Notoriously, Brisbane enjoys three things in
abundance: warm weather; fireworks and celebrations. Attempting to
embrace this strange and foreign culture, as poor immigrants to this wondrous
land, Nicole and I, on 3 September hosted was our first and last annual
"Riverfire Party".
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| Seems innocuous enough... |
Riverfire is a spectacle of incomprehensible proportions. Imagine Chinese New Year, Operation Dessert Storm I and II, and my tendency for embellishment and you have a sense of what was expected.
By way of a broader explanation, Riverfire is the kick off event to the larger Brisbane Festival that runs for 21 days in September, starting the first Saturday. Ok, what's Brisbane Festival? Excellent question. Imagine Chinese New Year, Rosh Hashanah, Easter, Break-up, Bloomsday, Stuttgart Spring Festival and my penchant for embellishment and you have Brisbane Festival. Incidentally, the festival does mark the start of Spring here.
As you might imagine after facing a long harsh Queensland winter where there are rumours that it can get as cold as 3 C and the daytime highs are a shocking 18-21 C, Spring is welcome indeed. Fortunately, like any good season change it is noticeable and in fact palpable. It seems like almost over night, the humidity starts to rise again from the arid 20-30% to more reasonable 65-80%. Still from a Canadian perspective, all of this seems a little foreign still. In fact the "rumours" of the cold temperatures have actually been recorded, but at the bottom of a well in the pre-dawn hours and in terms of "dry air" Queenslanders don't believe that as kids we used to build up static on carpets by dragging our feet, only to prove Coulomb's law (for a system of discrete discharges), notwithstanding our lack of understanding of physics.1
The event was witnessed from the rooftop
balcony of our rented unit over looking the grandeur of the Story Bridge. As previously mentioned in other entries, it was unlikely that
we will renew our lease so this became a once in a lifetime opportunity extended to friends in the area. The views of the spectacle were in fact a great experience and perhaps the most stunning display of fireworks I have seen, certainly the vantage point made an impact.
Some of the anticipatory
testimonials, which may or may not have really been attributed to the source cited included:
Lord Mayor Graham Quirk - "If I was asked, I
would say that the Milne/Tetrault Riverfire party should be one of the best two
or three thousand Riverfire events this year. We are very proud
indeed.";
Chris Bowen MP - "These types of events and
people show us how proud Australia can be of the immigrants that we so warmly
welcome to our shores...";
Brad Burns, local comedian and thespian -
"Having attended a party there once already, I'm almost positive that I
could maybe find my way back. Totally unforgettable night.";
Bono, lead singer U2 - "It's a great event, a great function, for
an outstanding cause it reminds me of this time that I single handedly raise
awareness for the unfettered repression of....." interrupted by the Edge
groaning.
The format was simple:
- People were welcome anytime after 5.30 and children most welcome. I mean, what's the fun of fireworks without young children to be terrified by them?
- We encouraged those driving to make sure to check the provided links because of the significant traffic disruptions and no parking zones that would be in effect for the evening; and
- We provided a variety of light snacks but encouraged everyone to bring their favourite refreshments that you think is suitable for fireworks, you or your children.
Further stipulations followed, as the fireworks kicked off at 7pm, those guest who were not
here by 6.45, were instructed to simply stand outside our place and scream until the police attend
and lead you elsewhere. The rest of us, will be on the rooftop balcony
watching your arrest. Seriously, front doors were locked at 6.45 and we were
not coming down to get stragglers. In typically Australian fashion, a tipping pool was set up for how many arrests were to be made and who was to be the first. Brad Burns led the pool with even odds of being arrested, but to the disappointment of the book, he arrived promptly, an event for which odds weren't listed. 
The party continued past the
fireworks, and unlike other parties we had hosted ended before the cold wine and beer were exhausted. Perhaps providing some insight into what we encouraged young children to attend...
The anticipated attendees included:
*Peter Garrett - former lead singer of Midnight
Oil, doing something else now; who exclaims, "I would expect to have a
whale of a time...";
*Quade Cooper - Wallabies Fly-half; "I can't
kick the feeling that I'm supposed to be doing something else, but I
totally want to attend..." he mused;
**Brad Burns - local comedic talent;
Enthusiastically, "Given that it's two weeks away and I still don't have a
better option...so I suppose there are worse outcomes"; and
**Three separate Gregs (none of whom were "Dirtbag Greg") and oddly not one Bruce.
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| As the dust settles |
We hope that those who were able to join us enjoyed the evening of fireworks, refreshments and friends. For those who were not able to make it, I've added a photo of the projected view for next year...
* Probably not really, although there maybe someone
talking about them.
** Probably really.
