Remember this photo not so long ago, showing Heartbreak Hill in Sydney, which is New South Head Road. The photo would have been taken in the late 1950s. I used the photo before a friend who made the City2Surf run.
I thought I would take a look on Street View. And having travelled on the road by bus during our last Sydney visit in March, I correctly guessed the location.
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So this is the best I could do with how the road looks now, sans trams. You can see the steps up to a house on the left are still much the same. The wrought iron railings look to be the same.
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PS, this should be posted tomorrow, Australian time. The US date system got me again.
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It's difficult to recognise some places years later. You did well.
ReplyDeleteJB, you are quite correct, as I find out often enough.
DeleteI see it, but it's lost its charm; now it's just another road.
ReplyDeleteQuite so Bob. Didn't it look so much more interesting in the old photo.
DeleteThe same and yet so different. It always feels a little strange to me going back to a familiar place after a long time has lapsed - sometimes things seem to have shrunk, sometimes enlarged. Happened to me recently in Oxford, an area that was once so familiar is being developed and was almost unrecogniseable. Sorry, I may not have worded that very well.
ReplyDeleteAlison in Wales x
Alison, I usually think shrunk, especially anything from childhood. I understand what you mean. We visited Oxford a few years ago and it is hard to believe it isn't an old city preserved to amuse and entertain tourists. Does anything serious happen in Oxford? Like do normal people live there and, lol, are there schools?
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DeleteAlison x
We lose a heap of charm with development don't we?
ReplyDeleteEC, we do indeed. The greening of our cities has been great but trees and shrubs do block a lot of previous views.
DeleteOh my gosh. What a difference, hey?
ReplyDeleteSandra sandracox.blogspot.com
Sure is, Sandra.
DeleteThings do change rapidly over time
ReplyDeleteRoentare, for sure, they do.
DeleteSo much scenery looks more sterile and overdeveloped to me now. A lot of the Charm or Natural Beauty is just Lost.
ReplyDeleteBohemian, while I agree with you, isn't it better that we have a lot more greenery in our cities now?
DeleteWhy did Sydney get rid of its elegant trams? Buses pollute and stink.
ReplyDeleteHels, during the second 20th century botheration, Sydney trams had its highest usage ever. The system wasn't maintained as resources were directed to the war effort and it was run into the ground. Nevertheless, good new trams were still being delivered until 1953. But tracks etc were worn out and a massive amount of capital needed to spend. Ridership was falling in favour of cars and trams were 'getting in the way' of traffic. The bus, the tyre and the petrol companies convinced the government of the day to get rid of trams, and the bus replacements could not cope with the loadings and so more people deserted public transport. By '61, trams were gone, most burnt on a pyre at Randwick Depot.
DeleteI agree with Bohemian. The top picture has much more charm to it, but who knows? Maybe 70 years from now, your picture will have much more charm than whatever that street looks like then.
ReplyDeleteKirk, that's an interesting thought. Pity we won't see what things are like in seventy years. The way I am, I think seven years is ambitious.
DeleteYou did well to find the right spot to make the comparison. Other than those steps, very little has remained the same.
ReplyDeleteFun60, I don't how I immediately picked where it was just by looking at Google Map. It is a bit hard to know as greenery hides some buildings, but when I was looking around I could see more than the Google photo showed.
DeleteThe blue car in the older photo, seems to be leaning into the curve a bit much. We should bring back the trams.
ReplyDeleteTP, somewhat alarmingly so. Worn out shock absorbers is my guess?
DeleteCool juxtaposition Andrew
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteThat stretch of road doesn't have much character anymore, does it? Such a shame.
ReplyDeleteSteve, remove the character and the prices go sky high, in this area to eye watering levels.
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