I booked into an architectural river tour on the internet. Unfortunately I didn’t read the small print and so didn’t realise that it was a speed boat trip! Roger was not feeling well and so off I went!
It was freezing, at the ticket box they said they could not refund as I had bought the ticket on the net. Why not just sell to someone who came along. Hey! It felt like -20C with the wind howling and Julie the Scalper was not confident ! No one was going to buy that ticket! But amazingly they did and off we went.
It was a cold, cold but fascinating tour.
Here are the “did you knows” of the trip.
The Mercantile Mart built in 1930’s was for a long time the largest building in the world, stretching several blocks, it was owned by the Kennedy’s for many years – only residential building to have its own post code and post office
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Loved the story of this building North Harbour? The legislation was that no highrise could be built on the land next to the lake which was green space. To overcome this problem the developers found a loop hole. They built the high rise on top of a building that was already there so they did not build on the land. You can see the piles on which joins the high rise to the original building. Another point of greed. The developers managed to fit more people in (all with a view of the lake or river) by lowering the ceilings. Still a waiting list for people wanting to move in.
Lots of other stories of making the quick buck. Like the railway selling the air above it.A strange weekend because Roger was sick. It was also so cold and the people really didn't seem as friendly or open as everyone else we had met. Could just have been the cold, windy weather. Loved the architecture and art though.
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