Sydney:

It's a place I visited , and still do , almost every week. It's the car trip up the mountain, the traffic jams, my favorite drive on my L's . But I am not talking about the outskirts or outter suburbs... No I am talking about the the City :)

Why does the city fascinate me as a Photographer?
 Well it is the sheer reality in which is too obvious that we over look. If most of us think of Sydney City, we think of taxis, loud busses, impatient people, tourists, business men, the green and blue blurs that depart Central Station every 5 minutes....But it is something more obvious. We think of it as the Mecca for all things tourism, all things big, all things globally recognised....Or are they? Because there is something more obvious even the daily commuters miss. When we go to the city , we get the bus , or we walk, or monorail, or tram our way around....Yet we miss the obvious.

What is the obvious you ask ? Well here it is.

I , personally, find it amazing that we can have busy streets, a near miss between a taxi and some bloke's flashy BMW every 3 minutes ,people bowling over others for that last can of Mother Energy drink , yet walk about 12 steps, andhave peace, serenity , calmness.
Now , let's face it, if we want a place to go ready a quiet book , none of our light bulbs ding to the tune of Hyde Park, but let me ask....Why Not ?

Yes it is smack bang in the middle of a busy street, even has one running through it. Yes , daily commuters walk through it...But, is there a method to their madness?

I recently have become addicted to Sydney , after getting up at 4AM to go and spend the day in the rush hour , to get photos of the city for my overseas friends....And althought I always new I loved the rush of a city, something has got me really hooked lately, and now, I can't stay away.

Why? There is so much over-looked in the city by those who walk the dashed white stripes that join the cold concrete tiled pavements.....The quiteness of the city.

ARE YOU CRAZY? you are probably asking ....No , I'm not

See , Hyde Park is the example I will use , is so much out of the norm for the city , yet if you look up , you find yourself staring up at some poor guy , stuck in an over air conditioned block , bashing his photocopier.
But, yet, it isn't the city.

Bright green grass, contrasts the pavement, benches provide a great  place to stop and do a visual panorama with your eyes and take in the view. If you listen closely, you hear the underpaid cabbies screaming, the loud busses and their engines running off a single drop of oil, yet it isn't.
The park is such an escape. I find myself drifting to Hyde Park every time I go , like some sort of jet on Auto-Pilot, I always have to go. It is just so peaceful, so calm.

It might be the characters I meet there. The people who are left homeless and have stories to tell on how  they once had a home , and a successful job , and even a family ,and are just wanting someone to provide an open ear. Or is it the elderly people that go to feed the birds that flock there for their own escape?  Or is it the Italian and Chinese guy who play chess from 7am-8pm everyday, even though they bicker at each other and fight and squabble and throw each other's chess pieces? Is it the council workers who are lucky enough to have that office , yet, still lean on the truck in their Hi-Vis , complaining about how hard their job is , and having their own argument on the best football team?

It may be the features of the park. Even thought he chess players seem to be a permanant fixture, I mean the real fixtures. Like the golden fountains which spray the clear H20 down a series of man-made cascades providing one of the peaceful sounds of the park.Is it the gardens of which those Football loving council workers maintain? Is it the old , rustic paths , is it the dominating trees which , when walking through them to the grand fountain, make you feel like you are going into Narnia or something?

I think it is all of those things that come together to just create magic in the heart of the city. A Great Escape. A holiday in your lunch break.

I ask you , if you have time on your next journey to Sydney to stop , and stand there in any given spot, and just breathe in (try not to get too much diesel fumes) , and smell the smells of the city, watch everyone/everything rush past you and feel the city flow through you......Knowing that you can , if from Wollongong, take the 2 hr train home and enter a completely different type of oasis.

Thanks for reading ,
Take care. Brok (Syncrahnize Photography)