Ballarat cultural destination

Ballarat is not just about history, gold and the Eureka Stockade.

The Victorian regional city is fast becoming a cultural destination of note.

It's also a hotspot for antique, retro, secondhand and junk shops.

Only about an hour by car or an hour and 20 minutes by train from Melbourne, it's always been a popular day trip.

But Ballaratarians want visitors to stay longer.

Being a university town it has a healthy student entertainment scene, a growing number of galleries, cute cafes and good restaurants.

It also has one of the best regional art galleries in the country and a modern Aboriginal cultural centre.

The city might be known as the coldest in Victoria but in summer it's only about an hour's drive to beaches on the Bellarine Peninsular.

Its wineries are particularly known for their pinot noir and chardonnay.

And the Grampians, famous for bushwalking, is also close by.

While Sovereign Hill telling the history of the gold rush and the Eureka Stockade is where most people visit, you shouldn't miss the Art Gallery. It houses works from colonial to contemporary periods, including prints dating from Captain Cook's voyages, the Heidelberg School and the original Eureka flag.

Near the entrance is a figurine of a woman made by Norman Lindsay, who grew up at Creswick near here.

The drawing room of the Lindsay house has been recreated in the gallery - the Lindsay children regularly visited and learnt about art here with their grandfather.

The gallery held the exhibition John Lennon - Imagine last year in a successful bid to broaden its audience. It's continuing to do that this year with its current exhibition, Queen - The Unseen Archive.

City of Ballarat Manager of Arts and Culture Ron Egeberg, who co-curated the Queen exhibition, says he hopes people who have never been to the gallery before will be enticed in.

The city has self-guided walking trails showcasing its beautiful old buildings, including one along Lydiard Street, passing the grand railway station, the Mining Exchange and the former Ballarat jail, court house and school of mines complex - now the University of Ballarat.

You can also pop into Her Majesty's Theatre, Australia's oldest continuously operating purpose-built theatre, which has an interesting 2010 season.

The name Ballarat comes from two words of the Wathaurang people. Balla means resting and arat means place, but it can also mean meeting place.

And the Kirrit Barreet Aboriginal Art and Cultural Centre, which means place of creation, hopes to educate the wider public about the area's Aboriginal heritage.

It has an art gallery, museum, retail shop and gardens.

Manager Tim Stares explains the centre's symbol is the platypus to represent the area's mix of tribes - the platypus is an animal made up of different parts of different animals.

We're first led to a smoking ceremony using cherry ballart leaves performed by Uncle Ted Lovett, a Gunditjmara man, whose people became the second indigenous group in Victoria to have native title rights recognised two years ago.

Members of the Baarligan dance group perform for visitors, who are given tours.

The centre has a replica stone hut like ones which dotted this landscape for thousands of years.

Stares and Lovett explained the various traditional weapons as well as showing us a stunning possum skin cape embroidered with kangaroo sinew showing the markings of the tribes and clans of the area, and worn for ceremonies.

The centre also holds six exhibitions of local artists each year and has an artist in residence.

The city's newest gallery, Space 22, has opened in Main Road, near several antique stores, including Joyce's Junkshop.

The row of buildings were built in the 1850s on what was then the main road to Geelong and in the Gold Rush was packed with grog shops.

Now it's a lot more arty.

The gallery is run as an artists' co-op and artists can book it for free as long as they cover the rent. The first exhibition is a group show by Ballarat artists of two and three dimensional works that fit within the size limit of 30cm x 30cm x 30cm.

The aim, the committee says, is to give the artists a high degree of control over their work.

There's lots of interesting restaurants to choose from too. Europa has an all day breakfast which has become something of an institution. Eclectic Tastes is very funky and retro with rooms filled with 50s paraphernalia and menus sitting inside children's Golden Books covers.

Phoenix Brewery is in the historic Camp Street arts precinct and has tapas and an extensive wine list.

Places to visit in Ballarat:

Art Gallery of Ballarat: 40 Lydiard St Nth Ballarat. Call: (03) 5320-5858 or visit: www.balgal.com.

Kirrit Barreet Aboriginal Art & Cultural Centre. Open seven days a week and entry is free. 407 Main Road. Call (03) 5332-2755 or visit: www.aboriginalballarat.com.au.

Space 22. 22 Main Road. Open: 12-5pm. Email: space22mainrdgmail.com.au.

Record shops such as Rediscovery for new and used CDs and records. 22 Sturt St. Call/fax: (03) 5331-5153.

The Known World: quality secondhand and collectable books, espresso coffee bar and boutique city accommodation. 14 Sturt St. Call: (03) 5332-8114 or visit www.theknownworldbookshop.com.au.

The annual Ballarat Antique Fair is held on the long weekend in March. Visit: www.ballaratantiquefair.com.au

Some restaurants:

Phoenix Brewery: 10 Camp Street. Call: (03) 5333 2686 or visit: www.ballarat.com/phoenix/. Open Monday to Saturday from 4pm. Lunch by appointment.

Europa Cafe. 411 Sturt St. Call: (03) 5338-7672 or visit: www.europacafe.com.au.

Eclectic Tastes. 2 Burnbank Street. Call: (03) 5339-9252.

Places to stay:

The Quality Inn Heritage on Lydiard. A beautifully decorated hotel in a former Bank of New South Wales building dating back to

1862. 15 Lydiard St. Call:(03) 5327-2777, visit: www.heritageonlydiard.com.au/

The Lydiard Wine Bar is next door.

The V/Line takes around one hour, 20 minutes from Melbourne to Ballarat.

A return off peak full fare ticket is $20.80 and a concession ticket is $10.40 return ($14.80 on weekends)

Present your valid V/Line ticket and voucher for a 'buy one get one free' deal on entry to Queen - The Unseen Archive. Voucher can be downloaded from www.vline.com.au/queen.

Visit: vline.com.au.

Virgin flies to Melbourne from other cities.

For more information visit: www.visitballarat.com.au, www.ballarat.vic.gov.au or visitvictoria.com.

- AAP