An attempt to visit every suburb in Sydney.

Here I am back in the Inner West once more. This is a suburb I'd never been to before this visit and I have to say, I was pleasantly ...

Inner Best: Annandale


Here I am back in the Inner West once more. This is a suburb I'd never been to before this visit and I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised.

Annandale

So Annandale is one of those Inner West suburbs that you never hear about, I guess because it has no train station. A twenty-odd-minute bus ride from Central Station down Parramatta Road dropped me off right in the town centre.


Immediately, central Annandale left a good impression on me, with the historic post office,


a little park thing you can sit at,

and an attractive old pub greeting me right as I got off the bus.

I was due to meet someone around here for a coffee in about an hour so I departed the commercial area for now and headed into residential Annandale.

Here, I found the type of streets that are fantastic to walk through but difficult to photograph. Annandale immediately provided me with plenty of old houses, terraces and apartments to look at, but the generous amount of trees do make my pictures a little bit naff.

At the end of the street is this very Inner West scene.

Across the road from that cafe, I passed through a small park featuring a playground and war memorial.

I continued through, departing the smaller residential street and making my way back onto Johnston St - Annandale's main road.

Things continue getting more Inner West from here.

You've got your standard Westconnex protests.

a Latin American hammock shop,

and plenty more quirky houses.

As well as that, kids going to Annandale North Public School get to study in this awesome building.

As I continued along, I soon hit some stairs which I decided to go down after being teased by this scene.

This took me back to my earlier residential street, but on this side, Annandale starts to get a little bit scraggly.

At the end, I hit one of the best parks I've visited for this blog so far.

This park is great for a number of reasons:

1. People are actually using it. I've complained on this blog far too often that we have a beautiful city and yet everywhere I go, it seems like nobody is out and about enjoying it.

2. It's a dog park. That means that there's dogs scamping about. Dogs are cute.

3. The light rail bridge running over it is beautiful, in a grungy sort of way.

4. It's on the water, and you get an unusual view of two of our city's great bridges.

A++ would visit again.

I have to deduct points though for the park thinking that it's called Bicentennial Park. Sorry Annandale, but Bicentennial Park is the one next to Sydney Olympic Park. Google calls this place Federal Park so I'll go with that instead. 

Needing to get back to the town centre, I left Federal Park. 

By the park is a rail bridge,

featuring a beautifully hideous troll underneath.

As I continued on back, Annandale kept dishing up amazing historic houses which I am far too incompetent to photograph well,

as well as some more standard offerings.

I was back in the commercial centre after not too long. 

For some reason, it thinks its a village. Come on Annandale, you're very nice but stop taking the piss. 

After meeting my coffee-date, Google the wise suggested we do a cafe just around the corner called Clover.

The coffee and hot chocolate was good enough, 

and we also shared French toast sticks.

These turned out to be a delicious abomination.

There's a very fine line between brunch and dessert, but when you include chocolate-peanut mousse next to your french toast, you are definitely over the dessert line. All I can say is that this tasted like hugs. 

My goal was now to head back home, but rather than taking a bus from the same spot I landed in, the goal was to head the few blocks south to Parramatta Road and catch the bus from there.

On the way, Annandale couldn't help but be like "hey I've got some more historic buildings for you to look at"

including this very impressive church.

To balance the scales, I was also offered a Buddhist temple (albeit with very limited street visibility).

Made it.

Ah Parramatta Road, Sydney's backhair.

From this above-average Parramatta Road corner (featuring the historic Goodman's Buildings), a bus took me back to Central.

Annandale: Add 1 part heritage buildings, 1 part brunch and 1 part Inner West weirdness to a tree-lined tin. Bake for 45 minutes and serve with puppies. 

9 comments:

  1. Good to see the suburb I live in finally visited.
    To find out more information on those cool looking houses google The Witches' Houses Annandale, some interesting history behind them and Annandale

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    1. Yes some folks on Reddit linked this site which gives info info on these houses http://sydneyarchitecture.com/LEI/LEI03.htm

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  2. Any chance you'll do Glebe one day? If you had continued through Bicentennial/Federal Park, you would have entered the Glebe foreshore walk - it's stunning and well used by the locals. There are also some stunning houses on Toxteth rd, Boyce st, and Arcadia rd... plus others. And city views! And Broadways shops! And the Tramsheds...etc....

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    1. The plan is to do every suburb so yes I will do Glebe sooner or later. I agree, it is a beautiful suburb to visit!

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  3. You should have come past our house - the old Annandale Fire Station! Also, Whites Creek has a lovely little wetland area and good idea stopping at Clover! Bit silly calling it "Annandale Village" I agree. Shame you added a photo of Jodie McG. folowers - I would not promote them at all - not very nice and very bad service. You've done a great job documenting Annandale!

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  4. I’ve had nothing but great service over 17 years of shopping at Jodie McGregors. Must be you!!

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  5. There are 3 named parks on the Glebe foreshore: Federal Park,West of Johnstons Creek, then Jubilee Park and Bicentennial Park are on the East side.

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  6. I recently visited Sydney for the first time, and for part of my visit stayed in an Airbnb on Johnston St, Annandale. I LOVED it. This is a great take on a very beautiful area with amazing architecture. Plus, I found it has a homely feel that I wasn't expecting in the inner suburbs of the "big smoke" (I live in Perth). I can't wait to return and explore more, as 2 days definitely wasn't enough!

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed your visit, Anandale is lovely. I quite like Perth too now that you mention it. Hope you're able to come back soon :)

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