We’ve seen a lot of changes to Melbourne in the last ten or so years. The skyline’s expanded, old buildings have been torn down, and every second laneway has turned into a bar or an ever-changing gallery of graffiti. But there are still things about old Melbourne that we like to reminisce about.
1. Being able to buy tram tickets on the tram.
2. The GPO before it got taken over by H&M.
3. Being able to drive down Swanston Street.
4. Arguably the CBD’s best music venue, the Palace.
5. The Greyhound Hotel in St Kilda.
6. Little Creatures Brewery in Fitzroy.
7. Going out without seeing people taking photos of their food.
8. The shabby chic Greater Union cinema that was on Russell Street.
9. Paying only $2.50 for a borek at Queen Vic Market (they're now $4).
10. The ultimate summer festival, Big Day Out.
11. Being able to call it Spencer Street Station without people getting mad at you.
12. City Square (RIP that small patch of grass and Brunetti’s).
13. The (seemingly endless) Borders bookstore in Melbourne Central.
14. The original St Jerome’s bar in Caledonian Lane.
15. The old Myer, with its creaky ramps, mirrored escalator walls and rooftop café.
16. A cup of coffee costing under $5 in the CBD.
17. Those old trains where you could put the windows down.
18. Footscray icon Olympic Doughnuts.
19. Carlton FC winning premierships.
20. The original Brunetti’s in Carlton (yeah, it was small, but it had character, you know?)
21. Those green 'Victoria – the Garden State' number plates.
22. Cabaret bar Dracula’s (especially the ghost train ride).
23. The George Cinema in St Kilda.
24. That weird rave juice you could get in a bag at nightclub Third Class (a picture, if you needed proof that this was a thing).
25. Tightarse Tuesday tickets at virtually every cinema.
26. The days when CBD parking didn’t cost $7 for an hour.