Tag Archives: City Hall

Christmas in Brisbane

21 Wednesday Dec 2016

Posted by in Australia, Christmas in Brisbane

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After living in Brisbane for many years, I finally went it in to the city to see the Christmas lights, in particular the City Hall Lights Spectacular.

We took the City Cat Ferry from Southbank Parklands down the river towards the mouth of the river. What a great way to see the city. As day turned in to evening, it was magic riding down the Brisbane River watching the city lights and bridge lights come on and the changes in the vistas.

The Christmas coloured lights on the Story Bridge were amazing

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There was plenty of room on board the CityCat either inside or outside, up the front or out the back. We leisurely cruised zig zagging across the river with a few stops on the way, dropping off and picking up other passengers.

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There are many interesting stops along the way where you can get off.  We finally chose Bretts Wharf to disembark and then we took another CityCat back up the river, where we finally disembarked at North Quay in the CBD.

I absolutely loved getting on the City Cat close to dusk and riding it up the Brisbane River.  The CityCat Ferry is the ideal way to see Brisbane. Cheap, Clean, Comfortable and Fast. A must do if you are visiting Brisbane.

 

After stopping for dinner, we then made our way to City Hall in King George Square. We walked through the Queen Street Mall to see the beautiful shop windows decorated with Christmas scenes.

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King George Square -Daytime

Finally, we arrived at the City Hall Christmas lights display. The Light Spectacular features an exquisite, animated Christmas story.  This year’s story is a playful, Aussie take on The Night Before Christmas. Set in a suburban backyard during a hot, Brisbane summer, it’s bursting with whimsical adventure, cuddly creatures and plenty of fun. City Hall’s clock tower sounds nightly to signal the start of each show.

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The light show is quite short, about 10 minutes,  so we stayed and enjoyed it several times.  It was a wonderful festive atmosphere and not very crowded at all.

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Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and a wonderful festive season. Thank you for all your comments, and likes and support over the past 12 months.

Buon Natale

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City by the Bay – San Francisco

16 Thursday Jul 2015

Posted by in San Francisco

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I can  tick San Francisco off my “bucket list”.  Yes, I have now made it to San Francisco

Once arriving in this exciting city we hit the ground running with very long and full days.

San Francisco  is most definitely a beautiful city with so much to offer.  Everywhere you look there are sights to take in, magnificent buildings, lovely houses, shops, restaurants and of course, that Bridge.

The weather has been perfect, not hot and cool enough to enjoy what this city has to offer.  We have a full program of things to do and see while we are here.

Finding time to write my stories is going to be my enemy at the moment so this is just to say “I made it to SAN FRANCISCO,” and I am delighted.

So many stories and photos to come but here is a little taste.

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City Hall

Free gem in the city, with a little history

30 Thursday Apr 2015

Posted by in Australia Day, Brisbane City Hall

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After my Brisbane city walking tour several weeks ago with Bruce from Brisbane Cit Greeters I decided I would like to return to the City Hall and have a guided tour of the building.   This building, which is an amazing structure in the middle of Brisbane city, overlooking King George Square was designed according to the Italian Renaissance style.  It has 3 floors and a partial basement.

We went to City Hall firstly to see the Costumes of the Golden Age of Hollywood exhibition in the Museum of Brisbane.

However upon arrival we learned that we could partake in the 10.30 guided tour of the building.

The tour of City Hall was really interesting, our guide was so enthusiastic about Brisbane and its history, with loads of really good information and a real must do if you are visiting Brisbane. The tour lasted about 45 pleasurable minutes and it was free.  You must book for these tours, either at city hall or online.

Marble stairs in entrance of City Hall

Marble stairs in entrance of City Hall

After we completed this walking tour we spent time in the Brisbane museum where there is a wonderful photographic exhibition displaying photos of Brisbane from the late 1890’s to the early 1900’s and giving a wonderful and free insight into the history of this river city. The exhibition reveals how the river is intertwined in the lives of Brisbane’s inhabitants.

After spending time in the museum we took a tour of the clock tower. This imposing 70 mt tower is based on the design of the St Mark’s Campanile in Venice, Italy.   The four clock faces on each side of the tower are the largest in Australia. The clock has Westminster Chimes, which sound on the quarter-hour, and can be heard from the Queen St Mall and, at times, in the surrounding suburbs. Above the clock is an observation platform, open to the public and accessible by the elevator between 10:15 am and 4:45 pm seven days a week.

Tours operate daily taking visitors up the Brisbane City Hall Clock Tower in a beautiful, old, hand-operated lift, providing a bird’s-eye view of the city. No bookings required. Obtain a ticket in person on the day at the Museum of Brisbane reception counter on level 3. And again, free.

We then stopped for a pleasant break and nice lunch at the Shingle Inn, the oldest restaurant/café in Brisbane, which was built in 1936 and is still in its original design, including fixtures etc

From there we returned to the Brisbane Museum where the Costumes from the Golden Age of Hollywood exhibition is being held.   Step back in time onto the soundstage of a bygone era and discover this cinematic world. This exhibition will take visitors behind the scenes to gain a glimpse into Hollywood of the 1920s to 1960s through a collection of costumes, props and ephemera connected to the cinema’s most iconic stars, studios and designers.    The exhibition is currently running till the end of May.  And again, free.

I have lived in Brisbane for many years and this is my first time spent in City Hall. If you are visiting our city or already live here, take the time to visit and take a look around this special building.  I can highly recommend it as it is well worth it. You could easily spend a full day here.

Exploring Brisbane on foot

11 Wednesday Mar 2015

Posted by in Brisbane on Foot, Queensland

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After over 20 years of living in Brisbane I thought it was time that I learned some more about my city. Although I have been in to the city many times I have never actually taken the time to explore it.

So, I booked a tour with Brisbane Greeters.  It was by accident that I recently learnt of this wonderful program here in Brisbane.  I contacted them and organized to do a walking tour of Brisbane precinct. I met with my guide Bruce, at King George Square outside Brisbane city hall.  I was excited to do this tour however I was not prepared for how good it was.

City hall

Lucky me, I was the only “tourist” for this guided tour of our city. We started our tour in the square discussing Bruce’s plans for the tour. He made some suggestions and then with my input he customised the tour to fully suit me. Bruce gave me a brief overview of the history of Brisbane before we headed off.

We started our tour in the City Hall.  City Hall is considered to be one of Brisbane’s finest buildings. The building has been used for royal receptions, pageants, orchestral concerts, civic greetings, flower shows, school graduations and political meetings.

City Hall does offer its own guided tours of this lovely building so my visit with Bruce was certainly enough to whet my appetite to return one day for a tour.  In the meantime, from Bruce, I learned that the white marble staircase in the entrance is made using marble from Carrara in Italy, the bell tower was inspired by St Mark’s in Venice and the dome was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome.

From the city hall we walked over to the Brisbane Arcade which is a heritage listed shopping arcade and was built in 1923. Definitely one of if not the nicest shopping arcade in Brisbane consisting of beautifully designed shops offering high-end jewellery, clothing, antiques and much more.

 

Our tour continued up Queen St to North Quay to the heritage listed Treasury building, which now houses Brisbane’s Casino.

The tour included many of Brisbane’s original buildings – the commissary which is home to the Royal Historical Society of Brisbane, and  Old Government house which is located on the grounds of Queensland University of Technology at Gardens Point.

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The QUT campus is home to public arts venues, museums, top fitness facilities, and our state-of-the-art Science and Engineering Centre.

We stopped at the Pantry café on campus for our well-earned lunch and coffee.  After our small rest we headed off through the botanical gardens which is on the river and which Qut is attached to.

We had many stops along the way to our destination of St Stephens Cathedral the heritage listed cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of the city of Brisbane.

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I learned from Bruce that part of the stone used in the construction of this magnificent building was taken from Kangaroo point just across the river.

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Kangaroo Point

Bruce’s wealth of information was fantastic. He is very passionate about Brisbane and was so informative the entire time.

I have been on many walking tours around the world but this would definitely be the best guided walking tour I have ever done, and, it was free. Bruce informed me that there are many cities around the world offering this personalized free service.

I later googled Greeters Organisation and discovered there are in excess of 90 cities world-wide offering this fabulous service including several cities in Italy.