Melbourne: A City of Villages

For the last 15 years or so Dale Campisi has made it his business to get to know Melbourne. At first it was just to find the right bar, cafe or restaurant for this or that occasion, but the city got under his skin.    Melbourne is a city of stories. Dale got his first look into the city’s past during his Australian history studies at university, and went on to uncover some its lesser-known stories as publisher of Arcade Publications’ little books about the city’s colourful past. For a time Dale worked at the Public Record Office, and now he blogs about the city and leads regular tours for Melbourne Central and Hidden Secrets Tours. He also produces the annual architecture event Open House Hobart. Over the years, he’s written a number of travel guides to Victoria and Tasmania, most recently Hide & Seek Hobart and Melbourne Precincts. Dale does all this exploring with his partner Brady Michaels, whose photography illustrates this book. Soon they’ll hit the road for a book about Australia.