Docklands Arts and Laughs Festival 2012

This October, several venues in Docklands will be hosting the Arts and Laughs Festival organised by Destination Docklands. This will be an opportunity for the general public to discover Docklands while enjoying great performances by local artists.

Docklands Arts and Laughs Festival brochure

The venues hosting the festival will be as follows:

Wonderland SpiegelTent

Jimeoin is appearing with Jeff Green 8pm Saturday night 6 Oct at SpiegelTent - Tickets $25.
Ruth Roshan and Tango Noir is appearing 6:30pm Saturday night 6 Oct at SpiegelTent - Tickets $25.
Jane Badler is appearing 10pm Saturday night 6 Oct at SpiegelTent - Tickets $25.
Fiona O’Loughlin is appearing 5pm Sunday night 7 Oct at SpiegelTent - Tickets $25.

Big Umbrella Party 8pm Fri Oct 5 - tickets $25
Tango Milonga 7pm Sun Oct 7 - tickets $25
The Go Set 10:15pm Fri Oct 5 - entry by donation
The Impro Box 7pm Fri Oct 5 - tickets $20

Harbour Town Hotel

Matthew Hardy and Greg Fleet 8pm Thu Oct 4 - entry by donation

Medici

Stephen Cummings 6pm Fri Oct 5 - entry by donation

Oscars Table

Emcee Brad Oakes and Simon Palomaris 7pm Thu Oct 4 - entry by donation

Berth

Red Chair Burlesque 8:30pm Thu Oct 4.
Tickets: $15 prebooked or $20 at door

Harbour Town Groove Train

FREE Blues Festival Sunday - Sun Oct 7.
Nick Charles at 12:45pm and Dan Dinnen at 2:30pm

All tickets can be purchased on line and full festival information at www.docklandsartsandlaughsfestival.com.au

Docklands Fireworks starting again every Friday in July

It's back again this year and everyone is excited about it. We are of course talking about the July fireworks, which will be held every Friday evening in Docklands starting next month.

The fireworks will delight adults and kids, and is a wonderful reason to visit Docklands this winter. Whether you decide to book an apartment close by or if you have booked dinner in one of the wonderful Docklands restaurants, make sure you stick around until about 6.30pm for the evening show.

Watching the fireworks after a hard day at work is also a great way to welcome the weekend. So if you work in the Docklands, try having a few drinks at one of the many pubs in the area with your mates while enjoying the fireworks.

We have also received great feedback from guests that stayed at Apartment 509 last year and who were able to watch the fireworks display on a Friday evening. The apartment's location allowed guests to watch the fireworks without leaving the property, which they enjoyed very much!

So don't forget to put this event in your diary: every Friday in July you can enjoy a wonderful fireworks display if you come down to the Docklands. 

Mother's Day in the Docklands

Do not forget that this Sunday 13th of May is Mother's Day. Have you planned anything yet or are you still browsing for ideas?

Restaurants in the Docklands are offering wonderful deals for Mother's Day


James Squire is offering buffet or dine in options for mums, with a seriously appetizing menu. View menu and read more.

Misha's is offering a feast of pizzas, pastas and salads for the whole family. Read more. Such a yummy menu!

You are promised a special Mother's Day feast at Mecca Bah with Middle Eastern cuisine and amazing water views. We can guarantee you will not regret eating there. Read more about Mecca Bah's deals. View menu and read more.

Livebait is also offering a glass of sparking on arrival for mums. On the menu we have lots of seafood and some delicious desserts. View menu and read more.

Bluefire Churrascaria also offering free sparkling for mum on arrival has a mouthwatering selection of meats and some fine desserts on offer. View menu and read more.

Take mum to Grill 66 if she likes her steaks and decadent desserts. An example of what to expect: Profiteroles filled with pastry cream, drizzled with warm chocolate sauce and honey ice-cream on the side..mmm.. View menu and read more.

Visiting the HMB Endeavour

Getting on board the HMB Endeavour

A few weeks ago the HMB Endeavour was docked into the Waterfront City Marina in the Docklands. The ship is a replica of Captain Cook's famous ship of discovery, HMB Endeavour. 

We spent some time on board the ship, marvelling at the ship's design and trying to imagine how the sailors and officers survived days and days at sea on board the Endeavour.

It was hard to get a proper picture of the ship as the ticketing marquee was located just in front of it. But the ship still looked very beautiful and impressive.

The HMB Endeavour's mast

Under the deck, we were taken to the kitchen area which gave us an idea of how the food was stored and prepared on board the Endeavour.

Kitchen area

The stove

They used a wooden jug!

Stove again

 All members of tehcrew were forced to eat sauerkraut to prevent them from catching survy. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a clear picture of the sauerkraut barrel but did manage to take a picture of the meat barrel.

Where the meat was stored

The eating area was most fascinating. There were replicas of biscuits of the time, and we were able to see where the officers and sailors ate. An interesting fact: the pieces of rope you see hanging over the tables were used instead of napkins.

What the sailors ate

Where meals were eaten

 This is what an officer's  bed was like.

An officer's hammock

View some beautiful pictures of the Docklands on our Pinterest page

LooknBook now has a profile on Pinterest. We have pinned some lovely pictures of the Docklands for everyone to see how Docklands is beautiful. 

We have also repinned pictures posted by others, residents of  and visitors to Docklands.

Visit our our page: http://pinterest.com/looknbookaccom/beautiful-docklands-melbourne/

If you have pictures that you would like to add to our board, feel free to contact us!

In the meantime, here is a small preview of what you will be looking at - enjoy and don't forget to share!

Cow in the tree by night

Boats docked at night in Docklands

New Quay at Night

Riverside Opening of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in the Docklands

It's all over the papers, the internet and twitter! So unless you have been living under a rock, you will know that the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival starts this week. The festival is actually celebrating its 20 years of existence in 2012 with "20 days of eating and drinking".

Riverside Opening Weekend, 3-4 March

Here at LooknBook, we have been raving about it to everyone as this is a chance for our beloved Docklands to be in the forefront. A wonderful program has been developed for this occasion.

Jazz Festival at Yarra's Edge
The festivities start with a Jazz Festival at Yarra's Edge this Saturday 3rd of March  featuring 8 of the best bands from Melbourne Secondary Schools to perform at Yarra’s Edge in Docklands over the 2 days. I've heard we have some good acts so make sure you don't miss it!


Travel on the Yarra in the FREE River Shuttle

Another interesting initiative - you will be able to travel up and down the Yarra River in water taxis during the Riverside Opening weekend. How much does it cost? Well, how about zero dollars? To access the FREE river shuttle, all you have to do is print this passport and make sure you have it on you on the day.

You can also read more about the river shuttle here.

For those who don't know the Docklands very well, this is your chance to try something new. There are many culinary delights to be discovered and we guarantee you will love what you will see and taste.

Melbourne Food and Wine Festival coming to the Docklands this March 2012

Looknbook Accommodation would like to share the following with you. I have been involved in pulling together two first time events for the:

Melbourne Food and Wine Festival 
Riverside Opening Weekend Mar 3-4

With the support of leading Melbourne Secondary schools, we have created a Jazz festival featuring 8 of the best bands from Melbourne Secondary Schools to perform at Yarra’s Edge in Docklands over the 2 days. I understand this may be a first for Melbourne school musicians as I have no evidence there has been a public performance like this in Melbourne.

The second thing we created was to put on a Free River Shuttle. I realised when putting on the Yarra’s Edge gig that getting people to it, without access via the water, was going to be hard. The nearest parking for Lorimer St, Docklands is South Wharf. This is not only expensive, it is a bit of a walk across Wurundjeri Way/Montague St to get there. There are trams down Flinders St to Docklands, but there is still a walk from World Trade Centre or ANZ building in Docklands.

So I approached all the major stakeholders participating in the MFWF Mar3-4 weekend and I managed to get enough sponsorship to pay Melbourne River Cruises to put on 3 high capacity ferries to run a 40 minute interval shuttle servicing 7 pick up and drop off points along the way. This service will only be operational Mar 3-4.

This will be a free service to the public.

Please know that you must have your River Promenading Passport that is free in today’s Age – to be assured of boarding.

At this time, this is all the information there is on the internet:

http://www.melbournefoodandwine.com.au/event/3179

I am promoting this message hard through social media and via press releases. If anyone has influence and can help with my messaging that would be fantastic. Please contact me for press releases and further info.

I am inviting you and your friends to come to this event and enjoy a unique experience of arriving by water. Only 2 weeks to go!

Check out the Yarra's Edge Facebook Event

A special mention to the generous sponsors of the Free River Shuttle. This was made possible by the generous support of: Melbourne Food and Wine Festival; Crown Riverside; World Trade Centre; South Wharf Promenade; Mirvac; ING Real Estate; and NewQuay Precinct.

Bill Reid

0416 153 116

Vote for your favourite Docklands restaurant for a chance to win$10,000 cash

Have you heard about the I Love Food Awards 2012?
This is your chance to vote for your favourite Docklands restaurants. Let the world know where you think the best food is found in our beautiful Docklands, and help create some awareness of local restaurants.

You can vote until March 22nd, so head to www.lifestylefood.com.au/vote and nominate your favourite place to eat in the Docklands. Each voter also has a chance to go into a draw to win $10,000 cash.

Restaurants you can vote for are located here.

FREE Salsa classes in the Docklands

Until March 25 2012, there will be FREE dance classes in the Docklands every week. Classes will take place in the open air at the Waterfront City Piazza. The event is organised by DANCE101 and is supported by the City of Melbourne. 

For more information please visit www.dance101.com.au or watch the video!

Dragons in the Docklands!

Happy New Year dear readers! Last year was very eventful at LooknBook and we are looking forward to what 2012 will bring with excitement. For those who were in the Docklands for the New Year Eve fireworks, I hope you enjoyed the show as it was splendid!

Speaking of splendid, there is some beautiful artwork to be seen in Docklands at the moment. It is a beautiful chalk drawing of a dragon, ready just in time for the Chinese New Year and Australia Day. If you want to see it, you better hurry! The Docklands dragon can be seen on the promenade, next to the Cow in a Tree (yes, we have those too).

To give you an idea of what you are missing, take a look at the picture below. Enjoy!

Must be an Australian dragon, it even has a flag ;)