Instead of my usual train from North Sydney to my home in the Inner West I decided to take the ferry to Balmain and bus it from there. The reason I did this is that any opportunity to enjoy Sydney Harbour by boat and to more explore a historic suburb I find interesting and beautiful is always a welcome one.
Despite the dull and overcast weather, the view of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House from Milson's Point Ferry Wharf is always breathtaking, along with pleasant views of Lavendar Bay and Walsh Bay across the harbour. The public ferries are a cheap and convenient way to see the sort of "Million Dollar Views" that usually adorn postcards, as anyone who has taken the Sydney-Manly ferry service can attest to.
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| The view from Milson's Point Ferry Wharf |
The short trip to Balmain Ferry Wharf takes in impressive views of the Harbour Bridge, the skyline of the Sydney Central Business District and Goat Island. I arrived at Balmain at Mort Bay and saw a number of cheerful sights in the adjecent park - groups of people doing exercise drills, children playing and riding bicycles and older people fishing from the edge of the wharf.
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| Fishing at Mort Bay |
Named after colonial surgeon Dr. William Balmain who was granted the land by Governer John Hunter in 1800, industrial and residential development and settlement started in the 1830s and 1840s and soon Balmain became a prominent industrial area for the working class of Sydney. Since the 1960s, industry has waned in Balmain to be replaced by increasing industrial gentrification - Sydney's middle class attracted by Balmain's beauty and proximity to the city. Many of the old factories have been replaced by low-rise residential developments. Former Prime Minister Paul Keating once described the burgeoning middle class of the suburb as the "Basket Weavers of Balmain".
Heading up the hill to Balmain's high street are streets of attractive Victorian and Federation-era houses of different styles. Also of note were two colonial-era pubs I passed, the Dry Dock Hotel (Balmain's oldest licensed pub, dating from 1857, and with charming decor) and the Free-Classical style Royal Oak Hotel (opened in 1878, and important in the history of the Australian Union Movement).
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| Dry Dock Hotel, 22 Cameron Street |
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| Royal Oak Hotel, 36 College Street |
I had the impression that these pubs, inevitably due to their ages, have a cosy British Pub-type feel, along with a good range of beers and provision of food that would make them worthwhile drink stops in any traveller's discovery of Balmain.
Darling Street, the main street of Balmain, has a plethora of interesting bijoux clothes, health and beauty shops, pubs and restaurants fairly close together. Even on a Tuesday night, bars such as Cantina Bar and the Cottage seemed busy and vibrant with a young crowd and decent music.
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| The Cottage Bar and Kitchen |
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| Cantina Bar |
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Other notable places on Darling Street are Monkey Bar and the beautifully restored 140+ year-old London Hotel, from which one can avail of the restaurant, observe the Harbour Bridge from its balcony and enjoy its boutique beers and ciders. The beautiful Gladstone Park, sitting above the historic Balmain reservoir, provides areas for outdoor relaxing and contemplation.
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| Gladstone Park |
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| London Hotel, 234 Darling Street |
As far as interesting and entertaining inner suburbs go, Balmain has much to offer the inquisitive traveller, and rarely disappoints.
