The girls roused me at 3:30 this morning so they could be off to catch a 0600 flight to Cairns, where I hope they have a grand time exploring the wonders of the Great Barrier Reef. The urban environment is where I do my exploring, the Human Element (remember, from Bangkok) the most interesting life form, to me at least. So I caught a little more shut eye before leaving the Melbourne hotel at 730 to catch a flight northwards into Queensland state and to Brisbane, Australia's third most populous city.
While the weather has been unusually cool at times during my stay in the land down under, this wasn't the case upon my arrival in Brisbane. I immediately began to sweat in my cream-colored sports coat under the intense sunlight. I am not complaining though, while it can be described as hot, it was nothing like the cauldrons of Bangkok or Cairo. This was upstate New York in the summer type hot (wow, am I complimenting my home state? Shocker). I love this kind of weather, and the word is that Brisbane's climate is considered "perfect", so it is probably like this nearly year round. Not bad.
After snatching an airport shuttle to my hotel, I took a few moments to get settled and then stepped out into the sunlight. My digs are located in a district of Brisbane called Fortitude Valley, it is home to the the city's (rather small) Chinatown, but more importantly is the epicenter of Brisbane's life music scene, which has earned the city the title of Australia's "live music capital".
I did a quick look around my immediate surroundings, taking Brunswick Street (about 50 meters from my hotel entrance), which is the location of a number of popular pubs and clubs. At the time, around noon, there was a small outdoor market going on along the section of the street cordoned off just for pedestrians. I grabbed lunch from a little Indian place located in a small food court, and then went to catch a train towards the Central Business District (CBD). I was told the walk to the CBD would take about 20 minutes, certainly manageable, but wanted to try the train. The Brisbane Central Station, right in the heart of the city, was only one stop away. Despite this, a one way ticket still ran me a whopping $4.50. Welcome to Australia, hope you brought your wallet.
After emerging from Central Station, I spent the next 3 or 4 hours exploring downtown, which seemed subdued on a Sunday afternoon. I made sure to take in Queen Street, the location of a long pedestrian mall that is popular for shopping/strolling/etc. This part of the city was buzzing, and some live music was already underway (an all female band-I'm pretty sure all gay too-were jamming out at one end of the street. There was no hat or guitar case open for donations either, Queen Street apparently often gets free performances. They were pretty damn good though). I found a tourist info stand on Queen, where I asked about the municipal buses, and if they would be cheaper than taking the train. The ladies response was basically to laugh in my face, and tell me that walking was free. So, at least I am not kicking myself finding out the bus would have saved me money.
I tried taking a walking tour shown on a map I picked up in the airport, but the map must be outdated, because some of the stuff (some sculptures by local artists) weren't even there anymore, or were moved to different spots. I got a pretty decent idea of the CBD, which isn't all that big. I think the best comparision would be San Diego: There is a laid back feel to the place, and the weather is similar as well. Queen Street is definitely the center of activity, at least on a Sunday. Other streets were literally deserted, making me feel a bit like Will Smith in "I am Legend". Around 3:30 i decided to test the distances, and made the walk back to Fortitude Valley, which took about a half hour, but this includes stopping to snap some pics and waiting for crossing lights.
After an hour or so rest I figured I should explore more of my immediate area. At 5:30ish one club along Brunswick was already bumping, but other than that things seemed pretty quiet. Fortitude Valley lacks some of the character and charm of parts of Melbourne. I would call it a cross between New Orleans' French Quarter and Long Street in Cape Town. It has a gritty, older feel to it, not chic and new like something one might find in Melbourne.
I mosied about for a while, asking a passing local if things would get busy later on. He said yes, maybe 7, 7:30. In the interim I figured I could eat/grocery shop. I found a Woolworth's nearby, but it had just closed. I mention this because I had a funny encounter there: As I stood looking at the sign telling me that it closed at 6 in the evening, a little old Asian man (Vietnamese from the looks) walking what looked like a Jack Russell Terrier came up next to me, saw the sign and said, in heavily accented English, "Closed"!? And then he muttered to himself, but clearly audible to me: "Fuck"! I have to admit, I didn't see that coming, and immediately starting laughing. He explained haltingly that he experienced this before, Woolworth's closing early on him. The then told me I could get something near Brunswich street but "over there, you lose arm and leg". Well, I don't want to lose arm and leg, that's for damn sure.
I grabbed a quick dinner at a Chinese place in Chinatown (basically one street, called Duncan Street). Food was OK, I went for it mainly because the prices didn't make me reconsider the merits of this trip, and it had outdoor seating, so I could enjoy the extremely comfortable evening weather.
I chilled out again for a bit in the room, and decided to give the entertainment scene one last try before calling it a night. I don't doubt what that local told me earlier, but tonight things definitely seemed under wraps; I'm chalking it up to a Sunday night. There weren't many people out, and only one bar had a live band playing inside, but it didn't sound like my thing. I searched around a bit for in the surrounding streets, but the crowds just weren't having it today, and no particular establishment seemed to be brimming with activity. Unfortunately, Brisbane really seems like a perfect place to have a partner, someone to accompany you into various joints, checking the scenes. It feels a bit more than odd walking around by yourself, doing that sort of thing. Bollocks.
Despite the relative disappointment of this evening, coming to this city looks like a fine idea. I grabbed a really nice guide (free!) in the info stand, that gives a nice breakdown of the city and its district, and a number of them look like my kind of thing. There is more beyond the CBD and Fortitude Valley, after all. Come back to see how the adventure continues tomorrow.
Photos: Queen Street bustling with activity on a sunny Sunday afternoon; sculptures in Brisbane City Square, located at the end of Queen Street; live musicians rocking out on Queen Street; Brisbane CBD, as seen from a side street in Fortitude Valley; a somewhat subdued Brunswick street
While the weather has been unusually cool at times during my stay in the land down under, this wasn't the case upon my arrival in Brisbane. I immediately began to sweat in my cream-colored sports coat under the intense sunlight. I am not complaining though, while it can be described as hot, it was nothing like the cauldrons of Bangkok or Cairo. This was upstate New York in the summer type hot (wow, am I complimenting my home state? Shocker). I love this kind of weather, and the word is that Brisbane's climate is considered "perfect", so it is probably like this nearly year round. Not bad.
After snatching an airport shuttle to my hotel, I took a few moments to get settled and then stepped out into the sunlight. My digs are located in a district of Brisbane called Fortitude Valley, it is home to the the city's (rather small) Chinatown, but more importantly is the epicenter of Brisbane's life music scene, which has earned the city the title of Australia's "live music capital".
I did a quick look around my immediate surroundings, taking Brunswick Street (about 50 meters from my hotel entrance), which is the location of a number of popular pubs and clubs. At the time, around noon, there was a small outdoor market going on along the section of the street cordoned off just for pedestrians. I grabbed lunch from a little Indian place located in a small food court, and then went to catch a train towards the Central Business District (CBD). I was told the walk to the CBD would take about 20 minutes, certainly manageable, but wanted to try the train. The Brisbane Central Station, right in the heart of the city, was only one stop away. Despite this, a one way ticket still ran me a whopping $4.50. Welcome to Australia, hope you brought your wallet.
After emerging from Central Station, I spent the next 3 or 4 hours exploring downtown, which seemed subdued on a Sunday afternoon. I made sure to take in Queen Street, the location of a long pedestrian mall that is popular for shopping/strolling/etc. This part of the city was buzzing, and some live music was already underway (an all female band-I'm pretty sure all gay too-were jamming out at one end of the street. There was no hat or guitar case open for donations either, Queen Street apparently often gets free performances. They were pretty damn good though). I found a tourist info stand on Queen, where I asked about the municipal buses, and if they would be cheaper than taking the train. The ladies response was basically to laugh in my face, and tell me that walking was free. So, at least I am not kicking myself finding out the bus would have saved me money.
I tried taking a walking tour shown on a map I picked up in the airport, but the map must be outdated, because some of the stuff (some sculptures by local artists) weren't even there anymore, or were moved to different spots. I got a pretty decent idea of the CBD, which isn't all that big. I think the best comparision would be San Diego: There is a laid back feel to the place, and the weather is similar as well. Queen Street is definitely the center of activity, at least on a Sunday. Other streets were literally deserted, making me feel a bit like Will Smith in "I am Legend". Around 3:30 i decided to test the distances, and made the walk back to Fortitude Valley, which took about a half hour, but this includes stopping to snap some pics and waiting for crossing lights.
After an hour or so rest I figured I should explore more of my immediate area. At 5:30ish one club along Brunswick was already bumping, but other than that things seemed pretty quiet. Fortitude Valley lacks some of the character and charm of parts of Melbourne. I would call it a cross between New Orleans' French Quarter and Long Street in Cape Town. It has a gritty, older feel to it, not chic and new like something one might find in Melbourne.
I mosied about for a while, asking a passing local if things would get busy later on. He said yes, maybe 7, 7:30. In the interim I figured I could eat/grocery shop. I found a Woolworth's nearby, but it had just closed. I mention this because I had a funny encounter there: As I stood looking at the sign telling me that it closed at 6 in the evening, a little old Asian man (Vietnamese from the looks) walking what looked like a Jack Russell Terrier came up next to me, saw the sign and said, in heavily accented English, "Closed"!? And then he muttered to himself, but clearly audible to me: "Fuck"! I have to admit, I didn't see that coming, and immediately starting laughing. He explained haltingly that he experienced this before, Woolworth's closing early on him. The then told me I could get something near Brunswich street but "over there, you lose arm and leg". Well, I don't want to lose arm and leg, that's for damn sure.
I grabbed a quick dinner at a Chinese place in Chinatown (basically one street, called Duncan Street). Food was OK, I went for it mainly because the prices didn't make me reconsider the merits of this trip, and it had outdoor seating, so I could enjoy the extremely comfortable evening weather.
I chilled out again for a bit in the room, and decided to give the entertainment scene one last try before calling it a night. I don't doubt what that local told me earlier, but tonight things definitely seemed under wraps; I'm chalking it up to a Sunday night. There weren't many people out, and only one bar had a live band playing inside, but it didn't sound like my thing. I searched around a bit for in the surrounding streets, but the crowds just weren't having it today, and no particular establishment seemed to be brimming with activity. Unfortunately, Brisbane really seems like a perfect place to have a partner, someone to accompany you into various joints, checking the scenes. It feels a bit more than odd walking around by yourself, doing that sort of thing. Bollocks.
Despite the relative disappointment of this evening, coming to this city looks like a fine idea. I grabbed a really nice guide (free!) in the info stand, that gives a nice breakdown of the city and its district, and a number of them look like my kind of thing. There is more beyond the CBD and Fortitude Valley, after all. Come back to see how the adventure continues tomorrow.
Photos: Queen Street bustling with activity on a sunny Sunday afternoon; sculptures in Brisbane City Square, located at the end of Queen Street; live musicians rocking out on Queen Street; Brisbane CBD, as seen from a side street in Fortitude Valley; a somewhat subdued Brunswick street
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