Places you visited as a child

I know there was at least one death there in the late 70's. According to newspaper reports a 12year old was working there during school holidays in May 1979 and was mauled by a lion. I guess that would have hastened the closure.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1301&dat=19790515&id=c_1jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ieYDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5403,5095683

 

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1301&dat=19790122&id=iP9jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=UOcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4333,6080089

 

 

Both in 1979 the park did not close untill 1991

 

 

Seagull Paddock in Geelong with the huge slides, I think it was near the Ford factory.


What a name for an adventure playground.

 

LOL! I'm sure thats what it was called, correct me if I'm wrong.

 

There's an "Adventure park" or something just near Ocean Grove. Costs a motza

Does anyone remember Leisure land? Gunbuya park had toboggans...

Legit knew the guy* who owned it in Uni.

 

 

*For taxation purposes. His dad was worth SQUILLIONS and occasionally let him drive the LAMBOR-FUCKEN-GHINI around.

 

 

had somebody at work mention "the swagman" which from what i am told sounds like Smorgys all you can eat.

There used to be a few of those types of things in the Dandenongs...one or two of them burnt down IIRC. One that rings a bell is The Cuckoo. I think its owner Willy Koeppen did a Lord Lucan. I remember going to one of them when I worked at AMP, which was mid-70s.

 

The Cuckoo is still operational i believe. Open for over 50+ years i think it was saying online.

 

Went there a ZILLION times with my grandfolks. Went there about 4 years ago, hasn't changed. Kitsch.

 

 

 

had somebody at work mention "the swagman" which from what i am told sounds like Smorgys all you can eat.

There used to be a few of those types of things in the Dandenongs...one or two of them burnt down IIRC. One that rings a bell is The Cuckoo. I think its owner Willy Koeppen did a Lord Lucan. I remember going to one of them when I worked at AMP, which was mid-70s.

 

The Cuckoo is still operational i believe. Open for over 50+ years i think it was saying online.

 

Went there a ZILLION times with my grandfolks. Went there about 4 years ago, hasn't changed. Kitsch.

 

THere's a market for familiarity, nostalgia, comfort food and kitsch.

The cuckoo is still awesome.

Interesting mention of the swagman. The big one was in FTG, but it mysteriously burnt down. Then it became Stylus nightclub, which mysteriously burnt down. Then it reopened as diamonds nightclub for a few months, which mysteriously burnt down.

Now its an Aldi, which won’t burn down.

AMAZON ADVENTURE LAND

 

"more fun than a bunch of monkeys!"

If wobbies world sucked any harder, you’d have called it Bryce Gibbs.

And I think the ‘iconic’ helicopter is on some blokes farm on dandy Frankton road.

The Big Pineapple

 

The Big Cow  - where there was internal see-through glass beehive inside the restaurant. Due to being overly hyperactive as a kid I pulled the clear plastic hose, that served as the conduit for the bees to the outside world , out of the hive thus releasing bees all around the restaurant. I got stung in the eye, several other patrons also got stung and they had to evacuate and close the restaurant., scored free ice-cream though.

I dont think there is anymore smorgys thou.....Lingy took over Geelongs and bundoora burnt down...What ever happened to Sizzler?

Sizzler is still a thing in Queensland. Yummy fried bread.
Anyone remember Ollie's Trolleys? I worked in one when I was young (til I got sacked).
My memory might be playing tricks on me, but I'm sure that when I was very young we went to an actual Deer Park at Deer Park.
Edit: also, I don't know where it was, but while traveling we went to this indoor 'be a kid again' place, with stone gutters two foot tall and oversized chairs and tables and whatnot.

I dont think there is anymore smorgys thou.....Lingy took over Geelongs and bundoora burnt down...What ever happened to Sizzler?

Sizzler is still a thing in Queensland. Yummy fried bread.
Anyone remember Ollie's Trolleys? I worked in one when I was young (til I got sacked).
My memory might be playing tricks on me, but I'm sure that when I was very young we went to an actual Deer Park at Deer Park.

Ollie's trolleys was awesome... From memory.

I dont think there is anymore smorgys thou.....Lingy took over Geelongs and bundoora burnt down...What ever happened to Sizzler?

I worked at Sizzler in Geelong when I was at high school.  The company that owend it when belly-up one weekend and they all closed.  Same company owned the eat-in Pizza Hut restaurants, which is why PH is now those little take-away stores rather than the eat-in type. The Sizzlers in Queensland are owned by a different company which is why they're still around.  I had left by the time the Vic ones closed, but I had mates who turned up for their shift on a Monday morning to find a hand-written sign saying "Sizzler has gone out of business and won't be re-opening. Sorry about your jobs." The manager was basically told to turn off the lights and lock the door when he left on the Sunday night.  My mates decided on a severance package for themselves, so they got in the back door (we all knew how and there was no security system) and helped themselves to all the vacuum-sealed bags of steaks, chicken, fish, chips, etc in the freezers (boxes and boxes of them still frozen), and cooking equipment. Crazy.

 

I can confirm Seagull Paddock was the place with the giant slides near the Ford factory. There was talk of building a giant water park with a wave pool there but it never eventuated.

 

I remember school trips to Sovereign Hill and Kryall Castle as a kid. And the giant earthworm down Gippsland way.

Torture Camber at Kryal Castle. A must for any sick little preteen boy.

Got to watch a guy get hanged as well.  I doubt they still do that for school groups nowadays.

I never went to kryal castle as a kid, but the raves there were legendary.

The torture chamber seemed scary enough without all the euphoric stimulants.

Also, for any SA people out there, I remember visiting a giant rocking horse as a kid? I think it was SA

Apparently there was 2 "lion safari parks" one was in rockbank (which you can still see the toilet blocks with the writting on it) and the other was in bacchus marsh.


A lot of wild animals are still here!
Friday night about 6 at the Royal.

As a kid I have been to Monash Playground, it was about the best thing in south Australia.  It was an awesome park with massive slides and heaps of cool rides (well cooler than any rides I had been on) AND it was free to use.

 

I have also been to Orange World, the Big Banana, the Pet Porpoise Pool, the (iconic) dog on the tuckerbox, and a dinosaur park near shitney, but I am not sure where exactly, but I think it was called Paradise Gardens.

 

 

I dont think there is anymore smorgys thou.....Lingy took over Geelongs and bundoora burnt down...What ever happened to Sizzler?

Sizzler is still a thing in Queensland. Yummy fried bread.
Anyone remember Ollie's Trolleys? I worked in one when I was young (til I got sacked).
My memory might be playing tricks on me, but I'm sure that when I was very young we went to an actual Deer Park at Deer Park.

Ollie's trolleys was awesome... From memory.

 

Yeah we had one in Ballarat, a couple of old trams incorporated into a building. I was about 9 or 10. Awesome feed.

I never went to kryal castle as a kid, but the raves there were legendary.
The torture chamber seemed scary enough without all the euphoric stimulants.
Also, for any SA people out there, I remember visiting a giant rocking horse as a kid? I think it was SA

That was near Murray Bridge I think - Puzzle Park I reckon it was called.

 

Also one of the helicopters from Wobbies World is opposite the Cemetery on Frankston Dandy road, in some guys front yard, but its not one of the little ones from the 'mono rail'.