People Watching in Brisbane

Day 2 in Brisbane. We walk and ride the train and walk and ride the CityHopper and walk and visit the Gallery of Modern Art and the Queensland Art Gallery and walk and ride the Hop on Hop Off Bus through Spring Hill and walk and ride the train and collapse 7 hours later.

CityHopper

CityHopper

In between all that we people watch. All over the world, people are fascinating. Are the folks here any different than back home? In the way they dress and act?

Yesterday we walked past an area where there were maybe 60 students sitting on the walkway walls, all looking down at their mobile devices. There were one or two young adults not on their phones. We shook our heads and wished they could all see themselves. We happen to walk by the same spot today and there were just as many doing the same thing as yesterday. AH HA! It is a WIFI hotspot! That is why they are gathered at that particular spot! Makes sense now.

WIFI Hotspot?

WIFI Hotspot?

We have seen school kids, both in the Art Gallery and riding the trains in the afternoons. They all are wearing uniforms. The boys in shorts or pants, blazers, ties and Panama hats. I actually felt bad for one fellow as his jacket and hat looked like some overzealous mother committee picked these out. Worst ever. The girls have on skirts, blouses, blazers and hats. They all seem quite comfortable in them. I guess if you have worn a uniform since first grade, you get used to it. The trains have small clumps of kids riding them home from school, dropping a student or two off at every stop. Do these kids have neighbourhood friends? Are there rivalries between the various schools, making you not want to talk to someone from another school?

Kurilpa Bridge

Kurilpa Bridge

We sit in the Central Train Station for a bit watching the foot traffic. People are going about their business. Murray comments that most look normal enough and then about every 15th person looks like they are from outer space. One young women is racing for the train dressed in a skirt that is far too tight and wearing high heels she cannot even walk in. Then comes a fellow in a business suit, stylish enough but the pants are too tight and the jacket buttons are ready to pull off. The fellow that looks like he walked out of the 80’s.

We chat to folks, asking directions and kibitz with them. The city worker changing a light bulb on the bridge pedway, the elderly couple also wondering about the group of students on their cell phones, a businessman helping us find a bus stop. Friendly people here in Brisbane and good subjects for people watching!

 

This entry was posted in Australia and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.