Editing Melbourne (section)

=== '''Nightlife, Music and Festivals''' ===
[[File:IMG_1005.jpg|thumb|right|Melbourne by Night ...]]
Melbourne is renowned for its nightlife and pub/ bar scene. Many venues around the City and suburbs have regular live music, including popular Australian and international acts. There are many sources of information, including [http://www.beat.com.au/ Beat], also available as a free newspaper from many cafes and music stores around the City. For rave and techno try [http://www.inthemix.com.au/whatson/melbourne What's on in Melbourne] or [http://www.likesofyou.com.au/ Likesofyou] for underground. These also include festivals. 

The links below will take you to the Region/Suburb page for some of Melbourne's popular nightlife districts.
* [[Melbourne Regions - Inner South#Nightlife|Inner South & Bayside]]
* [[Melbourne Regions - Inner North#Nightlife|Inner North]]

Melbourne is known for its many festivals - there sometimes seems to be a different one every week! They are a good opportunity to experience something a little bit different. Here are some of the better known ones, but for a comprehensive listing, check the festivals listing on [http://www.whitehat.com.au/ ''whitehat'']
* [http://www.bigdayout.com/ Big Day Out] - Australia's biggest music festival: January
* [http://tropfest.com/au/ Tropfest]-short film festival: February
* [http://www.stkildafestival.com.au St.Kilda Festival]: February
* [http://www.lmff.com.au/ Melbourne Fashion Festival]: March
* [http://www.melbournefoodandwine.com.au/ Melbourne Food and Wine Festival]: March
* [http://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/moomba Moomba Festival]: March
* [http://www.comedyfestival.com.au/ Comedy Festival]: April
* [http://www.melbflowershow.com.au/ Flower and Garden Show]: April
* [http://www.emergingwritersfestival.org.au/ Emerging Writer's Festival]: late May
* [http://miff.com.au/ International Film Festival]: August
* [http://mwf.com.au/2012/?name=Home-2012 Melbourne Writer's Festival]: late August
* [http://www.melbournefringe.com.au/ Fringe Festival]: September
* [http://www.melbournefestival.com.au/ International Arts Festival]: October
* [http://www.centre.org.au/spring_fling_festival/ Spring Fling] (biennial): October
* [http://www.horseracinginfo.com.au/melbourne-spring-racing-carnival.htm Spring Racing Carnival] (dress up, don a big hat, get drunk &, oh yeah, then watch some horse racing): November

'''[[Buskers|Busking]]/ Street Entertainment'''

Melbourne is very proactive towards street entertainment however some areas require you to get permits. For the City of Melbourne go to the [http://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/enterprisemelbourne/industries/design/StreetEntertainment/Pages/StreetEntertainment.aspx Street Entertainment] site. For other councils you will need to check their local information - Google will help you here.

''' Confest Festival'''

Join the [http://www.couchsurfing.org/groups/29125 Confest CouchSurfing group]!

[http://http://www.dte.org.au/NextFest.html Confest] (from CONversation and FESTival) is held over a week twice annually, at New Years, and at Easter. It is popular with Couch Surfers, partly, because it is cheap (tickets are $80 for a week bought at the gate- no limit on tickets sold) and partly because it is a uniquely Australian festival that is quite magical. There is usually a CS camp at Confest with around 30 surfers. 

The entry ticket is spent on facilities and to fund events and activities. No one gets paid, so all the money comes back to you as Confestors. Confest is located in a mature and beautiful area of protected river-red gums alongside the Edwards River. This is across the NSW border, approx. five & a half hours drive from Melbourne. Public transport stops about 100 km away in Deniliquin, but hitch-hiking is generally easy, and CSers often post their ride in the Melbourne group forum a few week's before.

You are asked to volunteer for two hours on your ticket. People who do enjoy Confest a lot more too. Bring a tent and food for week, musical instruments and good karma. Please take all rubbish you make with back you. Cook in one of the cooking circles, which are set up with gas cookers and water. All water on site is filtered and safe to drink.

Confest is now over 35 years old. It emerged in part from the mental heath sector and is informed by the work of controversial Scottish psychologist R.D Lange. The idea being, the world is a harsh and crazy place - so that so-called mental illness is simply a normal reaction to an abnormal situation. Therefore, create a genuinely tolerant and supportive environment and people will naturally start to heal themselves, or at least the worst symptoms of mental illness will be alleviated. So, at Confest, you may see a naked man painted blue lying on the ground crying and screaming, and people will smile at him as they walk past and say, ''how wonderful, he is healing.'' Confest is also informed, in part, by a bunch of dirty hippies, both influences are currently still in play. In short, it can all be a bit anarchistic, with nothing quite working as you, or anyone else - like the organizers - might expect. 

Still, it is a very tolerant place. There are no formal rules other than no dogs and a request to be drug and alcohol free on the ticket. Anything goes are long as other people don't feel aggrieved. Whatever conflict might occur is usually solved by negotiation, and in truth, Australians are a pretty tolerant lot. That said, there are fire wardens (and even an ancient fire engine), 24-hour first aid and duty volunteers. So Confest is pretty well run for a bunch of dirty hippies. There are about 2,500 Confesters at Easter and 1,500 at summer Confest.

Confest has no sound stage or center. There is no amplified music - but there are several acoustic areas and there is silent trance music using head-phones. It's more like a colorful crazy medieval village with lots of centers. All built a few days before hand - and then torn down again - so all very eco, or messy. There is usually Tranquility area with meditation, healing and massage workshops, the Arts village with the steam-tent, drawing, painting, body painting, photography, mud bath etc, the tee-pee village (still no real idea what the hell they do there but they do great free breakfasts and have a sacred fire) communal kitchens, gay village, nudist village (it's clothes optional anyway!?! but I think they just don't want to be left out) and the polyamorous village (although they tend to stick together). Plus the drumming and fire twirling circles, the Chai tent in the market, etc etc etc. Except in the market, which sells meals and some clothing, you cannot use money. No alcohol is sold. Everything else is reciprocal or based on giving. There are about 800 workshops over the five days. These range from juggling and tight-rope walking workshops to karma and meditation, to meet an alien, to be an alien, etc etc. Also Green and alternative issues, bio-stuff, save the hippie, etc. Some are life changing others, are considerably less so. You can leave a workshop any time you like. 

But most of all, lots of nice interesting people. So it is really what you make of it yourself. You need to actively join in to make Confest your own or you will be very bored. I think Confest is about the most free you can realistically ever be. Also the most hot you can ever be too as temperatures reach the mid-forties C. in summer, but are much nicer at Easter.