Melbourne - Simply the best

For those of you who watched the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games 2006 on Sunday night, you will recall these words above spoken by Mike Fennell, the games international boss. As fairly new residents of Melbourne we have been thrilled that we have been able to be part of this wonderful event. Last week I told you all about our adventures on the river for the opening of the games. Last week we continued to enjoy ourselves by taking advantage of all that was on offer. We started the week with a great night at the Athletics. The MCG was a great venue as I'm sure you could all see during the telecast. Some of the highlights of the evening were watching Australia win Gold in the Women's Hammer Throw. Scott 'Ballerina' Martin winning Bronze with the Shotput. We saw heats for all sorts of races and saw Craig Mottram win Silver in the Mens 5000m.

On Tuesday night I headed to Federation Square to see a Festival Act and got there in time to see the presentation of the Gold Medal (on the big screen) to the four girls who won the 4 x 100 Medley Relay. When the flag was raised and Advance Australia Fair started almost all of the people in Federation Square started to sing. There was quite a few hundred people there and it was just awesome. After that I did see the festival act I went to see - 5 Angry Men, The Bells. It was very funny and worth going over for. Debs & JT had arrived the night before and spent the day at the Basketball. On the way home I had a brainwave, maybe it would be a good idea to catch up for drink before they headed home to thier hotel in Little Bourke St, so a phone call to Bill and one to JT to set the time & place and bingo we were meeting our intrepid sports fans at JB O'Reillys for a nightcap before retiring for the night. They had had a good day at the Multi Purpose Venue (Vodafone Arena - when Telstra is not the Major sponsor of the event being held there). It was good to catch up with all the news of the West and hear of their adventures at the Basketball.

Debs, JT & I spent Wednesday playing tourist after first having lunch with Adam's (Debs son) girlfriend & 2 of her friends. We checked out the view from the Rialto building for an overview of the city. We hopped on & off trams all day, had a drink at Happy Hour in a Docklands bar. During our travels round the city that day the strangest thing we saw was another Festival feature - novelty coffins. Yep, we had a Nokia mobile phone. a big lizard, a shark, a Nike shoe and a prawn or lobster. At this point the thought uppermost in our minds was What the!!!!! We finished the day with dinner in Lygon St and then a drink at the Croft Institute - a bar that has to be seen to be believed. Deb & JT headed back to Perth the following day after their brief taste of CG Melb 2006.

We had a quiet couple of days, apart from work, and the on Sat we headed back to the MCG where we saw the final night of Athletics. Another great night with some amazing events and medals. Disaster seemed to go hand in hand with the track events, the mens relay was heartbreaking as was Craig Mottrams fall. John Steffensen and the boys were wonderful, Jana Pitman and the girls great (even before they had the Gold). Scott Martin's ballet lessons really paid off with Gold for the discus. The mens long jump and Javelin events were nailbiting occasions as was the women's polevault. The battle for Gold between Tatiana and Kym Howe was excellent.

Sunday we watched both the women & men cycling, from home (the start & finish). We decided to stay home and watch the closing ceremony on TV and also see the fireworks at the MCG from here. They were amazing, Bill took some photos of them but to see the real thing was great. So as they say 'And now the end is near, and as I face the final curtain'...Melbourne said farewell to the most amazing 2 weeks I have ever seen. The city was alive, the volunteers the most cheerful group of people you could ask for...I really miss see the sea of aqua blue in town each day now.

But wait, there's more. This is Melbourne and the next big sporting event is just around the corner. The Grand Prix has arrived and the city is all ready to go. Also next week is the Davis Cup at Kooyong and of course the Football starts again with the 1st game of the season kicking off tomorrow. You gotta luv it.

So once again I leave you this time not with a sculpture but an Icon, the MCG as we saw it from home on Sunday night.

Until next time..........

Game On

Hi Guys, well the games have certainy begun with a huge fanfare. I mentioned that Bill & I intended to join the people at the river to watch the River Festival. Well, we went down after work, not really knowing what to expect. We had the most amazing night. They were expecting approx 100,000 people to turn up but estimate approx 200,000 did. Even with all those people wandering around the Yarra River, Alexander Gardens & Birrarung Marr, there was still plenty of opportunity to get a wonderful look at what was about to happen. We found a great vantage point about half way between the Princes Bridge and the Swan St bridge. There was a big screen just opposite us so we were able to see (apart from a few tree branches) & hear everything you saw on the telly plus great seats (standing room only) to the best show in Melbourne for a long time. The fish were amazing with fountains, fireworks, trumpeters and of course footballers carrying the Queens Baton. The water, fireworks & laser lights were just magical, as were all the boats with flags and lights which took part on the river. We are so glad that we went and experienced the opening ceremony. The wonderful thing is that with all those people, out and about for hours, there was nothing but goodwill. Like New Years Eve, Melbourne has a strict 'no public drinking' code, the entire city and surrounds are 'dry areas' and as a result there is no trouble. We wandered home after the event and all the way home people where talking about what they had just seen. Melbourne sure does know how to throw a party, and it seems, the bigger the better. The city is alive, as you would imagine it would be.

Today we went and watched both the Women's & the Men's marathon as it came past Southbank, and then we moved over to Birrarung Marr and watched them head on up the last hill into the MCG. Again the atmosphere was amazing, after that we grabbed a coffee by the river, then moved on to the Immigration Museum, where they had a photo exhibition, 'Best of the Best' featuring the best of the Commonwealth Photgraphic Awards since 2000. It was very good and while we were there we took a look at their other exhibitions which were Moving Stories - stories from immigrants over the years and Station Pier - Gateway to a new life. Both were well worth taking the time to look at and read. A special exhibition of Greek Treasures was interesting as well.

Sharing the spotlight with the Games is Festival Melbourne2006. The Cultural Festival of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. There are some great things happening around town during this time. A couple of the more outrageous are 'The Urban Capsule'. 4 men are living in the Myer windows for 3 weeks until the end of the games. They have been doing this around the world for 10 years (about 3 or 4 festivals per year). They are on full view for 24 hours, each & every day. The windows are set up as a Kitchen, dining room cum family room, bedroom (with 4 bunks) & bathroom. Shower has sticky bits in strategic places (though they are being peeled off progressivly). I do have to admit that I pass them both morning & night as I come and go to work. The windows always draw a huge crowd as they interact with the public. Amazing - What else can I say. The other funky happening is a City Circle Tram has been completely decorated by one of Pakistans vehicle decorators. These guys usually decorate the W -11 mini buses that traverse Karachi. It is the first time they have decorated anything else outside Karachi. We saw it today and it is wonderful. I have included it here instead of a new sculpture, it almost is a moving sculpture.

For all those visitors coming to Melbourne to be part of this wonderful time, the hardest thing will be deciding where to go and what to see, there is just so much on offer at the moment. One things for sure, no-one should ever be bored.

So now that I have given you all a little taste of Melbourne in Games mode (we'll be at the athletics tomorrow night), it's time to say once more

until next time.........

Ready Steady Go

The countdown for the Commonwealth Games is almost over. 1 day to go and Melbourne is alive with all sort of activities. And yes, most of them are Games Related. The last week has seen rehearsals at the MCG each night so I have been watching lots of coloured lighting shows (must be practising the timing). Fireworks have been a feature of these rehearsals as well. Being able to see all this happening, albeit in the distance, really makes it feel like we are part of the event.

The city has been spruced up and now has an air of excitement about it as you wander around. While the Opening ceremony has been kept (mostly) under wraps - I think everyone has seen the shot of the tram with wings on the news, the River Festival, the opening for the opening, has been prepared in the open for the last 4 weeks. There are 72 large fish sculptures, one from each country competing, on barges up the middle of the Yarra between Princes Bridge & Swan St Bridge. This is where the Queens Baton will be carried along these pontoons, run up a flight of stairs from the river to Swan St Bridge and then across the road and into the MCG. We saw some rehearsals last night and it looks truly magical. We will join thousands of others at the river's edge tomorrow night, hoping to get a look as they pass by. We joined many other people on Saturday getting a first hand close up look at these fish and they really will look spectacular.

The fish I have included is the Regal Fish from Malawi. The Rift Valley lakes are world-renowned for the diversity of cichlids that evolved in their waters. There are about 800 species found in these lakes. The Fish representing Australia is the Southern Short Fin Eel. Apparently these eels are commonly found in the upper reaches of the Yarra. I believe that a lot of Melbournians have learnt something from reading that sign.

Tonight after work, I watched Lauren Hewitt bring the Baton up the Bourke St Mall to a huge stage where a Street party was in full swing for the occasion.

Also during the Games period is Festival 2006 and the centrepiece of the festival is a Beach, complete with colorful bathing boxes, at the open area besides the Arts Centre. There will be 9 'live sites' (big screens) around the City, Southbank & Docklands, giving thousands of people the opportunity to watch events as they happen.

So with everything spick and span, the Queens Baton almost knocking on the gate of the MCG, there seems to be nothing else left to say other than 'Let the Games Begin'

until next time.........

Surprise Surprise

Hello again. Another short sidetrack this week as we visited family & friends in Perth. A big thankyou too, to Marg & Pete for having us stay for the weekend. It was really good to see you all again and I must take time to say another big thankyou to my partner in surprises, Lorraine, for making our surprise visit on Sunday such a success. To those of you we missed we hope to see you next visit.

Now the weather was another matter. After a mild week here in Melbourne 35 & 39 was a bit too much to bear. I was very happy to hear the pilot announce that the weather was 23 when I arrived back home on Sunday night.

So to this weeks sculpture, (you thought you were missing out), I thought that 'The Public Purse' which can be found in the Bourke St Mall, was just the ticket - something too do with the money we all manage to spend while on holidays.

This piece was created in 1994 by Simon Perry after the City of Melbourne called for design submissions for unique & distinctive forms of seating. The Public Purse engages with it's envoironment by it's clear reference to the commercial nature of the area. The red granite sculpture is said to signify an interaction between the city & it's citizens, the public & the private. Looking just like a dropped purse this means that this seat can be located anywhere in the commercial district without looking out of place.

Well folks that's it for this week, only 7 days to go till the Commonwealth Games, and some new pieces around the city to check out.

so until next time..........

I'm Back & so are the sculptures

Hello again, Our holiday is over and it is back to the grind once more. It's now Wednesday and Tasmainia is almost a distant memory. Life got back normal pretty quickly with a busy Sunday. A picnic in the park with the family for Faye's birthday. It was great to catch up with everyone again, this being the first time since Christmas. A grey start to the morning fined up for a lovely day.

How can she have a picture already you ask. Well I have to admit that I'm not that fast. We found this little gem while wandering around a couple of weeks ago. It really falls into the category of Abstract Art rather than Sculpture, and I have absolutely no idea of who created it, what it is, or why it exists, but I feel that it really epitomises my return from holidays. The first few hours were spent washing a weeks dirty clothes. The only downside of a holiday, I think. So an interesting piece, don't you think.

No more news to share at this point. Looking forward to seeing our visitors in March.

So until next time........