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Why Brisbane Expo 1988 Means So Much to Me

Janet Camilleri · 11/12/2019 ·

It’s hard to believe that over 30 years have passed since Brisbane Expo 1988.

You see, Expo 88 is very special to me and my Bear, as it was an integral part of our courtship … which began 32 years ago today (11 December 1987)!

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Brisbane Expo 1988 (now the South Bank Parklands) is very dear to our hearts

When season passes first became a “thing” – they were heavily discounted if you bought them early – I didn’t bother getting one, because I was:

  • a) broke;
  • and b) didn’t really have anybody to go with.

But then the hubster and I started going out at the end of 1987, and it turned out that he had a season pass. By that stage I was a little more financial, so I ended up getting one too, and we used to hang out there whenever we could.

Brisbane Expo 1988 Season Pass
My Expo 88 Season pass – no comments on the rocking 80’s hairstyle thanks …

Expo 88 was the ideal meeting place: in those days we lived on opposite sides of BrisbaneΒ (he was at Thornlands, I was at Chermside), and it was somewhere fun to go on dates that was central for both of us (and just across the river from where we worked). There was so much to see and do, that even over a six month period we didn’t see it all.

Brisbane Expo 1988 passport cover

You could buy a souvenir “passport” and get it stamped by the exhibits (“pavilions”) you visited. I guess that was the 1988 equivalent of taking “selfies” wherever you went?!

expo 88 passport
Just a few stamps in my Brisbane Expo 1988 passport πŸ˜‰

Sometimes you could walk straight into a pavilion, other times you had to wait in a queue for an hour or more. I know there was one pavilion that was the crowd favourite, and always had a massive line-up – however we never bothered. For the life of me I can’t remember which one it was now!

Malaysian pavilion Expo 88
Crowds in front of the Malaysian Pavilion

Here are some of my other random memories from Brisbane Expo 1988:

  • It was open from 10am – 10pm, 7 days a week.
  • At the main entrance, a robot welcomed you by saying “Welcome to Expo 88” in a series of languages.
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Sign by Australian Artist and 80’s icon, Ken Done
  • A ride on the monorail (pictured below) was a great way to get a bird’s eye view of the Expo site.

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  • Everywhere you looked, there were amazing sculptures, as well as mime artists, stilt walkers and other street performers. So even while waiting in one of the inevitable queues, you were entertained.
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Checking out the “wildlife” with my sister
  • There was a stall that sold hot roasted peanuts in all different flavours – chilli, satay, savoury, sweet – needless to say we visited it regularly! I think it was located near the Primary Industries Pavilion.
Meeting a scarecrow at Expo 88
Our favourite peanut stall was near this scarecrow – those cups the boys are holding might even have come from there!
  • And the best way to get from the city centre across to the Expo site? A pedicab ride!
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Big smiles from my sister and her husband as they arrive at Expo in a pedicab
  • One of the most popular attractions, The Munich Festhaus (German beer hall), was also chicken dance central πŸ˜‰ .
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Pretty sure this pic was taken in the Ford Pavilion and that I wasn’t the one that took it LOL
  • At the Aquacade, the diving show – which also featured synchronised swimming – was extremely popular.
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Expo 88 by night
  • The official mascot of Expo 88 was a platypus called Expo Oz.

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  • And the main thoroughfare of Expo 88 hosted a street parade, each day and night.
Seems I've always loved chocolate - at the Cadbury Pavilion
Seems I’ve always loved chocolate – at the Cadbury Pavilion
  • One of the buildings was sold after the Expo and relocated to Cleveland, and today houses a ballet school, a church, and a couple of other businesses – I often pass it on my morning walk (see below).

expo building cleveland

Expo 88 quickly became the pulsing heart of Brisbane, and I think it’s fair to say that when it closed it left more than a few residents in a deep depression.

stepping stones through the fountain
Walking on water! Not quite … there were stepping stones through the fountain

However the legacy lingers on – you can still spot some of the sculptures around the city, and the Nepalese Pagoda is still a feature at South Bank.

I couldn’t tell you where or when any other World Expos have been held since then. It doesn’t really matter because I don’t think any of them could top Brisbane Expo 1988!

What is your standout memory of Expo 88?!

Filed Under: Memories

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Julia says

    30/04/2018 at 9:37 am

    This looks awesome. I had no idea it went on for so long or that it was at Southbank. I always assumed it was a festival like the Ekka but this looks a million times better. Loving the hair also. You can rock it! πŸ™‚

    • Janet Camilleri says

      01/05/2018 at 10:40 am

      It was a fabulous event – I honestly can’t think of anything today which comes even close.

  2. Snoskred says

    30/04/2018 at 10:13 am

    I’m sorry I have to comment on the hairstyle because when I went to Expo88, my hair was almost identical to yours, only bright red. πŸ™‚

    I had a jumper I bought there, it was white with coloured squares on it, and I wore that thing for several years afterwards.

    I loved the rollercoaster that went forwards and then backwards, and the one that was inside in the dark. πŸ˜‰

    • Janet Camilleri says

      01/05/2018 at 10:40 am

      I’ll forgive you for mentioning the hair, seeing as you committed similar hair crimes πŸ˜‰ . I never went in the theme park section of Expo 88, it wasn’t included in the Season pass. What a shame!

  3. Bill Cotter says

    03/05/2018 at 10:11 am

    Great memories! Loved them and the photos.

    • Janet Camilleri says

      04/05/2018 at 3:18 pm

      Thanks Bill! Did you happen to get along to Expo 88 at all?

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Janet Camilleri is an Australian bloggerHi - I'm Janet Camilleri aka the Middle Aged Mama; crazy cat lady, award-winning business woman, and mother of two grown children. I might be a middle aged woman, but that doesn't mean I've lost all interest in looking stylish! I love chocolate, chick lit, cruising holidays and the husbear - and not necessarily in that order wink. I live in Brisbane, Australia, and I'm learning how to fashion a new life now that we have an empty nest - did somebody say "travel"?!

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