Walking Sydney

By Anna-Brooke Gutzler

Dear Readers,

During the past few days many questions were raised. For instance, how did Sydney change over time? What is a Wooloomooloo? How come Internet in Australia is so expensive? What makes a film Australian? And of course, Why is it so HOT?! Most of these questions were answered, not only from our wonderful lecturers, but also from our very own peers during our student directed Sydney walking tours.

Tuesday morning, we welcomed Marc Brennan to our classroom for an introduction to Australian media. A synthesis of the British style broadcasting and the American model, Australian media emphasizes state sponsored television and radio while being defined by privatized media entities, especially press. Something I found interesting was that in some rural areas, community radio is the only available media outlet. Australia also relies on imported American TV shows and movies as the country lacks the infrastructure provided in America by Hollywood. For instance, as many of us have found out, you can watch all your favorite shows, like How I Met Your Mother, or least favorite shows, like Vampire Diaries, on some of the private channels. They are usually, however, a season or two behind. The focus of our discussion was the relationship between media and society and the effects consumption of the media has on Australian's national identity. Apparently, there is an enormous push for purely Australian productions, especially in the film industry. As Greg Dolgopolov discussed Thursday morning, many Australian films are subsidized by the government on the premise that they portray purely Australian stories. As we found, though, identifying a purely Australian movie is complicated. Finding Nemo, for example, is set in beautiful Sydney harbor and employed many Australian actors, but this movie is not considered Australian. On the other hand, Happy Feet, set in a landscape not found on the Australian continent and employing mostly American actors, was produced here in Sydney and therefore is classified as Australian. One movie that is without a doubt an Australian film, however, is Rolf de Heer's 2006 Ten Canoes. I recommend this movie as a great example of uniquely Australian, cross-cultural film.

After our lecture on Tuesday morning, the afternoon was devoted to our group neighborhood projects. During the past few weeks, in groups of four, we have been researching the history and present conditions of neighborhoods throughout Sydney. Through web site archives and trips to our different regions of Redfern, the Rocks, Wooloomooloo and Bondi Beach, each group was able to piece together the unique histories of our neighborhoods. We began our tours with classroom presentations Tuesday afternoon, describing our findings with the help of old photographs, maps and time lines. After our presentations on Tuesday and on Wednesday morning, each group conducted its own walking tour of their neighborhoods.

Redfern, an area defined by “chain migration” of Indigenous Australians in the 1940s and racism against them, boasted murals speaking to the social injustice as well as the pride of the community. Our peer leaders led us to the train station which at one time employed Indigenous Australians in workshops and offered English classes to any willing to learn. We were also shown the Redfern Health Centre where many would go to avoid racist medical practices as well as the WW1 memorial park where the 1992 Redfern Address was delivered. The speech, in which Prime Minister Paul Keating claimed responsibility for all European abuse towards Indigenous Australians, is considered one of the most unforgettable speeches in Australia.

The next neighborhood, the Rocks, is considered the birthplace of Australia as this was the first place of settlement by convicts who disembarked from  the First Fleet in 1788. While the indigenous Cadigal people who were actually the first to settle the land called this area Tallawoladah, the English convicts named it the Rocks due to the sandstone cliffs from which they eventually derived building material. The area started out as a site for convict labor and settlement (there was no jail for the convicts as imprisonment was not a term sentence, “only transportation”), though during Governor Macquarie's term, from 1810 to 1822, the neighborhood was marked by rapid expansion into a commercial hub. Throughout the years, the Rocks was also defined by the working class residents who lived in terrace style housing. The peer group lead us to Susannah Place Museum, which is an icon of the neighborhood's working class heritage as the restored homes survived demolition during the 1900 plague outbreak. Also, during the 1970s, residents worked together with unions to fight redevelopment and thus succeeded in preserving many historic buildings across Sydney. The Rocks is now a popular tourist destination just west of the Sydney Opera House.

Another area that escaped much redevelopment into massive housing complexes thanks to the opposition of residents and unions was Wooloomooloo. Difficult to pronounce but rich in history, this area was once a swampy mud flat. As our tour guides uncovered, the area has been continuously transformed since its founding as a farm in 1790 by waves of immigration, industrialization, and gentrification. What is most fascinating about the neighborhood is that one may walk a few blocks north from the murals depicting civil rights heroes on the viaduct under which many homeless are camped to the Finger Wharf, where affluent Australians, including movie star Russell Crowe, have taken residence in the converted shipping terminal. To the northeast of the Finger Wharf, the naval base at Potts Point can be seen, its enormous naval ships docked nearby. The naval base, which belonged to the British until 1911, prides itself on having the largest dry dock in the Southern Hemisphere, and therefore played an important role in many of Australia's wars.

Via bus, we were transported to the most anticipated neighborhood, Bondi Beach. Our hosts highlighted the Waverley Council headquarters, responsible for keeping order in the area around the time the Bondi Beach became available to the public in 1861. We were also led to the historic site of the Chinese flower market, a central point of the community since the late 1800s. The most prominent aspect of the tour, however, was the Bondi Surf Bathers' Life Saving Club. Established in 1907 in Bondi, the club was the first of its kind and remains a volunteer based organization, as well as Australian icon.

By the end of the tour, the temperature was over 90 degrees F, so many of us were ready to cool off in the crystal clear water and relax in the soft sand. It had been a long, hot day, but not long or hot enough to keep us from enjoying the beautiful Australian Shore.

This picture, taken by Melanie in Redfern, is of the flag representing Indigenous Australians designed by Harold Thomas in 1971.

Dick points out the Argyle Cut in the Rocks. The "Cut" is a passage through the sandstone originally created by hand using convict labor in 1843, completed in 1855.

Our group pauses in the shade in Wooloomooloo across from where the fish market once stood.

John explains the history of the Pott's Point naval base across the harbor. The crane in the background is the base's dry dock, the largest dry dock in the Southern Hemisphere.

The Bondi tour guides pose in front of the beautiful beach.