Downtown walk

Today, I am taking you on a downtown promenade along the Aura riverfront. 

Let’s start at the Cathedral Bridge and continue to the little square in front of the Main Library. There are loads of eye candy here any time of the year. 

We must also pop into the library courtyard for some sculpture spotting.

Then we’ll continue along the Western Promenade following the river towards the Town Hall...

...to have a look at the art nouveau Aura Bridge that is normally decorated with the city flags. Sunday was a flag day so we are also seeing the national flags here.

Then we are taking a peek around the corner of the Town Hall and a bit further away, all the way to the Art Museum up on the hill in the distance.

Now we are passing the stately stone building that was originally built for a fire insurance company in the early 20th century. At sunset we are crossing the river to the Eastern Promenade and returning to the restaurant boats facing that art nouveau beauty – it is being renovated into wildly expensive apartments – and the evening-lit Town Hall (below).

The restaurant boats, although trimmed with strings of lights all year round, are taking a rest through the winter. The Black Rudolf is the only exception. In fact, we dined there on Friday night (having snails with garlic butter and pork fillet with peppercorn sauce, yummy) before going to the theatre (to see Duncan Macmillan’s brilliant Lungs).

On our return walk to the starting point, we are fortunate enough to spot the pedestrian Library Bridge lit in colour, this time in blue. 

Lastly, a couple of slightly more recent photos. The temperature has been fluctuating above and below the freezing point. The river was practically open for a while but now it is refrozen over as the nights have turned colder again.

For almost a year now, this has been my neighbourhood. Even in wintertime – although I still ‘sometimes’ find it hard to step out of the door into the frosty world – I am loving it.

My earlier posts on the Library Bridge here and here.