Comfort Inn A Julie Anna

Gold rush

by ombre

Bendigo now has population of around 80 000 people but was founded mostly due to the gold rush and there is said to me still plenty of gold around the township though I never found any.
I would not say as over seas traveller Bendigo would offer more than a day trip or a couple days say at most but it's not a bad place and I think if im right it is the third biggest city in victoria .

Sacred Heart Cathedral

by Sweetberry1

Sacred Heart Cathedral...
Construction of this cathedral began in 1896 and continued until 1908 before lapsing through lack of funds until 1954 when work recommenced.
It was completed in 1977. Dominating the Bendigo skyline, it is built of Geelong sandstone and the tallest spire is 86.6 metres with the bronze cross at its apex weighing 3 tonnes and standing 7 metres.

I have seen this Cathedral many times, and I am in awe of it's beauty, each and every time.

Chinese Joss House..

by Sweetberry1

The Chinese Temple was built on a hill at Emu Point in the 1860's of hand-made bricks and red-painted timber. It is dedicated to Kuan Kong, a military hero of the third century who restored peace and prosperity to China after the collapse of the Han Dynasty.
I am also told that he helped build the Han Dynasty.
It is the oldest Australian joss house still in use.

Bendigo

by leffe3

With a population of just under 90,000, Bendigo 'competes' with Ballarat as the 3rd largest city in Victoria. Like Ballarat, it is a city that prospered with the Gold Rush of the mid-late 1800s and many of the fine buildings bear testimony to it being one of the richest cities of its time.

Formerly known as Sandhurst, gold was first discovered in 1851. For the first few years, gold was easily found in the Bendigo diggings as you could moreorless trip over the surface gold. The arrival of thousands of Chinese miners in 1854 caused a lot of racial tension, but, unlike many of the other Victorian goldfield towns, there was long-term influence and Bendigo retains a rich Chinese heritage (highlighted by the presence of the high-profile Chinese Museum and Gardens in the city).

By the 1860s, the surface gold was running out and in stepped the big mining companies, who poured money into the town and the impressive civic buildings started to appear.

Boom years were 1860s-1880s, with the last of the mines closing in the 1950s. A period of inertia followed, but now, Bendigo is once again a thriving place. It has retained its air of graciousness, is to be found almost slap bang in the middle of Victoria so is ideal to use as a base to explore the Goldfields and there are some renowned wines in the immediate vicinity (the town of Heathcote and its heady shirazes is nearby, for example).

LaTrobe University also opened a campus in Bendigo: anywhere there's a student population will normally have attractions regarding things to do! As well as the historic buildings and a celebration of its mining history, with several mines open to the public for historical purposes, Bendigo has one of the best regional art galleries in the country, with an excellent collection of contemporary Australian art as well as 19th century European.