Bricks'n'mortar or virtual?

Bookshops in Australia are closing their doors quite rapidly if I believe everything I read. A major chain (Borders/Angus&Robertson) has gone into receivership. And, many suburban shops cannot compete with online and supermarket prices.

I do a mix of both. When it is a specific title, I will often source it online. When I am browsing, I still purchase in store. I shop at Dymocks in the CBD, here at Berkelouw, and across the road in Ariel Bookshop. I used to buy from The Book Depository, but they were taken over by Amazon. So, I swapped to Fishpond. I have to be careful what I choose. If the book is cheaper because they have used inferior ink on inferior paper, causing the print to 'bleed', I find the book too hard to read. If they shrink the font size and reduce the white space, equally I find it hard to read.

I know that is how they reduce the prices, so I am prepared to pay to enable me to check that I can actually read the book.

Helping hands, healing hands

Rising up on Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, is the joint venture between St Vincent's Hospital, and The Garvan Institute for Medical Research. It is to be called the Kinghorn Cancer Centre and is due to open in 2012. All up, the centre is expected to cost upwards of $100 million, with $70 million coming from the Federal Government, and another $25 million coming from John Kinghorn who made a cool $650 million on the stock exchange when he listed RAMS Home Loans in 2007.


This mural was donated by the pupils of Darlinghurst Primary School, just around the corner, and is entitled 'Helping hands, healing hands'.

I spy with my little eye

Most of you will be able to recognise the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. But how many Sydneysiders will be able to pick out Government House and the Conservatorium of Music.

And from where did I take this photograph? Give up?

From very close to the entrance to the William Street tunnel in Kings Cross.

Time comes dripping slow

The blunt of the facade proudly proclaims that the Imperial Hotel was erected in 1910, in the dog-days of the reign of Edward VII, with an empire that turned a Mercator map into a sea of pink.

The sign is no longer there that promises that the renovations will be completed in time for the centenary. They just *might* be open for Christmas ...

Here is Jim's 2007 photo prior to renovations commencing.

Waiting for the 327

As I leant over the pedestrian overpass, waiting for a train to come from Edgecliff station, I watched this gentleman shuffle toward me. I no longer know what 'elderly' means, the closer I get to it. He acknowledged my gaze, doffed his hat, and continued on down to the bus stop. He probably remembers when he had to wait for the tram on Bayswater Road. A young man, with his life ahead of him. Dressed to the nines, to meet his girl for an evening of dancing and merriment at Chequers.

William Street Laneway Festival

What do your reckon these two young blokes are doing? Firstly, I thought they were the promised DJs, but they did not have headphones, and that flat white 'board' was not bristling with wires. Now the jeans were hanging from a rope lashed to their upstairs verandah. Could they be designers who are going to decorate the jeans. If you know, tell us. If not, make it up!


Yesterday in Sydney, the sky was a brilliant blue, the temperature was over 30C, and for most of the day a slight breeze fluttered. Today in Sydney, was a dismal grey, the temperature was under 19C, and it drizzled. And today was the second ever William Street Laneway Fashion Festival. Yes, yes - there is an inanity in that title. Let's press on ...


Right now is a tough time for retailers. Consumers are not consuming - well they are consuming, but experiences not possessions. So retailers have to work very hard to get their hand in the consumer-pocket. This is the sort of 'experience' that young folk are craving. But I think the organisers need to do more. They need more music. They need more food, but not in tents, on portable hog-dog stands. They need a coffee cart. They need a distinctive Laneway carry bag. They need more decoration, for the shops to 'spill out' onto the street. To win the hearts and pockets of consumers, they must provide an experience.

Mont Clair

Mont Clair nestles into the brow of the hill as Liverpool Street eases up from East Sydney and into Darlinghurst. Built in 1938 it is a fine example of the art-deco style. It is a block of 42 apartments over 7 floors which is company title rather than tenants-in-common.

Is the Koala vulnerable?

A report was released today entitled "The Koala - Saving our National Icon'. I was astounded to learn that the Koala (it is NOT a bear) is regarded as 'common'. It is quite rare, in my experience, to see a Koala in the wild.

The Environmental Species Protection Act (1992) follows international practice, categorising our fauna as either:

Extinct
Extinct in the Wild
Critically Endangered
Endangered
Vulnerable
Conservation Dependant
Near Threatened
Least Concern

The report tabled today recommends the Koala be categorised as 'vulnerable'.

Since European settlement in 1788 the Koala population has declined from in excess of 10 million to 43,000. Drought, land-clearing, urban development, wildfires and diseases such as chlamydia and the koala retrovirus were all factors, but the single greatest threat was habitat loss.

Learn more than you need to know about the Koala at The Australian Koala Foundation.

Song without words

Rushcutters Bay - The old Sydney Stadium

All 10 photographs are explained right at the end. Take in my mournful narrative first.


This has been one of the most mournful posts I have prepared; and over a building!

The 'original' Sydney Stadium was demolished in 1970 to make way for the construction of the Eastern Suburbs railway. It was really just an 'old tin shed' but was regarded with affection by Sydneysiders of a certain age. It was a basic structure clad in corrugated iron. It was not lined. The seats/chairs were on risers, with the stage in the round. It was neither heated nor airconditioned. The stage had to be moved 90 degrees BY HAND every so many minutes.


And its existence has been obliterated. It took me over two hours this arvo to track down the plaque that I had read existed. Bah! Humbug! Along the westward flowing New South Head Road is a 12' high densely packed row of Murrayas. I had to push into them to identify the plaque. What a shame! And the intersection has been altered out of all recognition. I guess 40 odd years will do that.


The Sydney Stadium was built in 1908 as a stage in the middle of a paddock, and was intended to be used to stage boxing and wrestling matches. The first match, between Tommy Burns and Jim Johnson attracted over 200,000 fans. It took them a few years to even put a roof over it. In the early '50s it started to attract popular singing groups under the auspices of the promotor Lee Gordon: Buddy Holly, Bobby Rydell, Nat King Cole, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, and The Beatles. My memory is of going to experience Peter, Paul & Mary at the height of the 1963/4 folk craze. I still remember the thrill of the noise of stamping and clapping on the wooden floors as they controlled a round of 'Rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham'. Oh, those were the days!!


Photos 1,2 and 3
The lead photo is of the crowd swarming across New South Head Road in 1955 to hear Frank Sinatra. The next two shots I took trying to recreate that intersection.

Photos 4, 5 and 6
The large photo is the plaque, and what a soul-less example it is! The next two photos show its situation. Sad and pathetic behind a hedge, with newspapers swirling around in the wind. Down the driveway of a petrol station.

Photos 7, 8 and 9
The large photo shows the entry and the front to New South Head Road in 1961. See the GM-Holden car of that era. I can remember those hoardings quite distinctly. And two programme covers from an enthusiast's website.

Photo 10
Was taken by Ern McQuillan in 1968 and is an aerial shot of the site, showing the octagonal shape of the Stadium plus all the field behind it. The dark line running diagonally across is the drain into which Cascade Creek - which runs down from Trumper Park - had been funnelled. That is another sad tale of neglect and environmental vandalism! You can see Rushcutters Bay and the park with its line of fig trees.

Boo hoo!!

Rushcutters pedestrian overpass

From this walkway, with the Wlliam Street tunnel beneath me, with the Cross-City Tunnel beneath me, with New South Head Road beneath me, and with the Eastern Suburbs railway beneath me, I stand and gaze up the embankment that is part of Paddington. Permit me to point out two parts of the landscape.

In the centre mid-ground there is a mass of trees, just before that high-rise on the horizon. This is the wooded part of Trumper Park that I showed you extensively earlier this year. Immediately 'beneath' this tree-mass, in a series of manicured sporting fields. These are the sporting fields of Sydney Grammar School, known as 'Weigal'. These fields used to be the location of two Sydney landmarks of my youth: White City, and The Stadium. White City was a series of tennis courts where many of the Australian tennis triumphs of the '50s occurred. The Stadium was a 'structure'- in reality a tin shed - where many boxing matches occurred and music concerts were staged. The Beatles performed at The Stadium, as did Peter, Paul & Mary.


Yes, if you were wondering, these shots were taken on different days, using different cameras.

Beneath Kings Cross

Once again, I took these shots from the Rushcutters Bay pedestrian overpass.

The road below me is New South Head Road, previously William Street as it wound its way from Hyde Park up to the top of Kings Cross.


The first shot shows a cyclist coming out of the cross-city tunnel heading east. The second shot is a bit more complex. In the very middle is the the on-ramp from Kings Cross if you want to head east. On either side of this on-ramp are the in and out of the the Kings Cross (William Street) tunnel. The 'road' on the far left is the road to the west beneath the entire CBD (cross city tunnel).

The final shot is facing to the east, and shows the Eastern suburbs railway flanked on either side by the short split of New South Head Road. Remember,here in Australia we drive on the left of the road.

Tomorrow, I will show you the Rushcutters Bay pedestrian overpass.

The Eastern Suburbs railway

Governments the world over, across the political spectrum, have at least one massive project that they promise again and again, and yet never seem to deliver. When I was young, I remember our state government promising to build a train service from the city to Bondi Beach.

Plans had first been drawn up by Dr Bradfield when he designed the city subway and the Harbour Bridge. However, the Great Depression and World War II intervened. Plans were progressed further from 1947, but lapsed in the mid-'50s. It was not until 1979 that the line was actually opened. And not to Bondi Beach, but rather to Bondi Junction a few kilometers up the hill.

This shot was taken looking eastwards from the Rushcutters Bay pedestrian overpass, showing a train coming from Edgecliff station and heading for Kings Cross station.

The Dominatrice - Centrepoint Tower

This view of the city skyline was taken from the National Art School in East Sydney. The 'structure' that dominates this skyline, dominates the city. In my title, I have called it 'Centrepoint Tower' and yet I hesitantly refer to it as a 'structure'. This is because the name keeps changing.

There are naming rights, you see. You pay enough and you get to name the structure. This sort of policy irritates me. I see the same with stadiums for football. I see the same with Grand Final winning 'cups' for football. Money speaks a powerful language, but it also speaks with forked tongue.

Centrepoint Tower has also been known as Sydney Tower, the AMP Tower, and now, Westfield Tower. I like the idea of Centrepoint Tower as I consider it situated on the central heart of European settlement of this ancient land: the point where the Tank Stream rose from a muddy swamp, where the Pitt Street Mall is today.

All views au contraire warmly welcomed.

Paddo Pubs - The Unicorn

I have 17 pubs in my Paddington folder. This is just one of them. Hopefully, I will get to more of them in the fullness of time.


The Unicorn Hotel is on Oxford Street just opposite the western end of Victoria Barracks. It has a great art-deco facade and really rocks all weekend. The front bar is called 'The Fringe Bar', and on Saturday from early until about 4pm hosts an eclectic market of young designers. They have ego and are not cheap, but they have some out-there stuff.


As you can see from the banners, Monday is stand-up comedy night, but with a kink. Actually, the entire establishment is a bit kinky, but extremely popular. Negotiating my way through the crowd that has spilled onto the pavement on a Friday or Saturday night (on my way to the Verona Cinema) is a tad hazardous. Many thanks to the burly bouncers!

Remembering the Forgotten: Brown Bear Lane

In 1848 Joseph Fowles produced a booklet of copper-plate engravings showing the streets of Sydney. The engraving on P. 16 depicts a section of lower George Street showing 'E. Chambers' 'Brown Bear', which was a notorious pub in The Rocks. The pub bequeathed its name to a laneway. This laneway later became Little Essex Street and then was consumed totally during numerous rebuildings of the area.

In 2006 a photograph, in the possession of the Sydney Foreshore Authority, was 'muralized' by Dr Pierre Mol, an art history archaeologist. An article in the University of Sydney Alumni magazine gives the background to Mol's techniques.

Walking down George Street to The Quay, the mural is on the LHS immediately after (nearly under) the railway viaduct. It is incredibly realistic, giving the impression one could wander into it.

Over, Under, Sideways, Down: the SHB filtered by prepositions

Through.


Above. Over.


Over. Across. Under. Beneath.

Cycling against the tide

Here is a view of each section of College Street in the inner city. The top shows the College Street cycleway from Whitlam Square to Park Street. The lower shows the same cycle way from Park to Macquarie Street. This is the cycleway that the City of Sydney decided to rename the 'Cadel Evans Cycleway' at the end of July.

Cycleways cop a bashing in the popular media at the moment. These shots will simply reinforce the argument that they are under-utilised white-elephants. However, I am in favour of them. But, I no longer drive, and am no longer welded to the assumptions and prejudices of the motoring public. I have to go everywhere by public transport or shanks' pony. So it stands to reason that I am in favour of cycleways. I am also in favour of the return of trams to the inner city. But trams were crucified by the motoring organisations of the 1950s.

Nothing has changed 60 years later.

A lurk of lanes

Trickling down from Oxford Street to Five Ways, there is a lurk of lanes secreted into the escarpment. Being raised on 'Swallows and Amazons' and assorted adventures of The Famous Five and The Secret Seven, I am inclined to give my fevered imagination free rein as I wind my way homeward.

10 Inkerman Street

So, Diane was wary of these few streets for good reason. Wary differs from scared, but not much from cautious. Number Ten, Inkerman Street is just off Barkly Street. Yesterday's milk bar is just off Grey Street. The entire area is riddled with short-sheeted streets. Avenues cut off in their prime. One-way roads that dead-end. And Number Ten is good reason for this vehicular mayhem.

Number Ten is the Working-Girls' Co-operative, the place for a smoko and a bit of chit-chat among like-minded professionals. The poster on the left warns of the client who is an 'ugly mug'; the one on the right hightlights 'Overdose Awareness Day'.

The area teems with curb-crawlers during the night hours, their progress made tortuous by the local council to aid the constabulary in their policing.

And, on that note, we leave St Kilda - and Melbourne - and return to sunny Sydney.