Reporter Hamish McNeilly goes on the beat with police in the Octagon on Saturday night, and discovers a city with a Jekyll and Hyde character.
Metres from the Dunedin Central Police Station, a car drives past and a passenger in it, holding a can of RTD, gives us the finger.
I'm not certain whether it is directed at me or the man I'm walking with, Sergeant Ian Paulin.
The alcohol harm prevention officer, who is dressed in a high visibility jacket, shrugs the matter off as he inspects a bar.
It's 10.30pm on a Saturday night and the night club is empty as staff prepare for a foam party.
Sgt Paulin says police are anticipating a busy night following the Highlanders v Crusaders game, a game which he just finished policing, and, of course, the end of Orientation Week celebrations.
We can hear the noise of the Octagon bars as we turn the corner into Stuart St, and Sgt Paulin has spotted a possible breach of the liquor ban.
A couple of overseas tourists are drinking a stockpile of beers just metres away from licensed premises.
Sgt Paulin talks to them to ascertain that they didn't know about the liquor ban, and makes them tip their open drinks into the gutter, before telling them to recycle their drinking vessels.
Another man walks past drinking from a can of RTD and sees Sgt Paulin talking to the tourists. He asks: ''Is this a liquor ban area?''
As I nod in the affirmative, he walks over to the gutter and pours out his drink without breaking his stride.
As the Octagon starts to fill up, I count 22 people wearing a Crusaders jersey versus 26 wearing a Highlanders jersey.
At least we seem to have won that one.
Sgt Paulin says when big rugby games are played - such as test matches and local derbies - ''people come from out of town and make a bit of day of it''.
Every Friday and Saturday night police operate a beat patrol in the Octagon, and soon we spot another pair of officers walking around the bars.
''We are there as a calming influence on the crowd,'' he has told me before leaving the police station.
And he's right.
The shift in behaviour when people see a police officer, or their parked patrol car, is quite marked.
Their presence also makes them a target for a new form of request - to help take selfies.
''We get asked for a lot of selfies. Mainly from women.''
The psychology of wearing high visibility clothing, alongside ambulance and security staff ''makes people think there is a guardianship''.
He tells me that if an incident does occur, he has officers to call while security staff at nearby bars also help.
On his belt he has a baton and can of pepper spray, both of which he has never used in his 26 year career.
''When you get a bit older and a bit wiser you tend to resolve things by using words.''
I'm just glad I bit my lip when the guy gave us the finger.
Sgt Paulin also shares some of his tips, such as how to spot someone underage - ''they don't make eye contact''.
I point to a growing taxi queue and he says limited taxi numbers can be a concern, particularly for patrons refused entry to a bar because of their intoxication.
On very busy night, a van is used to ''fill the void and take the intoxicated people - the sort of people that taxis don't want and could tie our resources up''.
He acknowledges that people preload before they go out but, in his opinion, one way to reduce alcohol harm is to reduce the opening hours of bars with earlier closing times, 3am instead of 4am.
Soon, many young people will leave their student flats and begin the walk along George St to the Octagon. Already, he has received reports of police being called to a large street party in Hyde St.
He quickly visits one Stuart St bar, which has only a 50 person capacity, to do a head count and says some duty managers have no idea of their venue's capacity.
''You just can't cram people into a place that is jam packed.''
We turn on to Moray Pl and see a young woman holding a can of alcohol and talking loudly to some friends. Sgt Paulin greets her and informs her she is drinking in a liquor ban area.
''They should put signs up ... and by the way you have a nice handshake,'' she replies, as another glass bottle goes into the recycling.
He says in cases such as this police can warn the offender, get them to dispose of the alcohol, confiscate it (it is later destroyed), issue them with a $250 ticket, or even lock them up.
Bars are now filling up, with long lines out the front, and when looking up George St I can see a large number of people heading for the Octagon.
''It is how Friday night shopping looked years ago,'' he says in reference to the mass of humanity walking towards us, who ''go straight to the Octagon and begin to bar hop''.
As I say goodbye to Sgt Paulin, I notice a large patch of fresh vomit on Moray Pl. Time to call it a night for one unlucky punter.
But not for us. The photographer and I head to Hyde St where a large crowd is dispersing and heading towards town.
Police stand at entrances to the one way street and the atmosphere is festive.
The night is young and so are the majority of revellers.
Time to go home.
• Police made five arrests for disorder type offences on Saturday night.
Photos by Peter McIntosh; prints available from otagoimages.co.nz.
