Head to Melbourne Museum and Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Center (00 61 13 11 02, museumsvictoria.com.au/bunjilaka). A permanent, interactive exhibit about Coolie culture is open daily here ($15). In addition to a comprehensive display of artifacts and great storytelling, there will also be seasonal exhibits. Until April 21, you can view “Unfinished Business,” a series of portraits of people living with disabilities across the country.
You’ll have already gone to Big Esso for lunch and visited the nearby Koorieheritage Trust (00 61 8662 6313; koorieheritagetrust.com.au), but you can’t go wrong with one of the regular guided Birrarun Willum (River Camp) walks. Please be sure to make a reservation. ($33) Organized by the latter, it features sacred sites along the river and surrounding areas, revealing what the city was like when it was a fully Klinn nation.
Be sure to make time in Melbourne to take the 90-minute drive north to the vineyards of The Mitchelton (00 61 3 5736 2222; mitchelton.com.au; from $644 per night), the most luxurious lodge of its kind. Must stay overnight. Close to town. From the views to the cellar door tastings to the swimming pool and restaurant, everything is dreamy.
But the main reason you need to come here is that it’s home to the largest commercial gallery of indigenous art in the country. It was virtually destroyed in the 2022 floods and many masterpieces were lost, but it has now been revived and new exhibits are constantly changing and on sale. This is not a glorified gift shop. Bill Whiskey Japalchari’s nearly minimalist black-and-white works are in the collection of connoisseur and comedian Steve Martin and sell for tens of thousands of dollars.
Necessities
Mark C. O’Flaherty was a guest of Visit Victoria and Visit Melbourne.