The most livable City in the World is a title that Melbourne has won recently (Melbourne-tops-livability-survey) but I read an article the other day that was questioning whether it could maintain this.
Melbourne is my adopted city, moving here 11 years ago from Adelaide (which I am pleased to say came in at eighth) and having lived in various places I am probably a little more objective then some of my Melbourne friends.
I do love Melbourne for many reasons - its European cafe culture, with little laneways full of hidden bars. I also love the fact that Melbourne embraces both the arts and sport.
When we first moved here we lived near Port Phillip Bay and enjoyed the outdoors lifestyle of riding around the bay, having a coffee, beer or wine on the esplanade, while watching the world go by.
Plus there is all the fabulous markets and just shopping in general is fantastic especially for someone like me who loves interior design.
Even though we now live 16k out we still find it relatively easy to get into the city on the train and since we have had kids have discovered just how many parks and playgrounds Melbourne has, not to mention beautiful gardens.
On the flip side though as the article I read in The Age Last week said, the suburban sprawl is starting to become an issue. There is a huge strain on public transport and the system isn't handling it too well, the roads are getting busier and busier making it harder to get around. On top of all this real estate is very expensive making a lot of areas unaffordable to buy in. These things are what could certainly tip Melbourne of the perch of one of the most livable cities.
To those Melbournites out there, what do you think? And to others what do you love about your city, maybe it should become the most livable?
