Hunting for antiques in Australia - Newtown and Sydney Fair Adventure

Vintage Sydney At Its Best!

Even before arriving in Australia I already know where I will be spending my only Saturday morning in Sydney. I have heard so much about Newtown and my passion for second hand thrift shops and antiques attracts me there like ants to sugar.

I leave my hotel in downtown Sydney immediately after a hearty breakfast and in less than thirty minutes the cab drops me off in front of the Newtown Neighbourhood Centre which also serves as the Town Hall building. The place is already bustling with activity. Stalls offering a wide variety of things from clothes to freshly baked croissants line the pedestrian footpath as far as my eye can see.

After browsing for some time I realise that most of the 'antiques' offered are mostly modern stuff which do not interest me. Fortunately some stall operators were quite helpful in suggesting that I check out the antique shops along King Street. They assured me that I will find old picture postcards as well as vintage black and white photographs. The only snag is that I am too early. I will have to wait another hour before the shops open.

Just as I am wondering where to spend the next sixty minutes I get a piece of advertisement shoved into my hand. It is a list promoting the popular eats around the area. A vast majority are your normal run off the mill type of joints. Luckily one sticks out like a sore thumb. The clincher is that it features my favourite tropical fruit - watermelon.  Now I know what I am going to do for the next hour or so.

Black Star Pastry (277 Australia St) is very easy to find as it is located directly opposite the imposing Newtown Court House. I take my place in the snaking line and patiently wait for my turn to place my order. In the meantime, I keep on wondering how the sweet watermelon can be successfully combined with the usually sour strawberry.

My Strawberry Watermelon cake is a feast for the eyes. It is a work of art with lots of reds, browns and greens interspersing each other. Now I understand why it is Black Star Pastry's signature and most requested cake. It reminds me of the street art I saw on the way. Newtown must be overflowing with lots of creative talent. I must have stared at my cake for a long time as the waitress came by and ask me if everything was alright!

I take my first bite of the gluten free cake. Three words immediately come to mind. Fresh, light and fragrant. The watermelon and strawberries are crunchy while the dried rose petals on top remind me of the scent of my rose bush in full bloom. The chef has brilliantly incorporated two layers of almond dacquoise with generous amounts of rose-scented cream and crushed pistachios. The result is simply brilliant.

Leaving Black Star Pastry a happy man, I quickly head to my next destination - the antique shops along King Street. King Street is the main street in Newtown. This is the place people from all over flock to for their shopping and entertainment. Together with Enmore Road, King Street boasts of more than 600 shop fronts. Some locals affectionately call it 'Eat Street' because of the presence of a large number of pubs, restaurants and cafes. It is also a good idea to venture to the smaller nearby streets as some of the excitement has also overflowed there.

I soon find myself immersing in boxes of old postcards and shelves full of dusty books. Deep in my heart I secretly hope to find something originating from home. Australian soldiers have been serving in Malaya and Singapore prior to the Second World War. Many Australian Imperial Forces (AIF) soldiers were interned during the Japanese Occupation. A large number of them died during incarceration. By a long shot, I may find a letter from these gallant men written in the theatre of war to their loved ones back home. Sadly though, at the end, I did not. However, something else equally satisfying did crop up.

I move from shop to shop like a bee in a sunflower field, fuelled by the delicious cake and the caffeine laced latte I had together with it. I am just into my fourth antique outlet when I finally find what I am searching for. Among a stack of old Australian correspondences I come across a letter sent from my hometown to Sydney, New South Wales. My heart skips a beat as I hold it in my hand. I am right! I can still find Malayan items in Sydney. Hopeful thoughts race through my mind. 'There must be more in the shops further down King Street!'

I return to the counter and show the nice lady the envelope. She stares at it for a while and then informs me 'One Dollar!' I cannot believe my ears. It is so cheap that I practically got it for a song. I pay her immediately and place the precious piece of paper safely in my bag. I then strike up a conversation with her, hoping to find out where she got the envelope. She tells me that most of the things in the shop are inherited from her late father and as far as she knows he used to attend garage sales and flea markets in the early days to acquire his possessions.

Before leaving, she hands me a ticket to to an antique fair happening that very day in Sydney. Talk about coincidence. I am now in a bind. Do I continue rummaging through the shops in Newtown or head over to the Byron Kennedy Hall on the other side of the city? I wish I can do both but my flight back to Malaysia is tonight. I need to be at the airport at least 3 hours before departure at 9pm.

Finally I decide to leave the remaining antique shops for my next trip to Sydney. The lure of the once in a year event is too much for me to resist. I bid the lady farewell and promised to be back again in future to view more of her wonderful treasures.

Byron Kennedy Hall is located next to the Hordern Pavillion. This area is often referred to as the entertainment quarter of Moore Park. I am glad to have the complimentary ticket or else I have to fork out A$15.

The first thing that hits me is that the fair is not for ordinary folks. The items here are very high quality. I mean really at the opposite side of the scale compared to the things I saw earlier today in Newtown. There are no dusty bookcases or boxes to go though. Everything here is well displayed and some of the prices here is enough for me to buy a good car back home.

I decide to make a quick walkabout to get a feel of things. There is such a diverse mix here including Art Deco furniture and 20th Century Industrial fittings. Most of the traders are busy attending to potential customers, answering questions pertaining to the items on offer. There is even a stall selling vintage jewellery, specialising in engagement rings. The young couple there must be choosing theirs judging from their body language.

Although the things here are not my cup of tea but I can finally come face to face with the things I usually see on television. I have often seen experts valuing Moorcroft pottery on the Antiques Roadshow series hosted by Fiona Bruce. Here I get a chance to hold these precious pieces of porcelain in my hands for the first time.

The star of the fair must be the stall belonging to Brendan Minogue. I like his advertising pieces which are very popular even back home in Malaysia and prices are ever escalating. I just cannot keep my eyes off his original Cadburys and Frys Chocolate display cabinets.  These are very, very rare and I am just amazed at how he could find them in such pristine condition since they were made for use about a century ago.

Byron Kennedy Hall used to be known as the Horden building. This year's Sydney Fair is held in its fabulous Art Deco ballroom said to be built in the 1920s. Finally, I manage to view the 'Little Black Dress' exhibition before hailing a cab to return to the hotel. Original works by famous names like Chanel, Balenciaga, Hubert de Givenchy and Jean Paul Gaultier are on display. The piece I like best is the one by the great 1950s designer, Ceil Chapman. He is, after all, Marilyn Monroe's favourite designer.

For more information about New South Wales and Sydney in particular, contact Destination NSW, Level 2, 88 Cumberland Street, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia. Tel: +61 2 9931 1111 Fax: + 61 2 9931 1490 Email: info@dnsw.com.au Website: www.destinationnsw.com.au


The last three images feature my published piece in the New Straits Times today Thursday 13 October 2016