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Central Railway Station

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Central Railway Station is a major architectural landmark in Sydney

Sydney's Central Railway Station is a grand and stately building that rivals major train stations from around the world. It brings out memories of the early days of rail travel.

With a rich history going back to the construction of its predecessor, a single platform station with a corrugated metal shed built in 1855, Grand Central Railway Station has come a long way. The current station was built in 1906 from Pyrmont sandstone that is common in the area. The design was a collaboration between architect Walter Liberty Vernon and a railway engineer named Henry Deane. The goal was to create a station that rivalled the grandeur of some of Great Britain's Grand Stations. The design included a tall clock tower.

Today the station serves over 80,000 commuters daily. There is a total of 27 platforms; however, not all are actively used. As as a tourist using public transit, it will be hard for you to miss this stately Sydney landmark.

Visit this site for more information about the history of Central Station in Sydney.

Nearby attractions: Powerhouse Museum and Capitol Theatre .

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Facts For Your Visit

Address: 468 Pitt St, Haymarket NSW 2000, Australia

Central Railway Station Reviews

How to get to Central Railway Station by Train

By Train or Light Rail exit at Central Station.

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Discovering Sydney’s Central Station

There’s not much reason to hang around Sydney’s Central Station. It’s a place to pass through on the way to somewhere else.

A Transport Hub

However, occasionally you may have to spend time at Central Station. Perhaps, like me, you’ve rushed up the stairs only to see your train pulling away from the platform. And in my case that means waiting an hour for the next train.

At those times, I’ve sat on a wooden bench and read, gone for a short walk or perhaps relaxed with a coffee nearby. I haven’t spent time exploring Central Station itself. Recently, I did just that. Here’s what I discovered.  

Background to Central Station

Central Station is the third Sydney Station. Unlike the first and second Sydney Terminals located south of Devonshire Street, between Devonshire and Cleveland Street, it was built north of Devonshire Street in 1906.

Moving Bodies

The busiest railway station in New South Wales, Central was built on the site of the Devonshire Street Cemetery. Bodies had to be moved. They were exhumed and re-interred in other cemeteries around Sydney including Rookwood and Waverley . 

Devonshire Street became a pedestrian underpass, generally known as the Devonshire Street Tunnel.

A Little Park and a Little Dog

Walking from the Inwards Parcel Shed (now the Railway Square YHA), I pass what was once the Parcel Post Office (now the Adina Hotel) and continue through a little park towards the main concourse.

Decorative iron palisade uprights and heavy iron link chain edge the grassed area. The grey green paint is chipped in parts.

I’ve walked through this park many times, but never noticed a little memorial to Donna. Listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest living Hearing Guide dog, Donna belonged to a John Hogan of Pyrmont.

The Clock Tower

One of the four faces of the 85m high Clock Tower, completed in 1921, overlooks the park. Visible for miles around, it became known as “the working man’s watch”. Now of course it’s dwarfed by the skyscrapers around it.

Behind ‘Donna’, a long brick building with arched windows backs onto Platform One. I look for the Governor’s Archway halfway along. The Governor’s coach would stop here.

A Bullet Hole

In the marble entrance to Platform One, I look for a small bullet hole in the marble. It is the only reminder of a gun battle in 1916 between disaffected soldiers (the rioters) and military police.

All I can find is a chip in the corner of a marble column near the public telephone. It looks like a photograph I’ve seen claiming to be of the bullet hole. The only problem is that the next column has a similar chip. Maybe it is the bullet hole, maybe not.

The Main Concourse

The huge arched roof towers above a tiled floor in the main concourse. There are few people about, as COVID restrictions slowly ease. At the far end of the hall, the clock is off-centre. Earlier photos show it positioned centrally. I wonder when it was moved and why.

Between the detailed stained-glass windows of the booking hall (now the Eternity Bar and Grill), four Honour Boards list those who worked for NSW Railways and Tramways who died in active service. The Eternity Bar is currently closed and there’s little to see by peering through the glass doors.

John Whitton

A bust of John Whitton stands in an alcove near the Honour Boards. Known as “The Father of NSW Railways” Whitton was Engineer-in-Chief from 1857 to 1890. He was responsible for growing the rail network from 27km in length to 3538km in thirty three years.

The Old Interstate Booking Office

The neighbouring food court was once the Interstate Booking Office. Carefully restored in 2017, a large four-walled mural celebrating train travel in NSW deserves careful attention. I wonder how many travellers tucking into their burgers and chips look up to appreciate the beautiful polished plaster artwork.

On the terrazzo tiled floor, circles enclosing variously a red lion, a black swan and crown and stars sit beside a map of Australia. I don’t quite understand the symbolism. Perhaps someone can help here.

The Light Rail

At the light rail stop, outside the main concourse, a few people wait patiently. A woman, dressed in a grey hoodie, stands behind one of the police vehicles parked on the other side of the tram tracks. She’s talking on her phone.

I step carefully over the tracks to look out towards Belmore Park. Almost immediately the woman approaches me flashing her police ID. “Excuse me ma’am you can’t be on this side” she says. I apologise and hastily retreat.

Elizabeth Street Exit

A man with two dogs and a boom box busks near the Elizabeth Street exit. Other apparently homeless people sit on the low wall. I smile at a young aboriginal woman walking towards me. She smiles back and asks for spare change.

Murals and Busts

Large murals celebrating 100 years of NSW Rail history decorate the station wall running alongside Chalmers Street. In the 2000 -2005 panel, workers wear orange hard hats and Hi-Viz vests, quite different from the workers in the 1925-1940 panel who have no safety gear at all.  

Several busts of Spanish and Portuguese historical figures stand on sandstone plinths in the Ibero-American Plaza. This plaza acknowledges the contribution of people from Spain and Portugal to the history of Australia.

The only woman represented, Juana Azurduy de Padilla, fought in the Bolivian wars for independence.  

Devonshire Street Tunnel

Relatively quiet today, and missing the usual buskers, the Devonshire Street Tunnel is tiled with digital print murals depicting railway scenes. Another person asks for ‘spare change’ as I exit the tunnel. Coins fall from my purse as I fumble for change. He picks them up and pockets them.

My exploration ends here, where the tunnel opens out into Henry Dean Plaza, named after an Engineer-in-Chief involved in Railway Construction.  

Thoughts on Central Station

Central Station is more than just a transport hub. Give yourself a bit more time when you’re next passing through and discover more of the history of this heritage station.

For Your Information

My walk started at the Railway Square YHA next to the Adina Hotel and basically circumnavigated Central Station.

For a different walk to discover Central Station, take a look at this self-guided tour .

And if you’re interested, take a look at some of the most beautifully decorated stations in the world – those of the Moscow Metro. You can find my post here .

As always, your commentary is simple but clearly represents what we are looking at through your eyes.

Thanks Valerie

I Joanne . We are a group of retired woman who meet once a month and do something different before having lunch together . I’m trying to arrange an hour to and a half tour of central staton Sydney for Monday 19 th February Are you able to help ? My email is [email protected]

Hi Sheila, Unfortunately, I don’t run tours. I hope that my posts will encourage others to explore for themselves. I’ll email you with a contact that may be able to help you.

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Tours and Multimedia – Running on Time

Engaging with audiences and the community is a key part of Sydney Trains aim to share the history of ‘rail heritage’ with the customer. An example of this is the ‘Running on Time’ project completed in 2016 which includes multimedia resources and ‘behind the scenes’ tours of Central Station.

Conserving rail heritage is not just about maintaining the historic rail infrastructure, but also capturing the stories of the people behind the railways. Sydney Trains and its predecessor railway organisations also have a rich history suitable for oral history collection. In addition, the high volume of life-long staff retiring and the modernising of older technological systems and equipment provides a short window of opportunity to capture valuable intangible rail information before it is lost forever.

‘Running on Time’ was completed throughout 2015-16 and had the aim of documenting the history and development of a standard system of timekeeping in the NSW Railways. The project was completed as part of Sydney Trains’ overall heritage asset management program, which includes a commitment to ‘continue programs to further improve heritage management across the organisation and share our history with the customer’.

This project captured the evolution and introduction of ‘railway time’, and the physical manifestation of a standard timekeeping system via the various clocks, watches and recording devices that connected the rail system across the state. The technological changes in timekeeping systems and the role of time in both safe working of trains and passenger information services across the network were integral to an expanding railway network. The project also highlights the history of collecting railway clocks and their wider interest as collectable antiques.

The aim of the interactive project was to make information regarding this important historic theme accessible to audiences in a range of methods including:

• A printed publication and oral history transcripts, now available in key state archives and as a free download from Sydney Trains website.
• A short 15-minute documentary film, available as free download from Sydney Trains website and a limited run of DVDs and USB cards, with screenings held at Central Station.
• Establishment of a small ‘clock display’ for the State collection of NSW Railway clocks with guided tours of Central Station.

The ‘Running on Time’ publication, film and resources are available on the website .

The use of multi-media formats (audio, video, website and written) to present the historical information ensures that information is suitable for a wider range of audiences with different access requirements to historical information. The use of short-video format in particular aligns with current trends for visual information suitable for younger audiences to promote interest in rail heritage.

For preparation of the report and film, historical research was undertaken by historian Mark Dunn at the Australian Railway Historical Society and Sydney Trains heritage archives to source historic photos and video footage. A series of interviews were then conducted with railway staff and NSW clock-makers who service the historic clocks, maintain the collection and run the current systems of time information across the network.

As part of the project, the collection of railway clocks managed by Sydney Trains was audited and a storage facility at Central Station was upgraded to allow visitor access to visit the collection – for the first time bringing the public back-of-house to explain how Sydney Trains manages its movable heritage collections.

The tours were advertised through Sydney Trains website and were free to any member of the public. Within 24 hours all available tour slots were taken, showing a keen interest to take part in the tours. As part of heritage week in 2016 Sydney Trains heritage team ran free public tours of Central’s clock tower and clock room. As an introduction to the tours, customers were shown the ‘Running on Time’ film – as an introduction to the history of the station and the railways. Participants then climbed to the top of Central’s iconic clock tower (over 200 steps each way), and then made their way down via Centrals magnificent marble staircases, to the clock storerooms and a display of historic railway clocks.

This was the first time the Sydney Trains clock collection was open to the public and people on the tours got a glimpse of how important timekeeping has been, and continues to be, for the railways. The room included presenting examples of different railway clocks from different eras, as well as providing safe and secure storage for this valuable collection of movable heritage items.

The purpose behind the project was to conserve heritage assets not just in physical form, but also to ensure that the stories of the staff behind the scenes managing our heritage assets are also recorded as part of our history. The project promotes inclusion and participation in all parts of a large organisation with extensive heritage portfolio and cultural history to advocate heritage conservation practices. The project has been promoted internally through newsletters, staff screenings of the film and through information available for download on the website and intranet.

A summary of customer feedback was received after the tours and will be used for tailoring future tours at Central Station, however the majority of customer feedback rated as ‘very good’. Many customers on the first tours came from as far away as Cowra and Lithgow, and the response was overwhelmingly positive with many asking “when will the next tours be?”

Worked on the project: Sydney Trains and Art of Multimedia

What the Judges said:

“This tour beautifully captures the voices of the people behind the railways and makes great use of the moveable heritage collection of clocks that Sydney Trains has. What is it about clocks that captures the imagination?”

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• Aug 29, 2023

Transport Heritage Expo returns to Central 30 September - 2 October

Sydney’s Central Station will be transformed to a bygone era with the return of the annual Transport Heritage Expo this October long weekend (30 September – 2 October 2023).

Visitors will be spoiled for choice this year, with heritage train, bus and steam boat rides operating across the city and unique experiences at Central station, including tours of the iconic Central Station clock tower and tea aboard a 1960s dining carriage.

“The Transport Heritage Expo is a rare and exciting opportunity for people to journey back in time and immerse themselves in our state’s rich transport history,” said Transport Heritage NSW CEO, Andrew Moritz.

“This year, we’re fortunate to display some incredible pieces from the State collection, including three rarely seen passenger carriages which were first introduced to the NSW Government Railways in the 1890s.”

Highlights of the Transport Heritage Expo 2023 include:

Heritage Train Rides: Enjoy a 1-hour steam train ride to Hurstville and return, experience a vintage electric train or ride a timber-bodied railmotor on a tour of the Botany freight line.

Vintage Bus Rides: Take a 29-minute round trip of the Sydney CBD aboard a lovingly restored vintage double-decker bus from the Sydney Bus Museum.

Harbour Steam Cruises: Embark on a 45-minute harbour cruise on your choice of the Waratah or Lady Hopetoun – two 120-year-old veterans of Sydney Harbour.

Central Clock Tower Tours: Climb the stairs of the Central Station Clock Tower – but be quick, tickets are extremely limited for this experience!

1960s Dining Car Experience: Step aboard the Southern Aurora for an extended 1-hour tea sitting. Be transported back in time with a selection of freshly brewed teas accompanied by pastries, finger sandwiches and scones.

Driver’s Cab Visits and Heritage Displays: Step aboard the driver’s cab of Australia’s most famous steam locomotive 3801. See a collection of heritage carriages and locomotives or simply sit back and take in the live atmosphere as heritage trains arrive and depart Central Station throughout the long weekend.

Transport Heritage Expo runs from 30 September to 2 October.

Tickets are on sale from tomorrow, 30 August at www.transportheritageexpo.com or by calling 1300 11 55 99.

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Ultimate Self-Guided Vivid Sydney Walking Tour – From Central Station to Circular Quay (2024)

Written by on April 26, 2023 . Posted in Sydney .

Last updated: April 2024

There really is nothing quite like Vivid Sydney. This event lights up the city of Sydney and the Sydney Harbour in the most outstanding of colours and bright, neon hues. Running during winter, from Friday 24 May 2024 to Saturday 15 June 2024, this year’s unmissable festival is going to be brilliant! While there are so many different events within Vivid to check out, one of the best things to do is a self-guided Light Walk through some of the coolest light installations.

Below, we’ve put together a self-guided Vivid Sydney walking tour, taking you from Central Station to Circular Quay. Enjoy!

Vivid Sydney Light Walk – Self Guided Tour Instructions

Central station.

Starting at Wake Up! Sydney , look out towards Central Station from Pitt Street. The western facade of Central Station (the side that directly faces Wake Up!) and the Clock Tower, will be lit up with vivid colours and transportive artwork. Walk to The Goods Line by walking right onto Quay Street, then left onto Thomas Street.

THE GOODS LINE

Turn right onto The Goods Line, and along this walkway there will be many light projections, installations and music events as part of Vivid Sydney. Keep your eyes out for:

• Window Dressing  – walls of illuminated windows that indulges our inner crypto-scopo-philia (the desire to look through windows of homes as you pass by). Performers will be living strange and curious lives within each window frame, against a festival of technological wonder and curated music.
• Vivid Fire Kitchen  – refuel with flame-seared street food from around the globe. Some of the best local and international pitmasters will be using charcoal to fire-cook dishes like tandoor, teppanyaki, First Nations food, tender brisket, charred veggies, and aromatic satay. Plus, cult-gelato favourite Messina will serve nostalgic favourites at  Messina Milk Bar  (don’t miss the warm Milo fudge sundae!).
• Fireplaces  – giant fire pits, wicked fire sculptures, flame throwers, and fire barrels are just some of what to expect in this hypnotic display.
• Future Natives  – keep your eye out for this series of 13 light sculptures, inspired by Australian native birds. They’ll act as way finders as you do the walk to Circular Quay.

When you reach the end of The Goods Line, turn right onto Steam Mill Lane, which will take you to Darling Square and then Darling Quarter.

DARLING SQUARE & DARLING QUARTER

Continue walking up the Boulevard, to Tumbalong Park and the Chinese Garden of Friendship Forecourt. Here, look out for  Neuron : a motion-triggered light structure that represents your very own brain. Watch as the LED light ‘neurons’ and branches react in the exact same pattern that electrical and chemical signals are triggered in your own brain. You won’t miss  Neolithic . This super large installation is a nod to both Neolithic-era architecture and our fascination with the cosmos.

Finally, settle into  Tumbalong Park  for a non-stop dance party (one of our must-see Vivid Sydney experiences for 2024)! There will be 12 nights in a row of live music and epic DJs, including artists like Mallrat and a street party by radio show turned block party, Bare Necessities, bringing high energy, big band brass and African drumming and dancing to the night.

Finally,  Omnivisu  is an uber cool interactive project. Step up to the Omnivisu viewfinder in Tumbalong Park, where two cameras will film your eyes. Your eyes will then be projected in larger-than-life scale onto a towering building in the distance!

DARLING HARBOUR

Continue walking along the path towards the water’s edge at Darling Harbour. Turn right, for the start of your Darling Harbour foreshore walk. Along the way, you’ll see:

• Hika Rakuyo : an eight-minute spectacular laser and light show shooting across the water;
• Barani : where modern, digital illustration is combined with First Nations iconography, to tell the story of Sydney Cove 500 years ago  (ps. ‘Barani’ is a Gadigal word meaning ‘yesterday’) ;

Walk north towards Barangaroo.

Just before reaching Barangaroo, stroll past  Chairwave  and get ready to take a seat. As you approach, the Chairwave lights respond and will make a seat available for you by lighting up. Once you sit down, it will then light up the seats next to you, inviting a stranger to sit down next to you and encouraging real conversations with people we don’t know.

You’ll know you’ve reached Barangaroo once you see lights galore! What Vivid Sydney light shows should you see once you’re in Barangaroo? Here are our suggestions:

• Take a moment to pause and just ‘be’ at  Stateless , with 4,000 solar-powered LED candles placed by the water.
• Look into the  Horizon , for a hypnotic, full-body experience. Expect trance-like sound and strobing lights.
• See giant cranes appear to float in the air at  Nest
• At  Encounters Before the Tree , the trees above you will transform into geometric shapes. This display is pretty mind-bending!
• Step into the towering 15 metre tall installation of  PORTAL . Once you’re in, a soundscape will start up and dramatic lights will pulse in time to the beat.

Continue walking through the installations in Barangaroo Reserve, before wrapping around into Walsh Bay.

You’ve made it to the Piers at Walsh Bay. A true highlight is the mirror-maze at  Shifting Perspectives . 24 mirrored plinths, light swirls, dancers and sound all pulsate to make for a real reality-bending creation. Don’t miss it!

THE ROCKS & CIRCULAR QUAY

Wrap around to The Rocks and enter Circular Quay. You’ve made it the heart of Vivid Sydney’s light show! This is your place to be! Pick a spot to sit or stand, and simply cast your eyes out  across Sydney Harbour  and be dazzled by  Love Is In The Air  – it is a colourful spectacle like no other. The ferries and boats will light up in unison with the city’s skyscrapers, as well as the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. There is no shortage of things to look at here, but some of our suggestions include:

• Connection  – take in the colourful sight at Hickson Road Reserve from a distance (or walk all the way into its centre for an interactive and sensory experience).
• Walk past the  Museum of Contemporary Art  to see its facade totally transformed
• Go to First Fleet Park for a life-sized equivalent of a kid’s paper chain, at  Embrace . Wait to see what happens once the silhouettes are all connected through human touch!
• At the eastern end of Circular Quay, gaze at Customs House where Australian national icon  Reg Mombassa’s artwork  of retro-furistic robots, one-eyed koalas and other strange creatures light up the night.

What is Vivid Sydney?

• Vivid Sydney is an insanely cool festival that happens every year. It celebrates creativity, innovation and technology, through huge light installations, music performances, public talks, and much more. Essentially, it’s a time that totally transforms Sydney for 23 days and nights and is one of the best times of the year to visit the city! In 2024, Vivid Sydney will run in winter from Friday 24 May to Saturday 15 June.

How long will this Self Guided Light Walk Tour take me?

• We suggest at least 2 hours for this Vivid Sydney Self Guided Light Walk.

Can I start the walk at Circular Quay and finish at Central Station?

• Of course. You can also do this Light Walk in reverse, beginning at Circular Quay and ending at Central Station. This is a good idea if you want to end the night with an electric night and Vivid-themed cocktail at Side Bar!

Is there a quicker way to get to Circular Quay from Central Station?

• You can catch the train or tram directly from Central to Circular Quay. The train will take you 10 minutes, and the tram will take you 15 minutes.

Is there a shorter light walk? Can I just do part of the Self Guided Walk?

• Central Station to Darling Harbour
• Barangaroo to Circular Quay

Can I eat along the Vivid Sydney Light Walk?

• There are heaps of eateries along the walk. Darling Square, King Street Wharf, Barangaroo, The Rocks and Circular Quay all have plenty of restaurants and food stalls. There is also the ‘Vivid Fire Kitchen’ along The Goods Line. There you can refuel by the fire pit with food from some of Sydney’s best eateries.

Are there guided walking tours I can join?

• Watch this space! ? At Wake Up! Sydney, we will have special edition guided walking tours during Vivid for our hostel guests.

How do I get back to Central Station from Circular Quay?

• From Circular Quay, you can take the train or tram back to Central Station. Both the train and tram run at regular intervals, and will take you around 10 minutes (train) or 15 minutes (tram).

Can I enter the Royal Botanic Gardens ?

• There are more amazing Vivid Sydney lights to see in the Royal Botanic Gardens, but you’ll need to  purchase a ticket  to access this area. Tickets are from $30.

Is the Light Walk free?

• It is totally free to do this self-guided light walk, and all of the light installations detailed below are free for you to enjoy! There are also heaps more paid events you might like to check out. See our Must-See Vivid Sydney Experiences for more ideas, or check out the Vivid Sydney website.

Where is the best place to stay during Vivid Sydney?

• Call us biased, but  Wake Up! Sydney Central  is an ideal place to stay during the festival. Our award-winning hotel is located directly opposite Central Station, which means you’ll have lights literally outside your door, as well as being in the best spot for public transport to see so many of the Vivid events. Even better, we will be running special edition Vivid events for our guests, including guided light-walk tours, Vivid night parties, a vivid-themed pub crawl, and more! Affordable accommodation, convenient, and a whole lotta fun!

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Central Station

City Centre & Haymarket

Sydney’s main railway station was built in 1906 on top of an old convent and cemetery (watch out for ghosts). The 75m Gothic clock tower was added 15 years later. The main sandstone concourse has an impressive vaulted roof and is the terminus for intercity and country trains.

Suburban trains chug into the outdoor platforms downstairs on the Surry Hills side. The station is also a key interchange for bus and light-rail services. A new main entrance, underground concourse and platforms for the upcoming Sydney Metro are under construction.

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24 hours in Detroit: Michigan Central Station, Eastern Market and the Motown Museum

• Updated: Jul. 03, 2024, 2:03 p.m. |
• Published: Jul. 03, 2024, 8:36 a.m.

Michigan Central Station, owned by the Ford Motor Co., reopened last month in Detroit after a nearly $1 billion renovation. It's open to the public to tour on Friday evenings and Saturdays through August. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

• Susan Glaser, cleveland.com

DETROIT, Michigan – In December 1913, a massive fire destroyed Detroit’s historic downtown train station. Fortunately, a new, larger train station was already under construction, and was rushed into service without fanfare.

More than 100 years later, that replacement station -- newly restored -- is finally getting the grand opening it deserves.

The massive Michigan Central Station, which opened in 1913 and closed 75 years later, reopened last month, after a stunning renovation.

Ford Motor Co. bought the abandoned structure in 2018 and spent nearly $1 billion to bring it, as well as an adjacent building and surrounding property, back to life.

A star-studded concert last month featuring Diana Ross, Eminem, Jack White and others helped inaugurate the space.

The building’s first floor is open to the public for self-guided tours on Fridays and Saturdays all summer. Touring this symbol of the city’s resurgence was the highlight of my quick trip to Detroit last month.

There were other highlights as well. I wandered through Eastern Market, explored the Motown Museum and took a Segway tour through town -- all recommended.

One thing I didn’t do was catch a Guardians game at Comerica Park (the White Sox were in town on the weekend of my visit).

The Guardians are playing the Tigers six times in Detroit in the next few weeks (July 8-11 plus July 29-30), which makes this month a great time to check out what’s new in the Motor City.

The newly restored Grand Hall at Michigan Central Station features a 3D timeline that covers the history of the building and the city. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Recently restored facade of Detroit's Michigan Central Station, designed by the same architectural firms that worked on Grand Central Station in New York City. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Newly restored Michigan Central Station reopened last month in Detroit. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Michigan Central Station was a popular destination for graffiti artists before its restoration. Some of the artwork has been left in place. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Michigan Central Station

The last time I was in Detroit was 2019, shortly after Ford bought the abandoned train station in the city’s Corktown neighborhood, just west of downtown.

The 18-story building had become a symbol of the city’s decay – filled with trash, damaged by water and vandals, covered with graffiti.

Indeed, the building may have been unsalvageable if the restoration had begun just a few years later, according to exhibits inside the structure.

Visitors start their tour in the women’s waiting room, where a short film covers the building’s past, present and future. Then it’s onto the Grand Hall, with soaring ceilings, massive arched windows and gorgeous architectural detail, some of which was recreated using Ford laser scanners and other equipment used in auto manufacturing. (”It’s basically a part. It’s just not going into an automobile,” said one of the workers on video.)

Michigan Central was the tallest train station in the world when it opened, a Beaux-Arts beauty with marble floors, bronze chandeliers and Corinthian columns. Designed by the same architectural firms that worked on New York City’s Grand Central Terminal, it featured a three-story depot at its base with 15 floors of office space above.

And its height, it welcomed as many as 4,000 rail passengers a day.

The station started its decline in the 1960s, fueled, ironically, by the rise of the automobiles being built by Ford’s own factories. The last train left the station on Jan. 5, 1988.

Twenty years later, a Detroit City Council resolution called for the building’s demolition. Fortunately, the city didn’t have the money to bring it down.

In addition to the Grand Hall, visitors can tour:

* The train station’s former restaurant, now filled with a curated catalog of the restoration effort, including numerous items discovered during the renovation. Shortly after Ford announced it was buying the building, an anonymous “donor” reached out to reveal that they had the station’s 700-pound Carriage House clock, missing for decades. It was returned – along with dozens of other items, including staircase finials, window trim and fire extinguishers.

* The former reading room, serving now as a portrait gallery, filled with the photos of people whose lives have been touched by the station, including immigrants who arrived here, men who went off to war here, people who worked here and people who helped in the restoration.

* The former ticket office, dubbed the poster vault, with vintage train posters, concert announcements, sports team memorabilia and more.

The building’s South Concourse includes kids activities, a large interactive piece of artwork, plus some preserved graffiti art on hallway walls.

Ford, which envisions the building as the centerpiece of an innovation district, plans to relocate 2,500 employees here by 2028. Other companies plan to rent space here, as well, including Google.

Look for retail and dining options to be added in the future, too.

In a letter to the community displayed inside the building, Bill Ford, executive chairman of the Ford Motor Co., calls the restoration “a bold declaration that Detroit’s best days lie ahead.”

That’s a big statement, considering all that Detroit has been through.

Still, seeing is believing. And all of us who are rooting for the comeback of so many great American cities including Detroit, Pittsburgh, Buffalo and Cleveland, should put this place on their bucket list of places to see.

More information: The first floor of the station is open 5 to 9 p.m. Fridays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays through Aug. 31 (closed July 5-6 and closing at 2 p.m. July 20). Self-guided tours are free, no ticket required. Information: michigancentral.com

Segwaying along the Dequindre Cut near downtown Detroit. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

The new Hudson's Detroit, on the site of the former Hudson's Department Store, is expected to be completed later this year. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Maureen Kearns leads a Segway tour along the Riverwalk east of town; note the Renaissance Center in the distance. General Motors announced earlier this year it was leaving the center for the new Hudson's Detroit. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Eastern Market and Segway Tour

To see more of the city, I booked a tour with Detroit Segway, owned by long-time Detroiter Maureen Kearns. Her 90-minute Strait to the Point tour starts at Eastern Market, heads south toward the river and then meanders through downtown.

I had never before been on a Segway, those two-wheeled, back-to-the-future transportation devices introduced in 2001. I’m happy to report that the machines are easy to use, even for those of us who are athletically challenged. After a 10-minute primer, we were ready to go.

We wheeled first along the Dequindre Cut Greenway, a 2-mile multiuse trail east of downtown that follows the former Grand Trunk Railroad line and is mostly below street level. The path is known for its colorful displays of urban artwork and graffiti, which I perhaps unwisely attempted to photograph while speeding past at 10 mph. We were joined on the trail by cyclists, scooters and a few walkers.

The Dequindre Cut deadends at the Detroit River, within lovely Milliken State Park, where we connected with the Riverwalk, the scenic waterfront path that travels 5 miles between Belle Isle and the Ambassador Bridge.

Along the river, we passed a Viking cruise ship docked for the day, then turned north toward downtown, past the iconic Renaissance Center, a collection of skyscrapers completed in 1977 and currently owned by General Motors.

Earlier this year, GM announced it was leaving the Renaissance Center and moving a mile away to Hudson’s Detroit, the new tower under construction by Bedrock, the development firm founded by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, who owns another 100-plus buildings in town.

The fate of the Renaissance Center is unclear, said Kearns, who would like to see it turned into residential units. “Bringing it down is a real possibility,” she lamented.

Downtown Detroit, while geographically much larger than Cleveland, has a population of about 7,000, or roughly one-third the size of Cleveland’s, according to recent estimates.

Downtown felt busy on the weekend of my visit, but without ball games and other events, I’m sure it feels pretty empty.

After wheeling through downtown – past Campus Martius Park, the historic Guardian Building and the Belt alley, which doubles as an outdoor art gallery – we wound our way back to Eastern Market and set off on two feet.

Eastern Market, founded in 1841 and on this site since 1891, is the largest outdoor farmers market in the country, spread across 43 acres.

For the full effect, come on a Saturday, when as many as 225 vendors are set up throughout the space, selling everything from produce to prepared foods to flowers, artwork, T-shirts and more.

The market adds extra hours in the summer, when it’s open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday.

We strolled and shopped for about an hour on the Sunday of our visit, until it was time for one last only-in-Detroit experience, across town at the Motown Museum. For information: easternmarket.org , detroitsegway.com

Strolling Detroit's Eastern Market, one of the largest and oldest public markets in the U.S. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Two historic homes on West Grand Boulevard make up the Motown Museum in Detroit. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

Touring the Motown Museum

Berry Gordy, who founded Motown Records in Detroit in 1959, relocated the company to Los Angeles in 1972.

His sister, Esther, stayed behind and continued to work in the offices where the business was founded.

Eventually, fans started stopping by, asking for tours. And the Motown Museum was born.

During its heyday, Motown encompassed eight houses on West Grand Boulevard, a few miles north of downtown. Today, the museum tour takes visitors through two of those houses, including Hitsville U.S.A., where Berry Gordy lived in a second-story apartment (complete with bright orange sofa and 1960s-era playpen), and the studio where future stars including Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye got their start.

Museum exhibits cover Gordy’s early years, as he struggled to break through in the music industry, and the many record labels he eventually created (in part because radio stations limited how many artists per label were played on the air).

A special exhibit covers the life and work of Claudette Robinson, aka the first lady of Motown, Smokey Robinson’s first wife and a singer with the Miracles, Motown’s first big act.

Also here: a black fedora and sequined glove donated to the museum by Michael Jackson in 1988.

And don’t miss the 1960s-era vending machine stocked with candy from several decades ago that is the centerpiece of a very sweet story.

The vending machine always carried Baby Ruth bars third from the right, so that a young Stevie Wonder, who is blind, could always find his favorite candy. Decades ago, fellow musicians started depositing dimes on the top of the machine for Wonder to use – a tradition that continues today.

The tour ends in Studio A, where visitors are invited to channel their inner Temptations by belting out the first verse of “My Girl.” Our guide also encouraged us to dance, scooping our arms right and left (“like shoveling snow,” he said). Let’s just say, I won’t be quitting my day job.

The museum is in the midst of a major expansion, expected to open in 2026 behind the historic homes, which will include a new 50,000 square foot exhibit space, small theater and outdoor plaza.

More information: The Motown Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday; admission is $20 and by guided tour only. Buy in advance, particularly on weekends in the summer. See motownmuseum.org

Michigan Central Station in 2018, before the Ford Motor Co. spent nearly $1 billion on its restoration. Courtesy Ford Motor Co.

Roosevelt Park fronts the newly restored Michigan Central Station in Detroit's Corktown neighobrhood. Susan Glaser, Cleveland.com

If you go: Detroit

Getting there: Detroit is an easy 160-mile drive from Cleveland, west on the Ohio Turnpike and north on I-75.

Where we stayed: My husband and I spent one night at the Siren Hotel, new in 2018, with 106 rooms tucked inside the elegant former Wurlitzer Building in a terrific location near Comerica Park. We paid nearly $300 on a Saturday night in June, though weekday rates are significantly lower. Information: ash.world/hotels/the-siren

Where we ate: We were in town for just one night, enjoying upscale Lebanese fare at Leila, 1245 Griswold St., in downtown Detroit. Information: leiladetroit.com

More information: visitdetroit.com

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The Great Northern Clocktower

Expo '74 and riverfront park tour.

You are standing next to the clock tower of the former Great Northern station. It is one of the few surviving remnants of Havermale Island as it was from the first years of the 20th century until Expo '74. Though it is one of the only remains of Spokane's industrial Havermale Island, it stands today as a reminder of the railroads that built Spokane into a thriving city.

Spokane, like many towns in the American West, was transformed by its rail industry. The city's growth depended on the commerce and capital of railroads. Early on, Spokane relied heavily on the rails potential to bring in tourists and new residents. The Northern Pacific rail line connected the small town of Spokane to its web of routes in 1884. In its own traveler's guide of 1889, the railroad spent more time praising bucolic fishing and the roar of the falls than the city's industrial potential. Spokane was a picturesque tourist destination among the basalt columns and pines.

Naturally, local boosters saw it differently. In their own promotional guide, "the date from which the growth of the city is to be counted" was 1884 rather than 1873. And, further, that growth would be in the manufacturing of timber and agricultural products and not tourism. Even more important was the rail connection to the mining districts of northeastern Washington and northern Idaho. To boosters, this made Spokane far more important than "Denver, Salt Lake, Butte or Helena" because "those cities are drawing on Spokane's tributary mining districts for supplies of ore."

Within a decade, local rail lines began to radiate out to the mining and agricultural hinterlands and additional transcontinental lines passed in or close to the city. Men poured in to work on these projects. From Spokane, the Central Washington Railway embraced the country of the Big Bend of the Columbia in 1890. Shooting northward, the Spokane International Railway crossed the Canadian border and joined with the Canadian Pacific line and the mining country of the Canadian Kootenays. The Great Northern Railroad sited a rail yard at Hillyard and a grand station in central Spokane. In 1914, the Union Pacific and Milwaukee Road finished construction on a viaduct which hugged the Spokane River before crossing to a new artificial hill on its north bank.

The completion of this viaduct, even though it further hid not only the falls but also the new Monroe Street Bridge, was greeted with great fanfare by the community and the railroad companies. Unknown to Spokanites, it was also to be the last hurrah of the rail boom. As new construction slowed, so too did the frantic growth of the city. Trains would clatter and bustle over the Spokane River for another fifty years, transforming the city by increments rather than leaps and bounds.

By the 1970s, many began to see the heavy downtown presence of the rails as a nuisance. The major rail yards established on the banks of the Spokane River were removed to make way for Expo '74. Today, Riverfront Park stands where the heart of Spokane's industry once stood. The Great Northern clock tower reminds visitors of the city's history and its booming rails.

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• Expo 74 and Riverfront Park
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Vintage Steam Trains And Buses Are Set To Run In Sydney Over The October Long Weekend

Travel by land or by sea on heritage trains, buses and cruises when the Transport Heritage Expo returns to Sydney this spring.

Step into a bygone era this spring when the annual Transport Heritage Expo returns to Sydney. The expo will feature heritage train, bus and steamboat rides that will operate across Sydney from Central Station, giving visitors an opportunity to step back in time and experience the golden age of travel. History buffs can also look forward to a number of informative experiences including tours of the iconic Central Station Clock Tower and a cosy tea aboard a 1960s dining carriage. It’s all happening over the October long weekend so go forth and start planning.

Transport Heritage Expo

Ditch the car and embrace the steam train when the three-day event kicks off on September 30 . These cosy and comfortable steam train rides are the perfect way to see Sydney in a new light and live out your Victorian fantasies right here at home.

Highlights of the expo include:

• Heritage Train Rides : Hop aboard a 1-hour steam train ride to Hurstville and return, get a taste of travelling on a vintage electric train or ride a timber-bodied railmotor on a tour of the Botany freight line.
• Vintage Bus Rides : Prefer the bus? A restored vintage double-decker bus from the Sydney Bus Museum will be up and running for a 29-minute round trip of the Sydney CBD.
• Harbour Steam Cruises : What’s a better way to experience Sydney in all its glory than on a cruise? Tour the scenic sea vistas of the city on a 45-minute harbour cruise on your choice of the Waratah or Lady Hopetoun – two 120-year-old veterans of Sydney Harbour.

And that’s not all. If pastries, finger sandwiches, scones and freshly brewed teas are your thing, check out the 1960s Dining Car Experience on the Southern Aurora for a 1-hour tea that is bound to make you feel like royalty.

Excitingly, one of Australia’s most famous steam engines, Locomotive 3801 will be on-site and visitors can even take the reigns and nab a seat on the driver’s cab. Plus, see a collection of heritage carriages and locomotives or simply relish the 19th-century lifestyle for a day at this unique experience. The expo will take place from September 30 to October 2 for three days only, so don’t miss out. Get more information and grab your tickets at the Transport Heritage Expo website .

Wondering what else is on during the October long weekend?

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'It's stunning': Awestruck visitors get first look at restored Michigan Central Station

Detroit — The first members of the public got a look inside the restored Michigan Central Station on Friday, and they were suitably awestruck by the transformation of the towering landmark that's been rescued from ruin.

It was the entrance into the Grand Hall when the emotion hit most guests, with gawkers mouthing "wow" as they gazed up at the Guastavino tile ceilings and down at the shiny marble floors.

Rita Martuscelli, 90, of Troy was first through the station's side doors. She couldn't help but get emotional as she entered the Grand Hall, hand over her agape mouth with eyes wide as she took in the replaced soaring windows and recreated light fixtures.

"It's stunning," she said. "They're finally realizing something like this is worth saving."

In a throwback to the station's glory days, when travelers passing through wore their Sunday best, many attendees dressed up in their fanciest attire for photographic moments. Others displayed Detroit pride in Lions jerseys, vintage automotive apparel or Corktown hoodies. 

Gasps could be heard as visitors entered the Grand Hall, and as they gazed at the white marble clock looming over the restored ticket booths. 

Clark Haddock, 70, was nearly brought to tears seeing the clock at the end of the east entrance hallway. 

"It makes me think of my Grandpa Harry, who was a jeweler here in Detroit who would take the 7 p.m. train every Christmas Eve, and we would wait for him in Kalamazoo," said Haddock, who lives in Oakland County's Beverly Hills. "I don’t think you really understand what’s possible until you see this."

Mario Muscat, a lifelong resident of Corktown who uses a wheelchair, said the tour brought back memories from his youth. 

"I can see this station from my porch. I went to school at St. Vincent's, and we used to hang here quite a bit, even as a teen. We would sneak out of class and smoke cigarettes in the tunnel way. We were young and dumb. It brings me back," said Muscat, 65. "It’s finally happened ... that’s the main thing. I’m glad to see it wasn’t torn down."

His hope is to see trains roll into the station once more, as they did from its opening in 1913 until Amtrak ended service in 1988. "We used to jump on the train to Chicago in the '70s two to three times a year ... a time when we were young, and we took care of ourselves. I'd like to see that happen again."

Visitors on Friday worked their way through a circular layout on a self-guided tour, starting with a video overviewing the history of the station on a 5-foot-by-15-foot LED cube in the former women's waiting room. They applauded as it promised a bright future for Corktown and the city.

Looking over a long, sculpture timeline of the train station's history in the Grand Hall, attendees shared memories, and noted Detroit-centric facts like Houdini's death in 1926 or that the Davison Freeway was the first urban, below-grade expressway in the United States when it opened in 1942. 

The attention many visitors paid to the timeline was important to Michigan Central CEO Joshua Sirefman.

"It's moving," he said, to see the building start to come alive with the community. "We asked, 'How do we add things and tell the story without taking away from the glory of the building itself?' It's humbling."

'The revitalization of Detroit'

About 60,000 people claimed free tickets for 10 days of public tours of the 1913-built depot that closed in 1988 and has undergone a six-year renovation as a part of a nearly $1 billion investment Ford Motor Co. is making in Corktown to create a 30-acre advanced mobility technology hub . It's the first time the public has had the opportunity to visit the fixed-up station.

Visitors started arriving outside the station more than an hour ahead of the ticketed tours. Some passersby asked if there were day-of passes available.

Martuscelli came with sisters Gloria Nastas of Troy and Patricia Langs of Plymouth. The sisters were there in honor of their late aunt, Gloria Rey, who had worked in the station coordinating social activities. She died in November. Martuscelli was Rey's friend.

"We are here to honor her memory," Nastas said about her aunt.

Nastas recalled how the sisters would visit their aunt, who would sit them at a large desk with trays pulled out so they could color and draw on them.

Langs' husband, Doug, recalled taking the train from the station to Albion College in the 1970s.

"It was always bustling and very active when you'd catch the train on a Sunday or a Friday night. It was a real gem," he said, looking around as people once again bumbled around the depot. "This is the revitalization of Detroit."

The sisters said their aunt told them stories about looking to see who was coming on and off the train.

"She told her boss once she was going down to meet friends," Nastas said. "She was in the paper the next day meeting Piper Laurie and Tab Hunter. He told her, 'I didn't know you were friends with Hollywood celebrities.'"

Patrick Barnard, 59, of Royal Oak always heard stories from his parents about "what a magical place Detroit was." Seeing the renovated depot was like experiencing that.

"I've got chills looking at it," he said after lying on the floor inside the station to take a photo from the perfect angle. "Detroit is so underrated. It's so great to see the city renovating the gems that once were."

Ahead of his tour, Steven Flum, 53, described the change in his neighborhood around the former rail depot. He likened the activity now seen to when he moved to Corktown in 1984 when the team at nearby Tiger Stadium won the World Series and trains still came in and out of the station. Flum, an architect, was involved in plans when the station was considered for a world trade center location.

He described the vacant station as the "biggest urban windchime in the world" with wind billowing through its broken windows and recalled people riding their bikes on the roof. Friday will be his first time in the station since 1989.

"It's a new dawn," Flum said. "I get a kick out of seeing all the young people walking around with their kids and strollers. It's nice to be able to be in a real, true walkable neighborhood.

"I'm just thankful for Bill Ford and his family for not only investing in my neighborhood but the city of Detroit."

Patricia Langs expressed a similar sentiment as she took in the grandeur of the renovated Great Hall: "Bill Ford should be very proud."

Ford, the automaker's executive chairman, envisions the station, with Roosevelt Park sprawling before it and a future greenway connected to its south, will be a hub of activity for the community and an anchor for the innovation campus with new ideas spouting from occupants of its 18-story tower.

"Restoring Michigan Central is much more than a trip down memory lane," reads a giant letter to visitors from Ford displayed in the Grand Hall. "This is a place where we will help create the future and ensure Detroit and the region remains the center of mobility."

It's not quite there yet, though.

Work on the station will continue through the summer to ready space for retail, restaurants, art installations and tower tenants, but the public will be able to access the main floor on Friday evenings and Saturdays from June 21 through August without an appointment.

'Much nicer and cleaner'

For now, tour visitors can experience the LED installation, a 1,000-foot sculptural timeline in the Grand Hall, artificial intelligence-enabled interactives and an archive with photos from the restoration, artifacts, posters and other memorabilia. Additionally, guests can hear the voices of people recounting their memories of the station in a portrait gallery and then contribute their own stories and hopes in the historic reading room, with those recordings being preserved in a time capsule.

A children's zone also includes a poster of Michigan Central to color, a scavenger hunt through the space and a Lego model of the depot.

Photos of what the spaces looked like prior to the renovations help illustrate the dramatic change. Mostly gone are the artificial drop ceilings, broken tile and graffitied walls, though moments of that vacant chapter are preserved in a hallway, a corner or signs of deterioration on a column. Now, hidden arches of the old restaurant have been revealed, the former ticket counter's clock has been recreated and the Grand Hall's Guastavino ceiling tile has been restored. Visitors can download an app for a narrated tour.

Muscat said the station looks "better than I remember," noting that it used to have plaster falling, closed-off areas, graffiti and other signs of age.

"It's beautiful," he said. "It's much nicer and cleaner." 

Dan Kosmowski, 43, of Birmingham, and David Kohrman, 44, of Kalamazoo, called themselves urban explorers in the '90s when they checked out the station. That experience inspired Kohrman to go into preservation work while studying architecture.

"Even then, I thought this place would be torn down," he said. "This only could've happened with the federal government or something like Ford. Thank God it did. I feel like I've stepped back in time into those old black-and-white pictures."

"We never thought we'd see this day come," added Kosmowski.

He went into automotive engineering, but when the recession hit in 2008, he stepped away, tired of working in a "boring glass box" in the suburbs. He's now an attorney.

Part of Bill Ford's goal behind the station is to attract and retain innovative talent.

"If there had been this vision 20 years ago," Kosmowski said, "I don't know that I would have left."

Guests don't have access to the building's tower, which once housed offices for railroad workers. Most of the floors are white-boxed in preparation for tenants. Alphabet Inc.'s Google Code Next program will be its first occupant as early as this month with a lab to teach computer science to high school students.

Within the first year, 1,000 Ford employees working in its Model e electric vehicle division and software services team move into three floors of the building, starting in the third quarter. By 2028, the automaker will have 2,500 employees working in the building and another 2,500 are expected to come from startups, suppliers and other partners on the campus.

Not all of the occupants have been shared. Ford has said it's down to a few finalists for a hotel it hopes will occupy the top floors of the building, pending zoning approval by the city. Nonprofits focused on Detroit youth that will be supported by the Michigan Central Station Children's Endowment Campaign , a project from Bill Ford; his wife, Lisa; and the Children's Foundation, will also have drop-in space.

The festivities kicking off the opening of Michigan Central began Thursday night with people snapping up all 20,000 free tickets to a concert held in front of the station produced by Eminem featuring Diana Ross, Jack White, Big Sean and other acts.

Alexandria Hairston, 27, of West Bloomfield Township, a food and lifestyle influencer on TikTok and Instagram under Luxuriouslyalex, attended the concert and was back Friday to see the station.

"It's good to see everything being built up," she said. "There's a lot of buzz."

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Clock Tower Tours

Discover the hidden secrets of your heritage-listed city hall building with a guided tour of brisbane’s iconic clock tower..

The Clock Tower Tour is a “must do” while in Brisbane!

For many years, City Hall’s Clock Tower elevated the building to Brisbane’s tallest, offering visitors a magnificent 360 degree view of the city around them. Whilst the view has changed significantly over the last 90 years, the time-honoured tradition of “taking a trip up the tower” happily continues at Museum of Brisbane.

The Clock Tower Tour includes a ride in one of Brisbane’s oldest working cage lifts, a look behind Australia’s largest analogue clock faces and time to explore the observation platform that shares a unique perspective of your city. See if you can catch a glimpse of the bells!

Make a booking online today to secure your spot! Spaces are limited and fill up quickly. 

Duration of tour: 15mins Capacity: 7 people Departure location:  This tour begins from Museum of Brisbane reception on Level 3, City Hall. Arrival:  Please arrive 15 minutes before your tour.

Date & Time

How do I make a booking online?

Click the Book Now button and select the number of participants and your dates in the calendar. An eTicket will be sent to your email address along with a confirmation email. If your email confirmation does not appear please check your junk mail folder. If you have to change your booking, please call Museum of Brisbane reception on (07) 3339 0800 or email [email protected] .

How much does it cost to go on a Clock Tower Tour?

Clock Tower Tours are free. Book via the button below or call (07) 3339 0800 to secure your booking.

How do I know that my booking has been confirmed if I book online?

As soon as you register for your preferred tour, you will be emailed a ticket. Please print the ticket or bring your email confirmation to Museum of Brisbane. Show your ticket to the tour guide at the start of your tour. If your email confirmation does not appear please check your junk mail folder.

The tour time I want to take is not listed in the drop down box. What does this mean?

When a tour is sold out, it will not appear in the drop down list. Please go back to the calendar and select a different tour time or date.

Is the Clock Tower Tour air conditioned?

The Clock Tower lift and tower are not air conditioned, but there are fans inside the lift and at level 10 of the tower. Temperatures can be very high during summer and tours may be cancelled if the temperature reaches above 36°C or if the tour guide deems it unsafe. Care should be taken to ensure you are adequately hydrated ahead of this 15-minute tour. Emergency water is available if needed.

Is the Clock Tower Tour wheelchair accessible?

Unfortunately the Clock Tower Tour is not wheelchair accessible. Wheelchair access is available throughout Museum of Brisbane and City Hall.

Are there any mobility considerations?

The Clock Tower Tour includes 36 steps.

In the unlikely event of an emergency or mechanical fault preventing operation of the lift, patrons will be required to navigate 216 steps to exit the tower.

For this reason, people with physical disability, height-related disability (such as vertigo), heart conditions, injuries, severe asthma or pregnancy should be mindful when booking a tour.

Is the Clock Tower Tour accessible with mobility aids?

Please note, this tour is not accessible for visitors with mobility aids. Mobility aid access is available throughout Museum of Brisbane and City Hall.

Can Assistance Animals join a Clock Tower Tour?

Assistance Animals are welcome on the Clock Tower Tour. Please book a ticket for yourself and your Assistance Animal.

Where do we meet on the day of our tour?

Meet at Museum of Brisbane on Level 3 of Brisbane City Hall.

How long do the tours go for?

The Clock Tower Tour runs for approximately 15 minutes.

Can I eat on the tour?

Food and drink is prohibited on Clock Tower Tours and inside Museum of Brisbane.

Can I bring my backpack or bag on the Clock Tower Tour?

Backpacks, large bags and helmets are prohibited on Clock Tower Tours. We invite you to cloak your bags in the lockers available on Level 3, City Hall as you enter the Museum.

How many people are on each tour?

There are up to seven places available on each tour.

Who leads the tours?

A professional Museum of Brisbane Visitor Experience Officer conducts Clock Tower Tours. Our staff have in-depth knowledge and offer wonderful insights about the Clock Tower and Brisbane history.

Can I take photos on the tour?

Yes, photos are permitted. However we request you turn your flash off and seek permission from your tour guide and fellow tour participants before photographing them.

Does the tour include City Hall?

No, the Clock Tower Tours are separate to Brisbane City Hall Tours , which are also free and may be booked online.

I had a great time, can I leave a review?

We would love for you to share your reviews. Please feel free to share your experience via Facebook , Instagram , TikTok or Threads  or email us at [email protected] .

My question hasn't been answered. Who can I speak to about Clock Tower Tours?

Please call Museum of Brisbane’s Visitor Experience Team on (07) 3339 0800 or email [email protected] .

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Mitch Albom: Michigan Central Station celebrates not just Detroit's future, but its present

“The past is a bucket of ashes.”

— Carl Sandburg

Sandburg was right. The past is ashes. And the first thing you should know about Detroit’s newly famous train station is that, much like our city itself, it has now risen from the ashes twice.

A fire claimed the city’s previous train depot in 1913 and rushed a new building in Corktown into immediate service — one day after Christmas. It wasn’t finished, but it didn’t matter. Anyone coming through the doors saw its promise.

Today, 111 years later, history is repeating itself. Now dubbed the Michigan Central Station, the once magnificent Beaux Arts building has risen from the ashes again, this time the ashes of urban decay, under which it sat in shadowed abandonment for 35 ugly years.

And what mattered last century is what matters in this one.

Promise. Hope. A future of the possible.

PHOEBE WALL HOWARD: Childhood memories of Detroit explain emotion of Michigan Central Station opening

Here in the Motor City, we have been making a big fuss over the station’s reopening — special tours, a massive concert, etc . And perhaps the outside world is wondering why we bother. It’s just a train station, right?

Not to us. Michigan Central is more than a building. It’s more than a new beginning. It’s the end of something.

It’s the end of rot as a symbol of Detroit. The end of decay as some kind of Detroit sport. The end of headlines like the New York Times ran in 2012:

“ How Detroit Became the World Capital of Staring at Abandoned Buildings .”

Sorry, great Gray Lady. You want poverty porn, you’ll have to go someplace else.

We’re about the future now.

Decades in the making

I recently took a tour through the Michigan Central renovation with the project’s CEO, Josh Sirefman . As we walked through the former lobby, the reading rooms, the elegant parlors and the various magnificent spaces of this 15-story tower and adjacent buildings, covering 30 acres of a future tech and innovation hub, he gave witness to the transformation this project represents.

“It’s been a privilege to help this come together,” he said.

Sirefman himself is a microcosm of Detroit’s full circle. He came here as a young man to get a master's at the University of Michigan. While enrolled, he moved into Detroit, about six blocks from the train station. This was in the mid-1990s.

“It was a lot different then,” he understated. “But I fell in love with Detroit, and kind of always hoped for an opportunity to be able to be involved again.”

He left for New York and was gone for decades. Still, Detroit stayed with him, the way it stays with many people who come to know it. So when the chance to helm the renovation arose, under the new ownership of the Ford Motor Co., Sirefman jumped at it.

Since then, he has helped spearhead Ford’s nearly $1 billion effort. It’s taken six years, thousands of workers, and everything from an original clock being dropped off anonymously to 3D laser printers re-creating rams heads above doorways. But the results are nothing shy of stunning.

A WORK OF ART: Michigan Central Station still has decades-old graffiti: Why Ford decided to keep it

You can’t fit into words what the MCS now represents. It’s a blend of past and future so bright it appears seamless.

Here, refurbished tiles and copper skylights spill into modern art displays and a virtual mini-museum of historic Detroit posters. Here, the Doric columns and the marble tiles of the early 20th century surround an undulating 21st century history display. Original and freshly created architecture dance together under a 29,000-tile ceiling. In adjacent buildings, modern tech businesses bustle under the arches and exposed rafters of bygone days.

This is not just a train station. Hardly. In fact, trains have little to do with it. Sure, someday in the not-too-distant future, a train may begin to stop here. But for now, this project is about rebirthing an entire neighborhood and anchoring a second Detroit downtown, not only the main terminal, but with the beautifully redone Book Depository building , which already houses dozens of budding startups, shared office space and food options.

Not to mention the hotel that is coming , the massive parks, the additional structures tabbed for tech and innovation, the outdoor leisure options and the parking.

The fabulous future. Not the rot of the past.

Take your ruin porn obsession elsewhere

I remember the year I went to the Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. Reporters had heard of impoverished areas in the city that the government was hoping to shield from the press. One day, I got into a taxi and, through a translator, asked the driver to see “one of the really poor neighborhoods.”

He hesitated. He looked upset. Finally, he turned to the translator and said, “Why does he want to see the worst of my city? He is a guest here. Let me show him the best.”

For years, many of us felt that way when people came to visit Detroit. Our Poverty Porn, or Ruin Porn, had somehow become a major attraction, often the first thing outsiders wanted to see. The Packard Plant. The train station. The rows of abandoned homes.

Eight years ago, Britain’s newspaper, “The Guardian,” did a story about those gawkers , and how they were advancing nothing and helping no one.

“The ruins,” it wrote, “are gazed upon for amusement, gratification and pleasure.”

Well, guess what, decay junkies? We’re no longer here for your debris obsession. We are not interested in putting our ugly past on display.

Instead, come look at our growth. Come see a future we’re proud of, not a past we can’t help.

The Michigan Central Station, by itself, isn’t a cure-all. But it’s part. It isn’t a neighborhood. But it’s anchoring one. It isn’t everything to everybody. But it’s a whole lot to a whole lot of people. And anyone who witnesses its impressive span will see what we mean.

There’s a small section of the train station’s reconstruction that deliberately left a rotting staircase and a graffiti wall. It is chained off, and clearly marked as a historic relic. But it’s there: as a reminder of what was, and an appreciation of what is. If we want to be reminded of the bad old days, we’ll set aside a reminder. But that’s our prerogative. It’s no longer the reason for people to come to town.

Carl Sandburg’s full quote is as follows: “The past is a bucket of ashes, so live not in your yesterdays, nor just for tomorrow, but in the here and now.”

Pretty good advice, for life, or for a symbol of rebirth in the form of a train station. And like a locomotive pulling to a steaming stop, it’s no longer coming, folks. It’s here.

All aboard.

Contact Mitch Albom:  [email protected] . Check out the latest updates with his charities, books and events at  MitchAlbom.com . Follow him  @mitchalbom .

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Officer Mewmew Medal locations in Zenless Zone Zero

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Officer Mewmew tasks you will helping out the local community by completing odd jobs in Zenless Zone Zero .

Mewmew’s errands offer valuable rewards like Polychromes , W-Engine Power Supplies, Official Investigator Logs and Dennies, and are a smart way to fill up your resource purse before returning to the danger of the Hollows.

There are a total of 96 Mewmew Medals that can be earned at launch in Zenless Zone Zero . The criteria necessary to complete them include fixing Bangboos, finding Mini Cargo Trucks, obtaining commemorative H.I.A. coins, and completing full-blown side-story missions.

Below, we explain how to earn Officer Mewmew Medals that we’ve found so far in Zenless Zone Zero . We’ll keep updating our list as we collect them all, so keep checking in for updates as you play.

Where to find Mewmew Medals in Zenless Zone Zero

The NPCs you can interact with in Zenless Zone Zero have an icon bubble above their head. Once you’ve interacted with an NPC that gives you a quest, you can access and track missions using the schedule submenu.

Doing this will summon a grey dot onscreen pointing to where to go. Once you arrive at the next interactable object in the quest, the icon bubble above the NPC or object will be a blue star.

Completing missions will cycle the day, though you can reset the time by resting in the bed located upstairs inside the video shop.

Mewmew Medal locations in Sixth Street Page 1

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For more Zenless Zone Zero guides , see our beginner’s tips or our “Speedy Chaser” and “Let’s Go, Bro!” exploration walkthroughs.

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