The Municipal Destructor

Welcome to Auckland’s original ‘Municipal Destructor’. Everyone, like me, know it as Victoria Park Market – a super popular open air market through the 80's to 2000's – a great place to buy your crystals and tie-dies etc! I've always known that it was originally the city rubbish dump – when the city was waaaay smaller). There is more to the story, of course. It was originally created in reaction to a bubonic plague scare in Sydney. For sanitary reasons it was built to burn Auckland’s rubbish and waste while using the heat generated to provide electricity to power the city. Sounds pretty clever eh, and I guess we were plague free. However, we must have been breathing some seriously toxic smoke fumes! That 38 metre tall chimney must have helped a little but don't forget all the horse manure and night carts, they were definitely smellier times.  The municipal destructor is now a gentrified place that's home to restaurants and businesses, like the superb Milenta restau...

Voyage Te Mana o Te Moana

Voyage Te Mana o Te Moana by Mr Dewhurst
Voyage Te Mana o Te Moana, a photo by Mr Dewhurst on Flickr.
7 Waka Moana set sail from Auckland yesterday for Hawaii. Navigating by the stars in the traditional Polynesian style from Auckland to Hawaii via French Polynesia (and eventually San Francisco).

On left, Te Matau a Maui (NZ, Aotearoa), centre Gaualofa (Samoa), and right, Uto Ni Yalo (Fiji). They sail via Fakarava, Nuku Hiva (French Polynesia.), Hilo, Kawaihae, Honolulu (and eventually San Francisco)! Brave.

You can follow the voyage here —
www.pacificvoyagers.org

Comments

Anonymous said…
I thought I commented on this drawing, but maybe it was on the urban sketchers site. I really think you did a wonderful job on this scene. I wonder how they are doing. I'll double check, I should be following you. I look forward to more of your sketches.
Murray Dewhurst said…
Yes, I think you did, thanks for looking!