In 1846 nearly forty hectares of land on the southern side of the Yarra River was set aside for the Botanic Gardens. During the mid 1900s onwards, additional gardens were planted—the cactus garden, a stone rockery, a herb garden, a California garden, an Australian rainforest, and this century, a children’s garden (featured photo).
In the distance, Melbourne’s highest buildings peeked over the trees but the city was soon forgotten with paths weaving through giant trees and around a pond where there were boat rides. Within the children’s section was like fighting my way through eager children memorized by moving water that meandered near the edge of the bamboo forest. It seemed none of them couldn’t resist floating a leaf and following its course along the waterway.
Like all botanic gardens, Melbourne’s had fine examples of trees from around the world. In fact, there were over 50 000 different plants species growing on site. Near the giant eucalyptus trees the sound of bell miner birds calling to each other echoed across the lush lawns. These small yellow birds with their haunting calls soon faded once we made it to the Governor’s mansion on the outskirts of the gardens.
A path that circuited the Royal Botanic Gardens was The Tan established in 1901. At that time, it comprised of four lanes—a path for horses, one for carriages, a bicycle lane, and a pedestrian path. The name Tan, was derived from the type of bark that covered the equestrian track.
Over one hundred years later, only one track remained that was longer than the original. We hiked the nearly four-kilometre path. A sign recorded the fastest times of both female and male contestants around the circuit, but we weren’t there to break any records. A brisk walk on a pleasant autumn day was more than enough.
From here to there 
Looks like a great botanical garden. I love to visit them around the world. Maggie
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