Cockatoo Island

Today my friend Grace and I wanted to do something fun and spontaneous, so we went into the city together but had no real plans after that.  We got off the bus and went to the ferry wharfs.  After a little while we settled on the place that sounded the best: Cockatoo Island.  We were just in time for the boat but as we neared the island, we started to question whether it had been a good idea to just pick up and go somewhere.  Despite the exotic sounding name, Cockatoo Island is actually an abandoned prison work camp and shipyard from World War II.  It was an eerie place since we were almost the only people there, (even though it claims to be a World Heritage Site) and the self-guided tour took us on a path through rusted warehouses that echoed the sounds of their bustling past.  The island had been used by the navy to repair US, British and Australian ships, submarines, and even aircrafts during WWII, but has been empty since its end.  We learned a lot about the living conditions of the prisoners, the process of ship building and the war history of Australia as we walked around.  Apparently it is now a popular campsite..I guess since it's so quiet yet close to the city, but I don't think I would want to be there at night.  However, during our sunny afternoon stroll, we managed to find the artistic value of this somewhat forgotten place.

Entrance gate to the island; where we first realized that this was not what we were expecting

Inside one of the shipbuilding warehouses

Inside the military guardhouse, the first building on the island;
looking out at one of 50 cranes that were abandoned here

An old warehouse building with the kind of character that only rusted corrugated iron can give

View from the plateau of the old dockyard and weapons workshop; Sydney skyline in the background