Open House Melbourne 2016

After a very disappointing Open House Melbourne 2015 where we did not manage to view any of the buildings we had on our list due to sell out crowds, we were well prepared for OHM 2016. This year was fruitful, we managed to tour 3 places.

We started early to queue up for the Port of Melbourne cruise. The cruise took us to the Swanson Dock, Appleton Dock, and Victoria Dock. There was a Port of Melbourne employee on the cruise who gave us information on the history and stats of the dock.

Besides seeing container cranes which lifted containers onto vessels for transportation, we also saw some silos near the waterfront - grains are transported unpackaged, from these silos directly into the vessels to save time.

The great sunny weather made the trip even more enjoyable. Soon we began to forget the 30 minute wait in line for the cruise and immersed ourselves in the scenery.

Mission to Seafarers Church was next on our list. The church still operates today, and has seen many sailors from other countries visiting the church to pray for a safe sea journey or simply just as a sightseeing trip. The church reminds me of a Matzu temple near the coast I visited while in Taiwan. Nature is a most powerful force and people no matter which religion recognises this.

We also visited Substation J at the corner of Spencer and Lonsdale Streets. This substation used to distribute power to a part of the Melbourne CBD but now acts like a time capsule to provide the public with an insight into place when it was still operating. We can see newspaper of the time, notepads etc lay undisturbed on desks in the office when we were there, as though employees could walk in any time and start work (they will be told off for infringing the clean desk policy, for sure!).

Next on the list was the City of Melbourne Art and Heritage exhibition. We were taken on a guided tour around the place, which is where artworks reside when they are not on display. We saw many items which had been gifted to the City by other cities, and also items that had been purchased by the City of Melbourne.

We thoroughly enjoyed Open House Melbourne 2016 and wishes its longevity for many years to come.