Mystery Photo XV - Watching You

The last Mystery Photo - a full 6 months ago already - lasted a good few days before being identified as the Gay and Lesbain Support Centre (GLSC) centre on Bedford Street. This time round I've gone a little more obscure.

Where in Newtown would you find yourself observed by these two little eyes ?

Mystery Photo XIV - 1887

Where in Newtown is it still 1887 ?

Mystery Photo XIII - No Parking

Has it really been more than a year since the last Mystery Photo ? Well 2011 was a little forgettable for many reasons, so let's just put it aside and start 2012 with a lucky 13th Mystery Photo. As always, the photo below is somewhere in Newtown (sometimes liberally interpreted, but this time very much central Newtown) and the goal is to be the first to identify the location as a comment here on the blog.

 

Bonus points for identifying the shop at the front of this building, and the popular new eatery from which this happy scene is visible.

Mystery Photo XII - Milk Bar

Anyone had a chocolate milkshake here lately ?

Mystery Photo XI - Pet Procession

It's been a while - but finally it's time for Mystery Photo XI - and the first guest Mystery Photo - thanks to @VerityChambers. Where in town would you find this pet procession ?


BTW Don't ask me - I don't know either !

Mystery Bar II Revealed - Bloodwood

The mystery bar series kicked off the other week with Corridor, which lasted a respectable amount of time before being identified. Mystery Bar II continued the 'door' theme of the recent mystery photos (red and farm) and asked in which fine Newtown drinking establishment the above yellow door was.


It wasn't so hard given there are still too few bars in Newtown to really challenge you, but whether it was shyness or something else, it was 10 days until LolaSkate put their name to a (correct) guess of Bloodwood - and scored the bonus point for identifying that it leads absolutely nowhere ! To be fair ShaBlair had pointed this out earlier, but only on Twitter.


Bloodwood has been the subject of a very un-Newtown like buzz since it opened a couple of months ago in the old Planetarium (fancy word for a nursery) in the up and coming South King St (SoKi) area. It has been reviewed postively in Barzine, Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney Restaurant Review, Time Out, and several blogs amongst others.


In my mind Bloodwood is more of a restaurant than a bar - the food is bloody good as you'd expect from ex-Claudes chefs (I'll leave reviews to the experts) and much has been made of the great design. The bar area is really just the reception at the entrance - the physical bar given to protecting the chefs and anyway the corridor is too narrow for bar stools - but at least there is the option to drink and or dine in this much welcome addition to the Newtown scene.

Out the back

Mystery Bar II - Follow the Yellow Door

The mystery bar series kicked off the other week with Corridor, which lasted a respectable amount of time before being identified. To continue in the 'door' theme of the recent mystery photos (red and farm); and certainly a little easier than they have proved to be; I present (without further ado) the second Newtown Mystery Bar - "Yellow Door".

In which fine Newtown drinking establishment is this door to be found ? And for a bonus point - where does it lead ?

Mystery Photo X - Red Door

From the Farm Door of Mystery Photo IX, we move to a slightly scarred red door, lurking in the back streets of Newtown. Where exactly ?

Mystery Photo IX Revealed - Farm Door

Mystery Photo IX asked where in Newtown the above 'farm door' could be found. It was a sinch for DarkStarDeity, who very quickly posted:

That's the boarded-up back door to the old stable in Crooks Lane (just off Church St), generally referred to as "The Shed" (since corrected to Shack). I was actually going to send you a photo of this building myself for one of the mystery photos as I live near it

Given that I was hoping this was a more challenging Mystery Photo I removed the comment to give others a chance at guessing the location, which no-one managed for three weeks or so until Smacky-wolf chipped in with the correct location.

Crook's Lane doesn't get mentioned in Google Maps, though from this street view you can just see the shed at the end of the lane. In the standard Newtown view, it's the elbow shaped lane in the pocket bounded by Church Street, King Street, Mechanic's Lane and Hordern Street.


Consenus is now that the Shed is actually known by its inhabitants as The Shack, but other than that, there's precious little to tell about this unusual-for-Newtown building - unless readers can provide more information

Mystery Bar I Revealed - Corridor

The first Mystery Bar asked you to identify the bar where this cosy lounge was to be found. It was relatively quickly indentified by justiceotb as Corridor; although happily not until after a few near misses, which has encouraged me to perservere with the Mystery Bar series ! It might have been easier to pick with some wider angle pictures ...



Corridor is the second attempt at making a success of the former site of Sabor de Espana, Newtown's short lived tapas bar. Early indications are that it will be a success. A fair bit of effort has gone into the renovation, although the basic form of the site has been maintained, with a limited bar area downstairs and more seating (indoors and outdoors) upstairs.


The night the mayor visited the outside area was full while the insides remained mostly empty, but I can see the front room upstairs becoming popular as the weather cools, even if the fireplace sadly doesn't look functional.

All in all, a welcome addition to the Newtown bar scene.

Corridor, 153a King St Newtown.

Mystery Photo IX - Farm Door

Hot on the heels of the revelation of the last Mystery Photo; uncovering the Festival balloon - and a new community garden - in Oxford Street, Newtown; comes this week's challenge.

Where, in very urban Newtown, is this distinctly rural looking door ?

Mystery Photo VIII Revealed - Lost Balloon

The most recent Mystery Photo asked you to identify the location of the Sydney Festival yellow balloon. It wasn't too long until 'anonymous' (please leave a name; even a made up on - it's much more fun !) picked it as the empty block of land next to the Scientology School on Oxford St Newtown.


View Larger Map

Since the photo was taken last year, the long abandoned site has undergone quite a change, and it looks like some sort of community garden is coming to life here; a quick google check reveals that's the case (via an Athena newsletter). Does anyone have any more information ?


Although the area where the ball was is still looking pretty crappy.

Mystery Bar I - Chesterfield

The Mystery Photo series, popular with visitors (albeit shy ones, very few of you leave comments), continues to struggle to last more than a day without being identified. However I will persist and one day create a Mystery Photo that lasts more than 48 hours !

In the meantime, it's time to introduce the first of the Mystery Bar series. There still aren't so many bars in Newtown; sadly more people in Darlinghurst and Surry Hills seem to be taking advantage of the new small bar laws than here in Newtown. Still, things are slowly improving here; and hopefully as this series progresses there will be more and more candidates.

I won't be giving too many hints; especially at this stage. The photo above is taken in a Newtown Bar. Where is it ? And what is the bar's name ? And for a bonus point; what did it used to be called (yes, a hint of sorts).

Mystery Photo VIII - Lost Balloon

The Narrow Lane didn't take too long to identify - again ! Before I resort to really obscure photos; here's one more 'street level' mystery photo to test your knowledge of Newtown. Can you help the Sydney Festival folk relocate their lost yellow balloon ? It's come to rest somewhere in Newtown ...

Mystery Photo VII - Narrow Lane

Time for the first Mystery Photo of 2010. Somewhere in Newtown is this faded sign - where exactly ?

Mystery Photo VI Revealed - Kinky Tea

Mystery Photo #6 alas last about as long as numbers 5 and 4. My readers do indeed know Newtown just too well. The Kinky sign above was indeed the remnants of the Kinkara Tea sign from the 'Kinkara Tea House' in Chelmsford Street.


I'm not sure the RA would have made it any harder to guess judging by the speed that Dark Star Deity tracked it down.


Here's the cottage in its full glory


There's an interesting guide to preserving Historic signs at the Heritage NSW Website here (pdf) which uses this sign as an example of a historically significant sign - check out the colouring of the sign in 1998 (p12) - it looks suspiciously like a touch up job.

Mystery Photo VI - Kinky

But not too kinky.

I'm having a bad run with the mystery photos, none of them are lasting 24 hours. A sign I guess that Newstown readers know their 'town !


Where in our god-fearing neighbourhood is this kinky building ?

Mystery Photo V Revealed - Tin Shed in the Sky

Mystery photo V was the above mysterious floating rusty shed. Unusual enough in appearance to qualify as subject of the mystery photo series, the position of the shed outside the back of a popular Turkish pizza joint, and near the courtyard of a much loved Newtown cafe meant that this one was never going to stay a mystery for long.

The building on the right is the pizzeria. It's hard to imagine this one getting through council !

View from outside Buzzbar

Council Approved Plumbing

Mystery Photo IV Revealed - Tram Shed Ramparts

Mystery Photo IV asked you to identify the jungle ramparts in the photo above. This didn't prove too difficult, and Steve of Bucknell very quickly identified it as the back of the tramsheds off Railway Lane. I'll save a potted history of the tram sheds, and the mayor's plans for them, for another post and instead just share a few more photos of the sheds as they are today.

There are some fantastic shots from inside the sheds on Newstown reader Ghee's flickr page; below I offer my more humble efforts - from the laneway:

from Erskineville:


and finally from the Thomas Street:

Mystery Photo V - Jungle House

Well the last Mystery Photo didn't offer much resistance, nor generate much comment. Hopefully a few more of you will have a go at this one. Still very much in Newtown, yet looking more in place in the country perhaps, where is this jungle house located ?


Here's some plumbing detail, in case the greenery is overwhelming.