River cruisin'

A city always looks different from the river. Melbourne is no exception. The Yarra actually starts off as pristine clear water in Gippsland and runs 242 kilometres out to Port Philip. It's 'muddy' complexion is caused by the easily eroded clay soils of the water catchment...and it passes through nine all up. Intensive land clearing by European settlers was the start of the slippery side from clarity to soiled. So often the way.

 The Southern Star Observation Wheel or Melbourne Eye had such potential. It is 40 storeys high and was intended to attract 1.5 million visitors a year. Which you would hope for, given that it cost $100 million to construct. It took two years to build, opened and within a month of the opening, buckling and cracks in the structure meant that it had to be closed. The 2009 heatwave was blamed. Reconstruction work began at the start of 2011, with the hope that the wheel would be turning by the end of the year. Last month, the wheel broke free from its restraints and began turning in strong winds, resulting in minor injuries to one of the workers as he fled the site. There is no completion date for the wheel. Easter 2012 at the earliest. It is unlikely that I will ever take my life in my hands and take on the wheel. 

 Bolte Bridge, I know it well. This is the infamous bridge where I spent many a weekday afternoon in imposed reflection and patient meditative thought when a truck had jack-knifed and blocked an exit, thus holding up traffic or a car had broken down in a lane thus holding up traffic...It's an impressive bridge, all the same. twin cantilever bridge for the engineers amongst us.

 The Port of Melbourne is Australia's busiest port for containerised and general cargo.

Williamstown

Originally Melbourne's first sea port, Williamstown is a little bit Akaroa, for Christchurch readers...a nice place to visit on a sunny day, stroll around and buy a crystal or a $10 pair of skimpy shorts, have lunch, preferably fish and chips from somewhere with a ridiculous name like The Town Fryer or Hunky Dory. I did none of that, but had a lovely time all the same.

 Willliamstown Botanical Gardens.

 Sittin' on the dock of the bay watching the tide roll away.