Bathurst 200 Street Party

I’m finally doing a bit of a catch up of what we have been up to over the last couple of months. 

Remember back at the beginning of May Bathurst celebrated her 200th birthday.  Well, on the evening of the same day as the Colonial Fair there was a big street party……..they think it was probably the biggest one Bathurst has ever seen.

We got down there at about 5pm, so the crowds weren’t too bad.  The weather was ideal – cool enough to rug up, but not too cold.  We were able to get some food and wine from the showcasing of the local products.  This section went down really well, but as no one expected anywhere near the number of people to turn up, all the stalls sold out in record time.

A the evening closed in the landmark Carillon was illuminated a soft pink.

We were entertained by some great local musicians.

A highlight of the night was the lantern parade.  This was the culmination of many workshops over the previous months by adults and children alike.  Apparently there were 350 lanterns.  It really was a great spectacle.

The main drawcard, though, was “Illuminate”.  This was Bathurst’s version of Vivid, with several buildings around the city centre being lit up.  Unfortunately, the majority of the lights on the Court House failed to work at the street party.  This would have been devastating for the organisers and caused some negative comments around town.

However, the part that did work looked great.  The light show was on for the following week, so there was still ample opportunity for everyone to go and have a better look, with less people around.

No matter about the glitch at the end, we had a fantastic night.  There was lots to see and, as with all these events, you run into heaps of people you know and have a chat.  It was a great way to finish off the birthday party.

More lanterns.

There will be another street party and more illuminations of our buildings in July.  As the mayor said, Bathurst is cold in winter, so let’s celebrate it.  In July there will be an ice skating rink in Kings Parade as well as more illuminations with a different theme.  We can’t wait.