Green Point Park and the Stadium

Date: 19 May 2010

Location: Green Point

Walkers: Delphi & Helen

*** Route plotted here ***

A little while ago a friend from the blogosphere wrote about her walk around the new park near to Cape Town Stadium in Green Point. I was inspired to go and have a look at the project myself - and also see the new stadium up-close. We parked in Bay Road, not far from the Mouille Point Promenade. Although the road was already in shadow, the stadium was still catching the afternoon sun. Glowing! We walked along Fritz Sonnenberg Road towards the great structure. The setting is impressive... Signal Hill, Lion's Head, Table Mountain and Devil's Peak are all visible.




And the stadium itself is amazing: very modern, grand and massive in size.








I'm very intrigued about the construction... it seems so light and airy.




It looks ready for the big event - the World Cup is only twenty-odd days away now. We got a glimpse of the pitch and the seating. And all the signage is up. I noticed that the list of prohibited items includes cameras... boo, I won't be able to take pics when I go see the game?!



The whole precinct is looking smart. It is very pleasant urban public space.



From the stadium we wandered to the paved area beneath the big traffic circle on Western Boulevard. This is the public transport hub for the stadium. We walked up the corridor to see the new bus platform - until security said we shouldn't be there. Oops.




There are some fun mosaics going up on the walls here.



They commemorate historical, cultural and sporting events of the area.




It was getting late and we still hadn't got to the park! We picked up the pace as we followed a wide paved path towards Sea Point and then right towards Mouille Point. The sun was setting already.




It felt perfectly safes still to be out and about. A lot of people were using the walkway. It is rather like an extension to the Promenade. Folks were walking and jogging, taking their dogs for a run and strolling slowly in the evening air - in other words, using this community park as they should.



Further on we came to the water features - canals and ponds.




The bridge is still under construction, so we had to detour through the network of paths and lawns off to the side. This area is not finished either.



And despite the late hour and fading light there were still teams of workmen busy planting beds and building pathways. I guess the pressure really is on to get it all finished now. Three weeks!



I really liked the feel of this urban park. I plan to walk again here over the coming months and years and see how it looks when it is finished and the gardens start to mature.


(Photos by Helen)
.