Sports and Fitness : 1st City2Sea run in Melbourne!

On Sun Nov 13, the very FIRST City2Sea run will take place in Melbourne !

Starting from on the outskirts the CBD, the 14 km course will make its way to the Port Melbourne beach (hence City2Sea). Some of the interesting sights, the route will pass by include ...

City2Sea Run passing by fantastic views of Port Phillip Bay

• Arts Centre
• State Museum
• Royal Botanic Gardens
• Shrine of Remembrance
• (Run around) The Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix circuit
• Beaconsfield Parade along the St Kilda / Port Melbourne foreshore

So if you are in town, bring a pair of runners, be healthy and soak in the atmosphere ! The distance is not too long and Nov late spring weather can be really nice.

Don't forget to sign up (http://www.thecity2sea.com.au) in advance though ... coz ... NO REGO, NO RUN !!

Sports and Fitness : Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre

Being a sporty kind of person (at least I like to think I am!), one of the first things that I looked for when I first arrived was a place to stretch my legs and play my favourite sports. I soon found that there was no better place than the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre (or MSAC to locals).

MSAC was opened in 1997 and is located in picturesque Albert Park Lake precinct (also the venue for the Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix). It is a truly amazing one-stop sports facility covering a plethora of sports & activities like:

• Water Sports – Outdoor 50m pool with 3000 seat grandstand, diving, a variety of smaller indoor pools for lap swimming, children’s play (water slides and wave pool), hydrotherapy, etc.
• Huge fitness and wellness centre for gym training, yoga, pilates, etc.
• Stadium sports – Basketball, Squash, Badminton, Table Tennis, Volleyball, etc.

Not surprisingly, MSAC frequently hosts world-class events like 2006 Commonwealth Games, 2007 FINA World Swimming Championships and of course local and state events like table tennis championships.

What I like about the place is how social and accessible the place is. The centre frequently arranges social sessions where strangers can come together and play sports like basketball, badminton, table tennis, etc. This especially useful for new Melbourne citizens who have not made many friends yet or simply don’t have mates that share the passion for a particular sport.