2110 Hunters Hill

Max and I had organised to meet a friend for lunch and being the photgraphic opportunists that we are we thought we'd fit in a suburb beforehand. It had to be somewhere in the proximity of 'lunch' and I fancied photographing somewhere by the water. A search of nearby suburbs in the street directory led us both to the peninsular of Hunters Hill. Well, what a surprise! A stones throw away from the city, who would have thought that we'd find this beautiful, secluded, waterside 'country village'. Pretty sandstone cottages standing side by side along leafy streets and comfortably nestled amongst colourful spring gardens with the most spectacular views. The place was oozing tranquility, nostalgia and charm!

The Garibaldi Hotel opened in 1861 and this is also the year that the municipality of Hunters Hill was established. A special sesquicentary celebration!

The Garibaldi Hotel's Goddess of Wine. This is a replica statue in place of the original which was stolen in 1973; and Adele who took time out of her day to talk to us about the history of the hotel which is now a collection of small shops, one of which is hers.

Antique and Shabby Chic



Room With a View



Marine Life

Scrubbing

Holiday Playground

Hillman Orchard

Scrumping Scalliwags!

Scrumping is a colloquial English term for stealing apples and sometimes other fruit from other people's trees, gardens or orchards. (This explanation is for those not from Blighty. In Australia apparently it's just called... stealing fruit from other people's trees, gardens or orchards lol). These three scalliwags were oblivious to me documenting their looting of mulberries until after they had got all they wanted and were counting their booty. They stopped when they saw me with my camera pointed at them and I stopped clicking away as soon as they saw me... we were all caught out!

Something interesting perhaps, for those of you in the cider drinking business! Scrumpy, from which the verb scrump is derived, is a rough cider from the south west counties of England that is made from apples. It was often given to 'wurzels' in lieu of payment by landowners in an attempt to keep the workers compliant. What's a wurzel I hear you ask? Think Worzel Gummidge and his good friend Aunt Sally and you're halfway there! A country bumpkin, a straw chewing yokel wearing a smock and weilding a pitchfork! (Gotta love those stereotypes) Wurzel is from mangel wurzel a German word for a type of beet. From mulberries to apples to beetroot - I love the connections of language, time and place!

2016 Redfern

When you say Redfern, many people think of the urban Aboriginal population, Eveleigh Street and 'The Block'. And why not? This area is probably the most famous part of Redfern, yet it is the one place that most people fear to go as many Sydneysiders associate it with violence, drug crime and more specifically the 2004 riots. Yet Redfern is more than just this one spot and it's pre-conceived ideas. There is a vibrant community here of people from all walks of life. Yes, the Block is looking a bit worse for wear in places, but walk on and the community centre is alive with the sound of childrens laughter. Around the corner and up a bit is the centre of Redfern where boutique shops cosy up to cafes; and the Victorian Italianate architecture of the 1882 Post Office building is reflected across the road in the more contemporary tower of the Centrelink building. Take a 'walkabout' Redfern and look for yourself.

Welcome to country, home of the Eora Nation

Ridgy didge, ridgy didge and away we go singing red, black and yellow...

Redfern, A Community
'I nod to a passing stranger,
and the stranger nods back,
and two human beings go off,
feeling a little less anonymous'
Robert Brault

A Walk Around The Block

New Kids On The Block!

On My Mind...
(My photo of the day)

In the Frame

I spotted three police officers down this side street, two of them were chatting on their mobiles so I asked if I could take a picture. Where's the other you may ask? She darted around the corner quickly... she didn't want to be put in the frame!

BABANA

Babana means 'Brother' in the Dharug language.

BABANA was formed by local Aboriginal men in early 2006 to provide Aboriginal men with opportunities to network, discuss issues affecting local men, meet other Aboriginal men’s groups and do projects which benefit the Redfern-Waterloo community. The vision of this Aboriginal men's group is 'Support, enable and empower’ Aboriginal men and their families in their community.

http://redfernoralhistory.org/Organisations/BabanaMensGroup/tabid/199/Default.aspx

Mark (left) and Dave (right) proudly invited us into the 'shed' and showed us around their place. Aboriginl men, proud of their indigenous culture who provide guidance and support to those in their community.

Post It - Note!

The Old and the New

 Trend & Trilby

Renovators Delight

Sunny Side of the Street

The Writing's on the Wall

Take a Pew

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Walkabout

The Aboriginal walkabout is a rite of passage, a spiritual journey that can cover up to 1000km. My Redfern walkabout was considerably shorter but one that opened my eyes to how stereotypes can and should be broken; and how many are working hard to do just that.

2119 Beecroft

Beecroft is a quaint leafy suburb that has a quintessential English village feel to it. Why Beecroft you may ask? Well, it's as good a starting point as any! Arriving early in the morning, there was already a strong community atmosphere as we made our way through the stalls and attractions of Arden's annual fair. Following that, a stroll past the cafes and shops into the dizzying world of lawn bowls as the competitors flexed their [arthritic] joints and aimed for the jack!

BPO

Blossoms and Bulbs

Comical and Conical

Coffee Time

Bubbles and Bells

Bowled Over in Beecroft

From origins in Ancient Egypt to Beecroft Bowling Club, this game is now more popular in Australia than anywhere else in the world.

New Project, First Blog!

So here I am blogging. No idea what I'm doing but I'll do it anyway!

Today Maxine and I embarked upon our newest photography project. Inspired by Louise Hawson's photoblog-book-exhibition titled '52 Suburbs', we have decided to chronicle our beautiful city of Sydney in pictures. How this will develop is anyone's guess. Hey, we went out there today and aimlessly pointed our cameras not knowing what we were looking for at first! But soon ideas started forming and our thoughts took shape. Although my project will be '26 - An A to Z of Sydney's Suburbs', it will be an A to Z in no particular order and more than likely have more than 26 suburbs. Well, as Max and I keep reminding ourselves, it's ours to do with what we will... there are no rules!