The Best Places to Live In Australia 2013

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Byron Bay: Image via Wikipedia

Byron Bay

Byron Bay was named by Captain Cook after John Byron, circumnavigator of the world and grandfather of the poet, Lord Byron. This poetic heritage, however tenuously attributed, is the only explanations available for the prevalence of fun, sex, sun and narcotics. Yoga retreats, pagan gatherings and a medley of world-class events such as the East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival, Splendour in the Grass and the Byron Bay Writers Festival will leave you with little opportunity for lounging on the beach.

Fremantle

Nothing says cool like a microbrewery and Fremantle is home to many, as well as laying claim to the nationally popular Little Creatures Brewery (try the Bright Ale). During the late nineteenth-century West Australian Gold Rush, camels and their Afghan drivers were familiar sights, and the place continues to offer up a sense of Oasis in the desert. Fremantle has a thriving arts community exemplified by the Fremantle Festival (first held in 1906, it's Australia's longest running community festival). Freo even has a public statue of Bon Scott; but don't let it put you off.

Glebe

A'glebe' is an archaic word for the land on which a church is built. Glebe, Sydney is named such because the area was a gift to the chaplain who came with the first fleet: now the area is a gift to yuppies, students and those from all walks of life who enjoy its beautiful surrounds and convenient location. The central thoroughfare of Glebe Point Road has unbroken stretches of Victorian-era shop fronts and is host to the weekly markets at the local public school: the entire township is a stones-throw from Sydney University and the CBD yet still maintains its warm, village atmosphere.

Anywhere in Melbourne

If you identify as a hipster, no doubt you're reading this from Brunswick Street already, irresistibly drawn there as if your beard were made of metal filings to the pulsating magnet of all things Now. Regardless of what your tolerance for trendiness is, Melbourne asserts itself as the most European of Australia's city, and has good grounds for doing so. Gentrified to the tipping of the 90's recession it is now safely back in the hands of young social innovators who jitter in and out of boutique art galleries on a caffeine-high and weave into and out of small live music venues by night.

Central Coast

Almost anywhere on the Central Coast, it seems, is dream-like in it's loveliness. Who would have thought there could exist a place with lush, rolling green hills without endless Celtic drizzle, and endless sea and sun without Gold Coast-like sprawl? There are innumerable small towns along this stretch, Narooma, Tilba, Kiama, to name a few. Each has it's own unique character and some are slightly larger than others, but each seems untainted by a consumer drive to capitalise on the serendipitous surrounds.