimming pool. The Prince is served by a tram station conveniently located at its doorstep. Other hotels and apartments can be booked online through OutUK hotel partners Bookings. | |
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THE LITTLE BLACK BOOK Club80 (10 Peel Street, Collingwood T:+61-3-9417-2182) Website The Prince Of Wales Hotel (2 Acland Street, St Kilda T:+61-3-9526-1111) Website Wet On Wellington (162 Wellington St, Collingwood T:++61-3-9419-2210) Website Gay Australia Website Midsumma Website Visit Melbourne Website Revised November 2019. | |
