News
Wow, Wow and double Wow!
That’s for the organisers of the big two weekend events, The Santa Parade and the Fireworks and Music Festival.
We are reliably informed that Southlanders again came out in big numbers to welcome the jolly fellow in red on Saturday afternoon. This despite rain on Saturday morning. Funny how the weather always seems to know when Santa is arriving and holds back accordingly.
And good to see the biggest kid there, Whats On Invers marketing manager Mike Sanford getting amongst it all with some delightful pics, check ’em out our Santa Parade pics here and more here
Just a shame that the much talked about new Christmas decorations did not arrive in time for the events of the weekend.
Also on Saturday 25 bosses were dropped from the Invercargill Fire Station tower to raise money for the ‘Drop Your Boss’ fundraiser for the Foundation for Youth Development. See the photos here
Saturday night finished with a huge and spectacular fireworks display to round 0off the music festival at Rugby Park. Many say that the Invers had not seen a display like it in many years.
But as a by line I don’t think the message got out about the volume of the bangs. Many pets got more than a fright when it all started.
The entertainment didn’t stop there, Invercargill Musical Theatre’s Theatre Restaurant show “And The Winner Is” is enjoying great reviews and strong bookings for its season at The Scottish Hall.
And Invers emptied a bit on Wednesday as many Invers rock n roll types headed to Dunedin to see Fleetwood Mac do their stuff at Forsyth Barr Stadium. That’s also a venue that’s rapidly gaining “legs” as a top concert venue. Roll on Black Sabbath next year.
Reports out too say Kiwi songstress Gin Wigmore kicked off her NZ tour by wowed the audience at her show at The Civic Theatre on Sunday night. Did you go?
And the Bill Richardson Transport World was officially opened on Saturday night by Parliament’s Speaker the Right Honourable David Carter. Another glittering occasion for this wonderful facility. Check the WOI exclusive tour here!
So that’s looking at last week. Lets look ahead and its going to be a rollicking week with the 10th Burt Munro Challenge starting on Thursday. Seems hard to believe that this is the tenth. Always an amazing event and it brings in many visitors with serious money to spend. Probably the biggest change to the programme is relocating the street races from Wyndham to the city. This will be a cracking event!
A friend who is in the accommodation business says many of the riders that come here for the first time say they are surprised at just how big Invers is
Speaking of Big, wouldn’t it be great if Nigel Skelt and his team can attract Nigella Lawson to Stadium Southland. (Nigel and Nigella, there’s something there!). Reports out say Invers is in line (Invers should be at the head of the line we say) with a couple of other places to secure the culinary goddess to promote her latest book, dvd, app etc at a swanky black tie do. No trouble for the Stadium team.
On a sad note to finish, another aviation tourism tragedy with the helicopter crash on Fox Glacier on Saturday. Seven foreign visitors and the pilot perished. Pilot Mitch Gameren spent is younger days in Invers being educated at three Invers schools.
Also we note to that the passing of well known southern historian, writer John Hall-Jones on the weekend. For those not familiar, John Hall-Jones had a long, varied and exciting “career” as an explorer, adventurer, observer and writer, most of after retiring as a surgeon.
His great grandfather was John Turnbull-Thomson and his dad was historian Fred Hall-Jones.
John Hall-Jones also wrote over 3 dozen books on his travels but mostly on the southern region. It could be said what he didn’t know about Southland was not worth knowing.
His autobiography A Life of Adventures was published earlier this year…..and a life well lived, something we should all aspire to.
Its the last full week of November, lets make it a cracker!
Cheeri Oh
Mal
City Centre Shops are open late this Thursday night 26th November.
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