Melbourne

Founded in 1835, the 1860s gold rush transformed Melbourne from a straggling settlement on the banks of the Yarra River into a grand city of ornate public buildings, theaters, mansions, trams and fine gardens. Stately Victorian-era architecture defined Australia's second city (after Sydney), banking and mining giants drove commerce, and it assumed a cultured air that even surpassed that of Sydney. A city of 5 million people, Melbourne is regularly ranked by the Economist as the world's most livable city. Both this livability and prosperity draw many migrants, making Melbourne a very diverse city. Its motto, from the Aeneid, is this: "We gather strength as we go."

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