Dear AIR-list members, While reading the program for AoIR 06, I was thinking about other international conferences that I've attended (the Melbourne_DAC03 Conference comes readily to mind) where the conference website or the program booklet had a pool of knowledge about the local area so that visitors to the host city could make the most of their time; where to find good food, maybe some good value restaurants, or maybe some good book stores, or music stores, or places for other shopping adventures or [insert your own cultural interest].

From the AIR-List so far I get a sense that everyone is doing their own independent research via the web, for hotels and so. Why not pool the knowledge from the brains on the list who are from Brisbane or have lived there for a while? What are the best places to get a good meal for a reasonable price? And so on. I'm sure there are cool, quirky little places to grab a bite to eat that you won't find via the internet!

I'm not sure how much traffic and usage the AoIR.org wiki gets.. would that be the place for this kind of thing, as per a previous message? I saw some general information there about the region. I originally thought about those earlier posts calling for extra-curriculum activities that some of the conference-goers might be interested in attending. I'll get the ball rolling with some things that I am pretty sure I will go along to, that some of you might like to attend, too. It's not a definative list, so if you know of other things that are on.. then de-lurk and post them as well! :) The first event I wanted to mention is the "syncretism" event (featuring Richard Chartier, and others) on Thursday the 28th of September @ the Judith Wright Centre in Fortitude Valley (not far from the city centre, about 10minutes by bus or taxi). Syncretism costs $12 at the door ($10 booking in advance), doors open at 7:30pm for an 8pm start. This might be of interest to those of you with a technological bent, or those of you who might be into unusual music and sound performance. Have a look here for some more information: http://www2.judithwrightcentre.com.au/02_whats_on/details.asp?e_id=408 For something more normal-sounding, there are many excellent local original bands playing around town in the evenings of each of the days that AoIR06 is on.There are a few street press magazines in Brisbane, of which two of the larger ones are online at: * Rave - http://www.ravemagazine.com.au/ * Timeoff - http://www.timeoff.com.au/ You can also find the dead-tree versions around the city in selected music retailers. (that's a whole other kettle of fish). Check out the Gig Guide listings at those websites, and if it makes no sense to you, or you want some help finding something to suit your own interests, feel free to zap me an email... Just a word of warning for those staying in the Hilton: The public bar downstairs at the Hilton called "Her Majesty's Basement" (sometimes shortened to "the basement") has live bands regularly; however it must be said that on Wednesday nights, and some weekend nights are often heavy metal, hardcore or punk bands, and there's plenty of the black t-shirt brigade hanging out there. So unless that's your thing...... there's your warning. :) Lastly, I recommend taking a trip up to the Powerhouse in New Farm (a nice suburb that's a short 15 minute bus/taxi ride from the city) which has a lot of really cool things going on, from theatre to comedy to jazz to other performance stuff.. art shows.. lots of diverse cultural events. (trivia buffs: I saw The Residents play there on their 2005 tour). more info: http://www.brisbanepowerhouse.com.au/ Of note: at the Powerhouse on Saturday evening - 30th of September- is the next in the Silhouette Series, this one inspired by the music of Björk Gudmundsdóttir featuring local Brisbane electronic music artists. Cost: $10 - 8:00:PM (in the Visy Theatre). Anyway I'll end this here because this email is getting really long --- I don't even have any previous email history at the bottom either! :0 ;) Thanks for your time, I look forward to meeting those of you who come down for the conference. :D regards, - adam muir PhD Candidate in Internetwork Ecology. School of Arts, Griffith University. http://amuir.edublogs.org/ http://www.griffith.edu.au/school/art/ http://www.griffith.edu.au/centre/cpci/