I love attending international conferences. It does not only give me professional growth but also allow me to learn cultures and explore places. However, the last time I was in Brisbane, I had no time to do side tours around the city. Luckily, I got the chance to explore it a little whenever I walked from my hotel to the convention center. For 4 days, i got to see the city with a 20 to 30 minute brisk walk.

Everyday, I needed to pass by the Queen Street Mall and the Victoria Bridge across the Brisbane River to reach the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Queen Street Mall is a pedestrian mall housing more than 700 retailers located at the main street of Brisbane called Queen Street (duh!). It is considered as the heart of the Brisbane City and the most crowded as it host to over 26 million visitors a year. The mall covers about 500 meters of the street extending from its intersection with George Street until the one with Edward Street.

Along the way to Victoria Bridge facing the Queen Street is the Treasury Casino. The Italian Renaissance style building is originally the Treasury Building built between 1886 and 1928. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992 and was converted to casino in 1995.

On the South Brisbane side of the bridge is one of the old bridge’s abutment. The pedestrian arch was built in 1896 and was also included in the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992.

Along the South Bank of the Brisbane River is a 60 meter ferris wheel called the Wheel of Brisbane. It was erected in 2008 as part of the 20th anniversary of World Expo ’88 and the 150th anniversary of the State of Queensland.

Sadly, I haven’t explored any other place in Brisbane but I did enjoy my daily brisk walks to and from the conference.