Take a weekend trip to Sydney's rival city...

Before you read any further know that it's pronounced "Mel-been" or "Mel-bin." You'll stick out slightly less when you say this correctly, which is always a plus. #touristvibes

Melbourne is way more metropolitan than Sydney. It's dirtier and feels more like a traditional "city." It's super hipster (here's evidence). A must see while you're in Australia.

How we got there:

We found cheap flights on skyscanner.com.au with JetStar. We flew in and out of Avalon which is about 45 minutes outside of Melbourne City, and you can book buses upon arrival. Return buses are booked at the bus station. Our round trip flights were around A$210 for Saturday-Wednesday. We booked relatively late and over the Melbourne Cup weekend so prices were higher. If you look early enough you can find flight for below $100.

Since Jetstar is a budget airline, they're very strict on bag weights. Sydney Airport is pretty big, so sneaking overweight carryons was no problem. When we flew back from Avalon, which is extremely small, they weighed our bags and forced us to check them in for A$50. I recommend pre-checking your carryon if it's overweight because that only costs A$20.

Where we stayed:

A friend recommended Flinder's hostel because it had a good location. It was clean and cost A$35/night for a four person room (this is because of the Melbourne Cup, prices are normally lower). This is the only hostel I'd ever been to where I met people who lived in the hostel. It was a little strange but overall Flinder's was a good place to stay. There's no alcohol allowed in the room and no drinking in common areas after 10pm, but this wasn't really a problem for us (since we broke those rules).

People who go in larger groups often rent Airbnb. Try to get as close to the center of the city as you can if you do this. 

What we did:

Our flight got to Melbourne at around 8am on a Saturday morning, and we checked into the hostel by 10am. We took the tram to the Queen Victoria Market for lunch. It's a super cute farmer's market and food truck space in the city. We got lunch there and then walked to the opposite side of the Yarra River to the Eureka Skydeck 88.

With your student card the entrance fee is A$15 and you can pay A$10 extra for "The Edge" experience. You'll go in a small room that moves out over the city. Instead of letting you enjoy the view the room starts making noises as if it's about to break which was unpleasant. The windows are pretty dirty and you can't see anything so I thought it was a waste of money.

After this we walked along the river and saw the Royal Botanic Gardens. We got a little lost so getting back to the hostel took a while. That night we went to a low key bar in Chinatown.

We originally planned to rent a car and drive the Great Ocean Road on Sunday. Our plans changed when we talked to a travel agent and she recommended doing a tour instead of driving because it can be a 10 hour day which is exhausting. Though I was skeptical at first, she was absolutely right. We changed the date of the rental car and booked a Great Ocean Road tour with Bunyip Tours. It costs A$125 and includes lunch. You make multiple stops on the road and the views are incredible. Just hope that the weather will be good because you're going to spend a lot of time outside.

On Monday we went to look at street art. Hosier Lane is the most famous street for art in Melbourne, and it lived up to the hype. We grabbed lunch and did some shopping before going to pick up our rental car. That afternoon, we planned a trip to Phillip Island to see penguins come up from the water. We rented from Jucy, and you can be under 21 to rent a car. The drive is about 2 hours. It's critical to remember that they drive on the left side of the road. I attempted to drive first, was so focused on staying left that I immediately bumped into another car leaving the parking lot. My friend and I freaked out, screamed, and basically did a Chinese fire drill to switch drivers. My friend took over and I didn't drive the rest of the night. This is when we became extra grateful that we didn't drive the Great Ocean Road. Moral of the story: make sure at least one person in the car can drive. :-)

Phillip Island is a cool thing to see because you'll eventually run out of things to do out in the city. Tickets are A$25. The penguins are super tiny and cute. You can find more info here.

That night was Halloween night. We went to a party that we bought tickets for and left around 1am. On our walk to Flinder's, some guys stopped us to ask if they could pay our cover so they could get into a club called Cloud 9. We agreed and were so happy we did because this place was crazy fun. I wish we could have spent the whole night there! In an attempt to be responsible, we didn't stay for long because we had to get up early for the Melbourne Cup.

We're attempting to make our way home and the same thing happens to us again! A group of guys were wanting to pay for our cover to get let in. You're only in Melbourne once, so to hell with being responsible. We went to Wah Wah Lounge and it was pretty fun. When we left Wah Wah's we actually made it home.

Tuesday was the day of the Melbourne Cup, "the race that stops the nation." General admission tickets were A$60 and you have to dress up. Drinks inside the venue were expensive but that's expected. If you're in Melbourne during this time (it happens in the Spring) you should make an effort to go! It'll be one of the classiest places you ever blackout in.

Wednesday was our last day. We took a train to see the Brighton Bathing Boxes because there was nothing else we wanted to see in the city. It's a bit of a journey but they're so famous I thought it was cool to see. We grabbed ice cream and walked around Chapel Street before heading to the bus station to get a shuttle to the airport to head home to Sydney.

The one place we didn't get to see while we were there was Lui Bar. It's on the top floor of a skyscraper and I'm sure has killer sunset views. The line was about an hour when we tried to go in, so we decided it wasn't worth it. Melbourne is famous for its coffee shops and alleyway cafes, so it's easy finding places to eat.