Adventure- Footscray

Footscray is somewhat of a misunderstood place. People who have never been there believe it to be some fantastic distance from the rest of Melbourne that they bother to visit and/or that it is some sort of terrifying ghetto where you will be simultaneously offered hard drugs, mugged and murdered. In fact, Footscray is only about six kilometers from the city centre by road (about the same distance as Northcote) and, in the dozen or so times I’ve been there in the past few years, I have never been offered so much as a joint. Disappointing, no?

The bad reputation has some element of truth to it; Footscray suffers from some social problems, such as alcoholism, that are typical to areas with lower socio-economic statuses. However, despite the fact that you may find yourself waiting at the train station next to a bloke who had had more stubbies that afternoon than he has teeth, the central retail/market area, as well as other places worth visiting (such as the area down by the Maribyrnong River), are sufficiently safe and non-threatening. In any case, the social profile of the area should change dramatically as gentrification makes its way West (whether this is a good thing or a bad thing or a complex social grey area is up to your perspective on the matter).