Santa’s Ship Sails In To Port Phillip Bay – 22 Days Early
ANORAK has been a fan of the news sense shown at The Age in Melbourne for years ‘n’ years and there’s another cracking way to treat a story today. It is the use of the photo, credited to Angela Wylie, of one of this year’s last container ships arriving in Port Phillip, Melbourne.
The ship is packed to the decking – and a lot higher – with Santa’s gifts for the nation which celebrates Christmas downing a few stubbies and a prawn barbie on the beach.
This ship had not made the run from Lapland; it picked up from surrogate elf workshops in Shanghai, Ningbo, on China’s east coast, Hong Kong and Taiwan, before heading across the Pacific Ocean to the dangerous Tide Race entrance to Port Phillip Bay. It is known as the Rip and helped give Strine the expression ‘Ripper’.
The yarn’s a classic way to treat a good picture and nice to see a good Shipping News story can still make the Front Page. There was a time when every coastal town newspaper had a Shipping Reporter.
Heigh Ho. (sigh etc.)
PS: There was a serious fear Australia would go without many of the ordered Christmas presents because the Thai floods had shut-down so many toy factories in Bangkok. Ships were diverted to other dry elf havens.
By the bye – The Rip is not a fun place to be at the wrong time.
Posted: 3rd, December 2011 | In: Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
