Not just a pretty city, full of historic buildings, fine food eateries and seaside promenades , Geelong has a great street art scene to rival Melbourne’s.
Always changing, evolving and updating – here’s a few of my favourites.
Showing posts with label Geelong. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Geelong. Show all posts
Thursday, August 19, 2021
Geelong Street Art
Geelong Gaol
Whenever we’re in Geelong, there’s always something to see that we haven’t managed to get to previously. Jails are always on our itinerary when we visit a regional town and Geelong Gaol was no exception.
Built in 1853, the Pentonville style Geelong Gaol is Australia’s longest continuously run prison, finally closing in 1991.
Inside the front rooms, a patch of wall showing the remnants of various paint colours used over the years.
Although Ned Kelly was never incarcerated here, there is a good display on the famous Bushranger and replicas of the Kelly Gang’s armour.
...down to the dentist and the morgue...
and outside to the exercise yards.
The building was bought by a private owner in 2019 and is open to the public for tours and events.
Thursday, September 17, 2015
Big Rock Walk, You Yangs
Heading towards the You Yangs, we had to pull over on the side of the road, so that I could jump out and take a photo of THIS.
The spectacular colour of the yellow canola that blooms in Spring can be seen for miles. It's worth the drive just to catch this stunning display.
I was listening to the radio yesterday, and someone was saying they can't believe how many people stop and take photos of the canola fields near Geelong.
Believe it, my friends, it's pretty darn Insta-worthy. No filter required.
Once at the carpark where the Park Office is located, we chose the shorter of the walks on a very warm morning.
Big Rock walk is an hour long circuit that goes around the Big Rock and back to the carpark via the same track. It's a good, level path with a slight incline to the rock area.
The rock itself was huge, and incorporated many other big rocks. Lots of
folks were abseiling down its steep face, while less adventurous peeps like us
clambered up the sloping side and enjoyed the sunshine.
Fantastic views to Geelong, with patches of yellow crops, green pastures and blue sea in between.
Rockpools in the rock, formed millions of years ago, would have provided a good water supply for the Aboriginals that lived here, even in the drier months.
Good picnic grounds and BBQ facilities at the Big Rock Area were incredibly busy on the Sunday morning. The first real taste of Spring warmth had folks dusting off Eskies and frisbees.
Yellow wattle was blossoming and tiny purple wildflowers were popping out of the green shrubs.
This itty bitty bud was bursting out of an old log.
The forest of tall eucalypts looked dry - hopefully there will be a lot more rainfall before Summer begins.
We didn't see any animals, but did hear some of the 200 species of birds in the area. We're coming back to do the Flinders Peak Walk on a cooler morning in the near future and hope to spot some furry locals then.
What: Big Rock Walk, You Yangs
Where: Little River
When: Daily from 7:00am
Why: walks, nature
How Much: FREE
Tuesday, August 25, 2015
Wildlife of Gondwana, National Wool Museum, Geelong
The current exhibition on Level 3 of the National Wool Museum, Wildlife
of Gondwana is a collection of 20 full-scale casts and stunning background murals.
Bones, skeletons and
fossils - some never before seen in Australia and some found right here in Victoria. You can become a Friend of Dinosaur Dreaming and get information on digs happening, like the current site near the Cape Otway Lighthouse.
Wildlife of Gondwana is on display until July 2016.
For critters of a different kind, and keeping with the woolly theme of the place, the Museum is attempting a Guinness World Record of 10,000+ Pom Pom Sheep, featuring Shaun the Sheep. Go make a few and add to the flock.
Did you ever see that episode, where the sheep were having a disco in the barn, and the girl sheep put their handbags on the floor and danced around them, and then the pigs came in and cranked up their hip-hop records, and then....oh, sorry, got caught up in that memory.
If you see this motley crew of pathetic pom poms, Shaun, Sean, Shawn and Shaunagh, give them a pat from me.
Pom Pom Sheep on Parade is on until 11 October, 2015.
Last, but not least, grab a friend and have a puzzle off - putting together these giant puzzles of Geelong CBD and the whole bay area. Lots of fun.
What: National Wool Museum
Where:26 Moorabool Street, Geelong
When: Mon-Fri 9:30am-5:00pm, Weekends 10:00am-5:00pm
Why: wool industry, history
How Much: $8.25
Related: Wool Exhibition
National Wool Museum, Geelong
Wool, weave, warp and weft. Today's post is brought to you by the letter W. 
Australia is famous for its wool industry and Geelong was once known as the 'Wool centre of the world'. The National Wool Museum is housed in an old bluestone building and has 3 levels of exhibition space, with permanent historical exhibits as well as temporary exhibitions (see link at end of this post).
Reproductions of farmhouses, shearing sheds and life on a sheep station can be found throughout the galleries. Videos show working dogs in action, shearing techniques, and sometimes a real sheep comes to visit, for a live shearing demonstration.
There's even a reproduction cottage, Reminiscence Cottage, which can be used as a sensory experience for older people with dementia to visit.
A 116kg bale of high grade fleece was once sold for over $1,000,000 and made into some very fancy pants suits.
A stunning piece of equipment is the 1910 Axminster Jacquard Carpet Loom, which was put through its paces when we visited. There are other interactive displays and machines to try yourself, like the 1940s Komet Sock Knitter.
What: National Wool Museum
Where:26 Moorabool Street, Geelong
When: Mon-Fri 9:30am-5:00pm, Weekends 10:00am-5:00pm
Why: wool industry, history
How Much: $8.25
Related: Wildlife of Gondwana Exhibition
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