Trains 'n' Trains 'n' Trains.

Approaching Bungendore station from Queanbeyan

My recent trip to Sydney was by train - the first time since November 2004 that I had travelled by CountryLink and that trip back then was the first train-trip since 1984, when I used to commute by rail into Sydney from Springwood, in the Blue Mountains.
So I was interested to see what, if anything at all, may have changed in nine years.

Well, not much, in fact.
Not that I was disappointed, because being a "new" senior citizen I was able to take advantage of the concessional fare and travelled return first class for the princely sum of $24!
I can't fill my (small, frugal and most enjoyable) car up for less than $47, when petrol sits at $1.57 per litre for 91-octane.

The train was clean, departed Canberra on time, was comfortable and arrived 90 seconds early at Central.
The refreshments were fine - the old Railway Refreshment Rooms (RRR) that I was used to back in the 1960s have long faded but they did serve a bloody good pie, mashed potatoes, peas and gravy in their dining room at Central. The modern food is of the "fast" variety, heated in a microwave and served on plastic plates with plastic utensils. But it was hot and tasted good.

When in Sydney I had occasion to travel by suburban trains between Central and Chatswood and they were also a whole world beyond what I was used to back in the 60s and 70s, when the "Red Rattlers" ruled and were later being supplanted by the double-decker air-conditioned suburbans - many of which are still in operation today.


An original double-deck set at Campbelltown - still in use



Vestibule of the current Sydney suburban train.

These new trains (Tangara or Oscar) are bright, colourful, comfortable and a very pleasant mode of public transport.
In the photo below you can see one of these new items in the background, having pulled into one of the suburban platforms at Central.

Now, some photos of the CountryLink Xplorer and XPT trains, taken whilst they sat at platforms 3, 4 and 5 at Central ready to depart to their various destinations (mine was the Xplorer, bound for Canberra at 6:58 AM).

XPT bound for Dubbo, on the Central West line

Xplorer bound for Canberra, on the Southern/Canberra line

In background, XPT on Platform 3, bound for the North Coast line

Below is the front of my train, 2502, which consisted of just three cars.
The XPTs were made up of eight cars.

2502 ready to leave Central, departure being 6:58 AM

The return trip was just as enjoyable as the "up" journey three days previously.
I had a continental breakfast of hot buttered croissant with jam and a cup of coffee, but could well have chosen a breakfast of bacon & egg roll. The morning paper was also available.
All this is at additional cost to the fare, but that has always been the case.

Looking from Central station north to the clock tower and city buildings.
(Photo taken the previous day)

 

And so we departed on time, heading west then south, down the suburban corridor to Campbelltown, thence the Southern Highlands towns of Mittagong, Bowral, Bundanoon and Moss Vale.......

Near Bowral, in the Southern Highlands

 ......before arriving at Goulburn, then Tarago, Queanbeyan and finally Canberra.

Near Tarago, between Goulburn and Queanbeyan

The train pulled into Canberra station 2 minutes late, arriving at 11:25 AM rather than 11:23 AM.
But it wasn't the operator's fault - there was a slight delay at Bungendore whilst some work was being finished and a truck had to move away from the line.

A very pleasant journey and one which I will do again.

Railway Square & Broadway

 

NOTE! ALL PHOTOS ENLARGE IF CLICKED.



Between May 1964 and the end of 1966 I became very familiar with the area in Sydney from Railway Square, down Broadway to Abercrombie Street and also the top end of Harris Street.

This was where I attended what was then called Sydney Technical College ("STC" or more commonly "Sydney Tech") - now known as the University of Technology, Sydney, or "UTS".

My employer was located in O'Connor Street, Chippendale, just off Abercrombie Street, so it was an easy walk from Central station to the tech and/or down Broadway to O'Connor Street.

Later in my working life, between 1967 and 1975 (when the Chippendale factory closed down and most of us went out to Bankstown under the Otis Elevator umbrella) I was based in the engineering department of the company and, if not driving to work, would still do the walk from Central station (or Redfern station) so the area was still a very familiar one.

Until visiting Sydney this past weekend for my uncle's 100th. birthday celebrations I had not travelled on the suburban train network since approximately 1972, when my then fiancée and I used to commute between Toongabbie and Central/North Sydney, so I had not had an opportunity to stroll around this locality for several decades.

I stayed in the Adina Executive Apartments, right on Railway Square.
This building, back in my day, was the HQ of the Railways Post Office service, where mail would be pre-sorted before being loaded onto the mail trains that left Central for country destinations overnight.
The shell of the building has been retained (Heritage listed) and the interior has been turned into a very pleasant and comfortable hotel.

The photograph at the head of this article was taken from one of the three windows and presents Central Station and the road sweeping up to it from Railway Square/Lee Street.
Apart from some more modern architecture in the background, this view is very similar to what one would have seen from the same window some 40 years ago.

This next photo, taken from the corner window, looks across the conjunction of Railway Square, Lee Street, Pitt Street and George Street, the latter disappearing up into the canyon between the high-rise buildings as it makes its way to the other end of the city at Circular Quay and the harbour.
Once again, there is much that I still found familiar, with the two old office buildings, one on the left and the other on the right, acting as gate guardians to the start of George Street.

The last photo above, taken from the left-hand window, looks straight across Railway Square and shows the old Mark Foys department-store building that harks back to the 1930s.
This is now an annex of the UTS but when I was going to tech between 1965 and 1967 it was in limbo, the retailer having terminated business from this address.

Just to the left of the Mark Foys building, and in a basement location, was a pool-hall where my fellow class-mates and I would play snooker on a Friday afternoon after tech had finished.
We would have a few beers at the Agincourt Hotel on the corner and then spend a couple of hours or three before catching our respective trains home.

Agincourt Hotel on the left - corner of Harris St. & Broadway

The pool-hall is still there!

So imagine my delight when I saw that this old haunt was still in operation.
Certainly some of the businesses that are adjacent have changed but to learn that the Agincourt and the snooker establishment were still operating was a delight.

Armed with camera and on a beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon I ambled from Railway Square down Broadway to Abercrombie street.

Back in the 1950s and until his retirement my late father-in-law was employed at the Kent Brewery owned by Tooth & Co..
This brewery covered a vast area, from Kensington Street in the north to Abercrombie Street in the south, Broadway to the west and Wellington & O'Connor Streets to the east.
In its day it was one of the largest breweries in Australia.
The main entrance was a landmark due to its archway, shown in the next two photos.......

 

 

This is all that remains of what existed when I used to walk past on my way to work back in the 1960s, when the brewery was operational.
From all appearances, it has most likely been preserved under a Heritage classification, as the entire site is undergoing massive redevelopment as "CentralPark", a residential, retail and commercial enterprise.
On the left of the archway is the original Clare Hotel which I think must also be under a preservation order.

The following series of photos show what is there today - and bear in mind that this project is far from completion - there is still a lot of bare ground to be developed.

The first of the new buildings to be constructed on the old brewery site.

An amazing structure; cantilevered platforms and hanging gardens.
This is like something straight out of "Blade Runner"!



The CentralPark development from the north, taken from the train
as I was departing Central on Monday morning. 

In the last photo above that tall "glassy" building is the one with the cantilevered platforms. The main UTS building is the brown one behind it, on the opposite side of Broadway.

At the bottom end of the development sits Abercrombie Street, seen below.....

After wandering down Broadway from Central I would turn left here, walk up the street past St. Benedict's church and primary school on the right and then turn right into O'Connor Street and walk another 50 yards to the factory.

In the above photo, the Abercrombie (aka "Australian") Hotel has not changed and is still a licensed pub.
But the view behind it is somewhat different, because there was once a high wall of dark brick, the bottom boundary of the Kent Brewery. There also used to be a small fish 'n' chips shop located a bit further along, before O'Connor Street, I remember. It sold excellent school prawns and if we were working a Saturday's overtime we would invariably buy our lunch from that shop.

I'll complete this article with the above photo, showing a view from the corner of Abercrombie Street and Broadway, looking west towards City Road and Sydney University in the far distance.

Nothing much has changed in this view; that older office building was there (it housed a branch of the ANZ Bank) and the buildings along the right are the same, although the businesses may be different.

It was a very enjoyable walk and I was heartened by the fact that there was enough original architecture for it to still be very recognisable for me.

Celebrating a 100th. Birthday

Uncle Frank & my sister, Venette

On the 10th. August 1913 my mother's young brother, Frank, was born.
On the 10th. August 2013 he looked back on 100 years of life, an event celebrated by family members from here in Australia and from New Zealand, where he was born and lived until moving to Australia in the 1990s.

A birthday celebration was held in the Chatswood RSL Club and along with well-wishes from family and many friends, Uncle Frank also received congratulatory messages from the Queen, the Governor-General of Australia, the Governor of New South Wales, the Prime Minister, the Premier of New South Wales and other dignitaries.

 

On the Sunday, 11th. August 2013, a service was held in the Maori Anglican Fellowship Church of Te Wairua Tapu, in Elizabeth Street, Redfern.
This service marked the 75th. anniversary of the NZ WWII Veterans (RSL Sub-branch) in Australia and honoured not only my uncle but also Major Bob Wood (Ret), on the eve of his 99th. birthday, and also other NZ veterans who were present .
A delegation of dignitaries were in attendance, including Keith Payne, VC (forever now referred to as "Uncle Keith" - see below*) and the NZ High Commissioner to Australia, and the proceedings were recorded by NZ television, Channel 3 News.

This was a wonderful weekend and I was able to catch up with many relatives, some of whom I had only ever heard about from my mother or other immediate family members.

Certainly a reunion to remember and, as my cousin remarked, how precious it was to have everyone together for such a happy event when under previous circumstances we have only seen each other at funerals.

* My sister recognised the face but couldn't put a name to the gentleman.
She went up to Keith Payne, approaching him in a familiar manner, as if she and he were related and made some remark to that effect, then found out who he was!

Colours, Crabapples, Currawongs & a Cat!

The colours of the Persian Witch-hazel are utterly brilliant this year - so vivid as to be almost unbelievable.
This tree currently has pride of place with its autumn display in the front garden now that the English Elm has lost just about all her leaves.

Immediately outside one of the front windows (and 90 degrees from the window that displays the Persian Witch-hazel) is our sole Crabapple tree.
Two years ago I harvested the fruit and made Crabapple jelly - six full buckets of Crabapples gave me less than a dozen small jars (250 -300 grams) of the jelly.
The process was so tedious that last year and again this autumn I decided to let the birds have their fill, so we've seen King Parrots, Cockatoos and Currawongs make the most of the crop.

The Currawongs are the keenest.
They come down - usually in groups of 8 or 10 - and go for the fruit that has fallen onto the ground.
They swallow them whole and must have nitric acid in their stomachs in order to digest them!
They are as tart as a bushel of unripe lemons and if you pluck a ripe one (all red) and nibble it then you'll end up with grimace to end all grimaces.

 

Maybe next year I'll be masochistic enough to have another go at the Crabapple jelly but in the meantime the birds can have their way with them.

I mentioned the Cockatoos.
Here are three of them going for the parrot food that my wife puts out each day.
She doesn't like the cockies getting to it - she makes it available for the King Parrots but you can't stand out there shooing the cockies away.

Rosie, our 18-month old cat, has found a lovely sunny spot on these crisp, clear autumn mornings.
For about an hour she wedges herself into the gap between the side window at the front door and the indoor pot-plant basket and soaks up the rays!
When the sun moves away, so does she - off to another window to follow the warmth down the northern side of the house.

Autumn is nearly over



It is now the start of the last month of what has been a very dry Autumn for 2013.
But the colours of the deciduous trees and shrubs in our garden have been magnificent this year and this past week the English Elm has finally decided that enough is enough and over a three-day period she has dropped most of her leaves.

I did a quick (2 minute) video on May 1st., which you can view here or, if you click on the You Tube in the bottom right-hand corner, you can view in a larger format on You Tube's page.

A Mouseketeer Has Gone.

 

A member of the original Micky Mouse Club "Mouseketeers" - and the subject of many a young teenage boy's day-dreams - Annette Funicello passed away on the 8th. of April 2013, succumbing at age 70 to complications brought on by her long battle with Multiple Sclerosis.

Apart from being a Mouseketeer, Annette will also be forever associated with Frankie Avalon (pictured together above) and her appearance and singing in "Beach Party" movies.
(At today's date Frankie Avalon is 72 and living in the USA).

Annette had several Top Twenty hits in the 1960s, including "Tall Paul", "O Dio Mio" and "Pineapple Princess".

A lovely girl who, as she grew up and went from childhood to young-adulthood to senior-citizen, never lost her charms.

One of my teenage crushes has slipped away.

Baroness Thatcher

I remember well her determination to restore the Union Jack to the Falklands and I sat riveted to the screen each night when the news came on, eager to see the latest update, yet fearing the worst for the British forces.
Her "Rejoice"! is now an historical quote, and rightly so, as the outcome did a huge amount to restore self-confidence and pride in the majority of British people.

Not for her the namby-pamby approach.
"Maggie" was as subtle as a bull in a china shop, but everyone knew where they stood.
She was Churchillian.

R.I.P Baroness Thatcher.

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

Why has the Canberra Times (masthead shown above) dropped the use of the words "yesterday", "today" and "tomorrow" when reporting on matters and events?

I've noticed that this practice has been in operation for some time. I find it annoying and, in some cases, confusing.

For example - I will buy a newspaper this morning (Wednesday 3rd. April 2013) and when reading through it I will notice the following peculiarities:-

• Reports relating to something which occurred yesterday will say "Tuesday" instead of "yesterday".
• Items concerning something which will be happening tomorrow will say "Thursday" in lieu of "tomorrow".
• Most annoying of all, however, is that the newspaper does not refer to "today" when informing us of a matter relating to this very day of issue but they will say "Wednesday"!

This third practice caused confusion yesterday - yes, Canberra Times, YESTERDAY, not "Tuesday" - to whit:-

The paper had an item regarding the closing of the Toulouse-Lautrec exhibition at the National Gallery.

The report stated that it was closing on "Tuesday" yet the paper in which the article was printed was Tuesday's (2nd. April) edition.

So which "Tuesday" was one to conclude that the exhibition was closing?

Next Tuesday (9th. April) would have been the natural assumption. After all, if it was closing on Tuesday 2nd. then surely the term "today" would have been used, would it not?

But no - we now have a newspaper which has removed the three basic words relating to the passage of time and which have been in use for centuries.

Why?



After 6 Months of Retirement.........

I couldn't believe it when I looked at the calendar a couple of days ago and realised that in another week or so's time I will have been out of the workforce for six months.

The time has flown and the reason is that I am one of those very fortunate people who have a multitude of interests and hobbies - so many that I don't have the time to subscribe to them all.
Not for one minute have I been bored and the days just seem to flow from one into the next so fast that I sometimes have trouble keeping up.

My radio program on the local community FM radio station (Valley FM 89.5) occupies six hours each week and that isn't including the time I spend researching and preparing music and associated "stuff" for each broadcast.

A couple of days each week is spent in the yard and garden, carrying out the normal maintenance as well as a few projects that have been undertaken during this past summer.
The first was the creation of an enclosure for my wife's three Chinese Silkie chooks.
A pre-fab coop was bought, in "flat-pack" format, and when it arrived from Brisbane I assembled it.
Then I built a picket fence & gate between the end of one side of the garage and the back fence (seen in the photo below), which was painted after completion.

The other major job was the demolition and filling-in of the fishpond, which had been a feature of the garden in the backyard for many years but which had just become a maintenance chore, particularly the surrounding garden. It also hindered the access to the Photinea hedge for trimming.

So the pond went and was filled in with rubble and then two trailer-loads of crushed blue metal and is now in the last stage of work, with paving slabs having been laid (the photo below shows the preparatory work for the slab base).

I am just needing to get a load of garden soil to surround the paved area, which will then be home to the barbecue. 

During the very hot weather that we experienced here in Canberra over January I hibernated into the cool of the air-conditioning and continued - in a somewhat random manner - working on my life's story that I have been writing for the past few months.
This continues to be an interesting project but one that I only do when the mood strikes me rather than as a regular exercise on a fixed itinerary.

I have coffee with old workmates on a regular basis - catching up and keeping in touch.
One such friendship goes back to 1998, when I worked for a company associated with the production and publishing of digital information for the legal profession.

I've joined the Canberra branch of the Australian Railway Historical Society and in the cooler months I want to become involved with helping them out in a voluntary capacity.
Before moving to Canberra in 1984 I had joined the Zig-Zag Railway near Lithgow but never had a chance to become involved as we upped roots and moved down here.
I have always maintained an interest in all things train-related, so am looking forward to helping out when I can.

Then there is my return to painting figurines, which was a prime hobby way back in the late 1970s - early-1980s.
I have had a resurgence of interest but, like my memoirs, only do so when the mood strikes rather than as a regular commitment.
If you have to do something to a timetable then it doesn't remain a pleasure, it becomes a chore and one might as well be back in the regular workforce, having to work for a living!

To all the above I can add reading, computing (browsing, emailing, playing simulations, researching music tracks), catching up with the occasional rented DVD movie, letter-writing (on my 1970s IBM Selectric typewriter) and domestic chores and each day is full, from around six-thirty AM until I conk out around eleven PM.

How did I ever find the time for even half of these activities when I was working?!!

Lee Child sells out to the movie industry.

For many years one of my favourite authors has been Lee Child; his many novels featuring the character Jack Reacher have always been very enjoyable - as many millions of other readers have discovered.

One of the greatest things about reading is that we each establish a picture in our minds of the characters in a work of fiction and, when the central character is defined over time as to his/her size, weight, features, manner and so forth we each imagine exactly what that character is like.
Each of us has our own "picture" of that make-believe person.

I had long admired Child for not selling out to the movie industry and looked forward to the next Jack Reacher adventure with eagerness.

Not any more.
Lee Child has betrayed my imagination. He has sold out and I am contemptuous of him for doing so.
It's not as if he needs the money - he's certainly not poverty-stricken.

I could not believe it when I heard that (a) a "Jack Reacher" movie is being released and (b) Tom Cruise has been cast as the titular character!
TOM CRUISE?!!!

I never had a mental image of any particular actor as Jack Reacher - none at all. But if I had then Tom Cruise would not have even made the initial list, let alone a final interview.
Why?
Well, here is a summation of Reacher's physical attributes as gleaned from the various stories (courtesy Wikipedia):-

• Reacher is 6' 5" tall (1.96m) with a 50-inch chest, and weighing between 210 and 250 pounds (100–115 kg). He has ice-blue eyes and dirty blond hair. He has very little body fat and his muscular physique is completely natural (he reveals in Persuader he has never been an exercise enthusiast). He is exceptionally strong but is not a good runner.

Tom Cruise is 5'-7".
He does not have a 50" chest and certainly doesn't weigh between 210 and 250 pounds.
Jack Reacher is NOT Tom Cruise.

But now, when you Google "Jack Reacher" or "Lee Child", the majority of the images which appear are of Tom Cruise.

I will never be able to read a Jack Reacher novel again without seeing Cruise in my mind's eye and that is not only disheartening but also ridiculous.

No thanks to you, Mr. Child.