Le Noir - the Dark Side of Cirque, Melbourne - April 2015

Hey, another first, I went to the circus. Now while those that know me might be thinking that's a bit strange I didn't think he went for the whole performing animal thing, you'd be right, I don't. Le Noir is performed by Cirque du Soleil so there are no animals harmed in the production, but there was lots of amazing acts performed by some great athletes more or less in their underwear, so that sounded all good! I'm not sure athlete is the right word to describe these performers, although I can't think of a better one, some of the performances were stunning with the performers swinging high above the stage on a variety of contraptions. I went with an open mind but not really expecting to be blown away but came away mightily impressed, I'm sure we'll be back to check out the show next time their in town. Unfortunately the few photos Sam took of the show are pretty ordinary, her hands seem to have been a bit shaky, probably something to do with the half naked ripped men on stage:-)

Definitely no photo shopping on this blog.

Inside the Arts Centre, Melbourne.

The only photo we got that was remotely in focus.

We stayed at the Mantra at Southbank, now while the show was great the accommodation was pretty poor in the value for money stakes, We paid $325 on one of the booking sites, for that we got a one bedroom apartment with breakfast. On checking in I was told I could get one newspaper delivered to my room, unfortunately the only papers to choose from were from Murdoch's Limited News stable. Not to worry I thought, I'll just jump online to get my fix of news, err wifi will be an extra $20 something bucks, f*%k! Having just returned from the back blocks of Peru every 2 - 3 star hotel that we stayed in had free wifi, even in Australia the smaller country motels frequently have free wifi, but the hotels that like to think of themselves as 4 or 5 stars hardly ever have it. There is no way that on paying northwards of $300 you should have to dig into your pocket again if you want to get online. The cynic in me thinks it might have something to do with the hotels protecting their dwindling revenue stream from their in house pay per view movies. Just so you don't think that I'm totally grumpy, breakfast was very good and the staff in the restaurant were very nice.

At least I had something to read in the Limited News Paper over breakfast.

This is what your $325 gets you.

The Mantra, Southbank.

As has become our custom we did a short walk while we were in town. This time we  did the Federation Square and Southbank walk out of Melbourne's Best Bush, Bay & City Walks (that really rolls off the tongue, hey) by Julie Monday, its walk # 1 in the book. It was actually touch and go whether we would do the walk as the weather out the window as we ate breakfast was decidedly grey and overcast, and as I'd forgotten to pack the camera we only had our phones to record the walk for posterity so it was going to be challenging to get anything worth posting ( a challenge we probably failed but we'll post anyway!). Anyway after my third coffee we decided that we'd better set off.

Southbank.

First off we promenaded down Southbank under the Plane Trees, their leaves a golden colour at this time of the year, with the sidewalk cafes, the city skyline and the rowers on the Yarra it really is a nice spot and paints Melbourne in a favourable light. Crossing over to the Northbank we headed back towards the Sandridge Bridge. This old bridge was part of an the old St Kilda Railway line that has long since been decommissioned, the bridge now pays homage to our long history of welcoming immigrants with information boards going back as far as our indigenous welcoming the first Europeans. After checking out some of the information boards along with the steel sculptures of The Travellers we crossed back onto the south side of the Yarra.

There is plenty of street art on show in Melbourne now days.

Federation Square.

The Travellers sculptures on the Sandridge bridge.

Now we wandered down past Crown Casino and Jeff's Shed, stopping to get a dodgy photo of the historic Polly Woodside (an historic tall ship built in 1885 and now restored) on the way. The old wharf along here to the Webb bridge has been redeveloped and is now another long series of restaurants, cafes and bars, they all looked pretty empty on this Saturday morning, you have to wonder if there is an over supply of these types of establishments, anyway I suppose the basic rules of supply and demand will sort that out. Webb Bridge marked the spot that we crossed back to the north side of the Yarra for our walk back to Flinders Street Station, the bridge itself is an interesting design it uses cues from the aboriginal fish traps that were once used in the Yarra. The North bank of the Yarra River has also been extensively redeveloped although initially Wurundjeri Way keeps us away from the river bank.

Members of the red hat society of on a river cruise.

A tram boat?

Polly Woodside.

Plenty of eating options along the old wharf section of the walk.

Webb bridge, inspired by an indigenous fish trap.

Crossing the busy Wurundjeri Way near the strange shaped Mission to Seafarers building we made our way back to the river bank. Passing the Melbourne Aquarium we got to Kaatutya, a series of totems that tell the story of the stolen generation, this is the spot where one of Melbourne's homeless persons got murdered a couple of years ago and his comrades have a small shrine to him here. Unfortunately we still have a big problem with homelessness judging by the number of people sleeping rough along this section of the walk. After passing by the famous Doherty's Gym in Banana Alley were soon back at Flinders Street station, our short stroll over and it was time to head back home to the suburbs.

Looking down the Yarra towards Bolte Bridge and Port Phillip Bay.

The Mission to Seafarers.

North bank of the Yarra.

Part of Kaatutya which tell the story of the stolen generation.

The Dirt.
We walked around 5 kilometres on our city stroll on this easy walk. There is no climbing to speak of. We saw Le Noir at the Arts Centre, the first time I'd seen a show there and it was very comfortable (remember I spent most of my younger years hanging out in beer barns in the suburbs). We stayed at the Mantra on City Road, you pay what the market will bear but the price of good accommodation in Australia pisses me off, yeah, yeah, I know first world problem's and all that.....

Constellation.

Banana Alley.

The end of our walk.