Despite living in Melbourne for many years, we can’t honestly say we have been to every nook and corner of even the inner city suburbs. Looking at the train map one day, we decided to visit the suburb of Elsternwick.

From photos gleaned from the Internet, it is a very attractive neighbourhood, akin to the rich man’s area in Singapore’s Bukit Timah.

Elsternwick is 10km from Melbourne and covers an area of just 2.6 square kilometres with a population of around 11,000.

Hopping on the train at Flinders Station and off at Rippon Lea Station, we planned to visit the Rippon Lea Estate where there is a large 19th century mansion that is open to the public.

The walk from the train station to the mansion is just a 10 minute stroll and we made it in time to join the afternoon’s guided tour.

Inside the coolness of the mansion, we had a glimpse into the opulent lifestyle of the rich two centuries ago. The guide was very informative and she took pains to explain the history of the past owners of the grand old mansion.

Having loads of money certainly makes for interesting living. From the many rooms and furniture layouts in them, we could only guess at the number and extent of social gatherings held in the past. There would have been an army of servants needed to cook and clean and to run the household.

The relatively spartan servants’ quarters and kitchen areas provided a stark contrast to the creature comforts enjoyed by the owners elsewhere in the large family home. We found the servants’ dining room functional but definitely lacking in any form of luxury (at least there was heating!).

There was even a cellar located at the bottom of the mansion.

Apart of the mansion itself, the well manicured gardens and the lake on the estate is well worth a walk through.

In all, the visit was very worth our while.

It transported us back in time, to an era where the fabulously wealthy lived their lives in opulent settings.