Six reasons to visit Kew

Work on show at Marvelous Melbourne at Q Arts Studio.Credit: Mediaxpress

FESTIVAL
The Kew Festival, now in its fourth decade, finishes tomorrow with the Boroondara Symphonic Band performing under the oak trees in the grounds of Holy Trinity Anglican Church on High Street at 3pm. Today, however, the action centres on Victoria Park, next to Kew Cemetery on High Street. Starting at 10.30am there's a dance parade followed by a mass release of pigeons. Throughout the day there's a carnival atmosphere with food stalls, horse and cart rides, an animal farm and amusements. Tonight, Vika and Linda Bull take to the stage along with the Jimmy Cupples from TV's The Voice. The night finishes with fireworks.
kewfestival.org

VILLA ALBA
The Greenlaws were part of Kew's Studley Park in-crowd during the boom years of "Marvellous Melbourne" in the 1880s. They built Villa Alba, a compact Italianate mansion, and decorated it with the best fittings of the day. He went bust with the depression of the 1890s, but the house was in Mrs Greenlaw's name so when he died she sold off what wasn't bolted down. What remained was room after room with exquisitely painted and stencilled walls, gilded doors and columns and ceilings covered with ornate illusionistic effects. Despite years as a nurses' home, some of Villa Alba's works are still intact and partially restored. The vestibule portrays the north shore of Sydney Harbour covered in bush and cottages while the opposing wall depicts Mr Greenlaw's birthplace of Edinburgh as a heroic classical city. Villa Alba is a museum, ongoing restoration project and artistic archaeological site and at times creates a feeling that one is in Melbourne's very own Pompeii.
44 Walmer St, Kew, open first Sunday every month, 1pm-4pm, $10, 9852 8886, villaalbamuseum.org

ON THE OUTER
For a brief but glorious period Melbourne had a railway line that ran from Fairfield to Oakleigh, passing through Kew, Camberwell and Chadstone. It was just 16 kilometres long and had stations called Fulham Grange, Roystead and Shenley. What is left today is the Alamein line and a picturesque rail trail that runs along the former Outer Circle line, connecting Gardiners Creek Trail at Ashburton to the Main Yarra Trail on the banks of the Yarra at Kew.
boroondara.vic.gov.au

Chef Joseph Vargetto.

TASTE OF SICILY
Chef Joseph Vargetto learned to cook at his mother's side and has carved out a niche for himself in Melbourne as a modern Italian chef and restaurateur who has kept one foot in the traditional Sicilian food camp. At the same time he is not afraid to take Sicilian ingredients and give them a little polish - such as his seared tuna carpaccio with diced tomato and cucumber and a punch of green chilli.
Mister Bianco, 285 High St, Kew, Mon-Sat 6pm-10pm, Wed-Fri noon-3pm, 9853 6929, misterbianco.com.au

GALLERIES
Q Arts Studio promotes the work of 14 local artists with intellectual disabilities. On show at present is work by John Bates for a show called Marvellous Melbourne. His view of Princes Bridge is reminiscent of a Gothic John Brack. Kitty Yui's charismatic emperor penguins in blue acrylic are embellished in black pen scroll work. Further up the hill is Bird's Gallery, run by Lithuanian-born Brigita Lastauskaite, who specialises in beautiful and moody, local and European fine art, craft and jewellery.
Q Arts Studio, Old Court House, 188 High St, Kew, qartgalleryandgifts.com.au
Bird's Gallery, 236 High St, Kew, birdsgallery.com.au

BOAT HOUSE
The sound of oar strokes pushing you upstream and the gentle lapping of the ripples on the wooden hull of the rowboat is soothing, almost soporific. For almost 150 years Melburnians have been making the most of days off by hiring a row boat and exploring the Yarra as it meanders around Yarra Bend at Studley Park. The bird life along the Yarra is quite astounding, especially so close to the city, with kingfishers, herons, coots and ducks constant companions as one quietly glides along the water.
Studley Park Boathouse, Boathouse Rd, daily 9am-5pm, rowboat hire from $22 for 30 minutes for two people, 9853 1828.

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