A fine sunny afternoon, time to finally go out and explore the mysterious reaches of the Docklands development. Jo and I had been meaning to go and have a look around there for months, walking nearby on the way to the football the other week had rekindled the idea, so today we set off to explore. The usual mix of absolutely lunatic motorists in Bridge road had us alternately laughing hysterically, swearing copiously, or just swerving wildly to keep out of their way. I was seriously wondering whether some of these people are ever likely to wake up one morning and think to themselves:
“You know, I’ve just realised that I really don’t know what the road laws are, maybe I’d better hand back my driving license.
…but I doubt it.
Up through the city, down Collins street. Oh so tempting to shoot across Spencer street and over the Collins street extension, except for the 3m high fence barricading it off! Instead we wended our way round in a more conventional approach, then discovered that the major use of Docklands seems to be in providing free car-parking for football fans who don’t want to pay when visiting Docklands Stadium/Colonial Stadium/Telstra Dome/whatever it is this week. I guess they’ll be in for a shock when the residents want to use their own car-parks.
Lots of concrete, lots of shiny new walkways, not a single person around. It was a bit like taking a tour of a film set, or an end-of-the-world scenario where all the people have disappeared. Pleasant enough out in the sun, it was icily cold in the shadows of the big concrete buildings with the wind whipping around the harbours. Steps everywhere too, not many, just the one or two at a time, but it made riding around the place a pain. I guess only healthy young people will be allowed to live there, no elderly, no injured.
The other feature of the whole area that we didn’t notice until we tried to leave was just how isolated it is; it seems cut off from the rest of the CBD by freeways on most sides, there is no easy way in or out for people on foot or bike. Maybe that will change as more of it is built. The promotional material is chock-full of warm and fuzzy statements of accessibility.
Evening entertainment
Home-made pumpkin soup and off to see a movie. Last Orders at the Rivoli, if we hadn’t had the hot soup before hand we would have needed it afterwards, all the scenes of cold English rain had me shivering in my seat! Well worth seeing, I can’t write movie reviews so I won’t. I’ll just recommend it to others.
