A week in Sheffield

I really enjoyed last week. We visited lots of attractions.  On the first day we had free time to walk around and I tried to find a supermarket to buy some stuff. I remember clearly the first time I walked on the streets of Sheffield; I thought the roads were very narrow. And when I crossed the intersection I waited for a long time. I didn’t know that there is no sound when the traffic lights changed to green. I was so stupid at that time. Also, I found that the pedestrians of Sheffield always crossed the intersection without a green light. I saw lots of old residential buildings on both sides of road. They all looked like so old and mouldy. It is so different compared to the residential areas of Australia.

Later, I walked to Sheffield's CBD where there were large numbers of heritage buildings. They looked like pretty old as well. Some of the buildings’ surfaces looked like they were mouldy or burned. I was really confused with this on the first day. But right now I think one of reasons is the rainy weather. Everyday was raining in Sheffield. Actually, I am really enjoying the rainy weather right now. It is interesting. In the afternoon, we paid a short visit to Sheffield Hallam University.

During the last four days, we undertook lots of interesting lectures and visits. Therefore I wish to share some lovely pictures with you.

Firstly, I want to show some pictures of water features of Sheffield. All of them are amazing.

 

Picture 1, 2 and 3 are my favourite areas of Sheffield's CBD. The water features really match with the buildings and are designed perfectly in my opinion. Every time I walked through this area, I spent a few minutes to enjoy this view. I think this area has a good connection between the railway station to the CBD. Actually the CBD of Sheffield is a highly walkable town centre. And it is not boring, even though you have to walk for a long time;  some interesting views will appear in front of you. I am really enjoying walking around Sheffield’s CBD.

 

 



Steel, Stone, Water and Hill



This picture combines four elements, which are mentioned above. The railway station of Sheffield is also very nice.



 

 

              

These three pictures are all from Chatsworth. I don’t think I can find a word to describe this area. It is so amazing, so wonderful. Also there are lots of water features. From the house,  you can see that class division is obvious. Wealthy people are really rich and the poor are really poor. Wealthy people have power and money, but the poor people have nothing.   
 

Secondly, I would like to share some pictures of buildings.

 

Park Hill is a successful example of redeveloped abandoned buildings. Nowadays Park Hill has become a very valued apartment complex. It means that people can spend less money but enjoy high quality community life. In recent years Park Hill has been designed by good landscapers and features and good use of daylight, openings, arts and a bit of romance. Also it is closed to transportation and the CBD of Sheffield. It is a very convenient location for daily life. Therefore it is a good choice for those who want to pay less but enjoy high quality community life. 

 

 

These three pictures are located around the wealthy area of Sheffield. The houses of this area have beautiful gardens with nicely maintained front yards. Obviously residents spend lots of time and money to maintain their gardens.

 

 

 

Chatsworth is one of favourite parts. Not only the huge and luxurious building but also the wonderful landscaping of the grounds. Everything looks wonderful and powerful.

 

 

 

Ghost tour

One more thing I want to share is that some buildings have horrific stories. I joined a ghost tour last week with my group’s student. That is really interesting. I point out some buildings, which are mentioned on the ghost tour, so you can have a look, maybe next time you walk through these area you can feel something.

 

 

 

Last thing I want to mention are the streets of Sheffield. They are not only very narrow but also abrupt. It is really tiring walking on these kinds of streets. But I think this is an important character of Sheffield.

 

 

 

- Fang Fang Cao (Bachelor of Urban, Rural and Environmental Planning)