A combination of trams take me to the Melbourne General Cemetery. This might seem like a strange way to start the day, but I have always been fond of graveyards. Many people think of them as morbid places, sad places, but to me they are monuments to great lives lived and a celebration of love. They are also full of stories about people. My favourites here are the stories of the ill-fated explorers Burke and Wills and the World Professional Billiards Champion Walter Lindrum with his impressive billiard table tombstone.
A trio of trams take me for a spot of lunch at The Crafty (James) Squire. This is also the starting point for my tour of the microbreweries of Melbourne. I scoff down my tasty lunch and sup my way through a very generous tasting paddle of their beers.
The inviting setting of the Stomping Ground Brewery in a former textile factory is relaxed and reminds me very much of a German Bierhalle. Huddled next to a lovely open fire, I slowly work my way through paddle after paddle of their tasty beers.
There are no tasting paddles at the Moon Dog Brewery, only schooners of weird and wacky creations for which they are famous! So I sit back and enjoy the funky bar in this industrial space.
It could be the volume of beers consumed that make the Mountain Goat Brewery difficult to find, but in my defence the large warehouse is tucked away in Richmond's backstreets. I sample their range of beers with another few tasting paddles whilst nibbling pizza.
My final stop is the inner-city brewpub of Burnley Brewery. Folk here are friendly and the beer is fresh - served straight out of the shiny tanks behind the bar into lovely goblet glasses.
When the time comes for me to call it a night, the kind folks gave me directions back to the centre of Melbourne. As I disappear into the darkness, I have already forgotten all but the first instruction, but being a stubborn man, I solider on...
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