feeling the vibe on High Street
High Street is more pedestrian walkway than automobile thoroughfare. The street does accommodate one-way car traffic, partly as a short-cut to avoid Queen Street but mostly as a delivery route for the commercial establishments that line the street.
In the past year, I have been part of an exciting council discussion about the street’s redevelopment as a pedestrian zone that would limit vehicular traffic to the bookend ends of the day, or perhaps more modestly close the street to car traffic from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily.
Those plans could accentuate the street’s eclectic vibe as a cultural hub for fashion, books and food. Furthermore, the street is anchored by Freyberg Place and the Ellen Melville Centre, representing importance public gathering places within the city centre.
Today’s photograph stretches the definition of the street’s idiosyncrasy. I was exiting a shop, having spent considerable time browsing the aisles in one of the street’s brilliant book stores, when I saw the rather imposing figure of a very tall man sporting a very loud suit. I was pleased that I had left my camera on its tether around my neck while inside the book shop, and I took the photograph in haste from waist level without the aid of the viewfinder, hoping that I had angled the lens to capture my subject as he approached me at a clipped pace.