Sepia Saturday 256 : 29 November 2014



Alan from Sepia Saturday says:


As a general rule, if you take a daft photograph and then let it soak up eighty years of history it will become even dafter. This is certainly true of this 1930 photograph of the Swan Maiden's Carriage at the Grace Brothers Ball in Sydney, Australia. Grace Brothers were - believe it or not - a famous Department Store, and the strange scene depicted in this photograph (which comes to us by way of the Flickr stream of the Powerhouse Museum) is as strange as anything you might have seen in an episode of "Are You Being Served?". Possible themes for Sepia Saturday 256 include festivals, floats, feathers and fair maidens.

Ah Grace Bros....now that brings back memories.  When I was a slip of a gel (hard g), we used to live in Glebe and then I moved to Chippendale to my first share house.  I would walk past Grace Bros just about every day and admire it's cupolas.  Here are some views ...


and yesterday...well not yesterday...but you know what I mean....



This is taken from the bottom of Broadway.  You can see the cupolas in the distance on the right.  Sydney Uni campus is up on the top left hand side.

The photo prompt today reminded me of a trip to Luna Park earlier this year.  The somewhat garish paintings on the walls have been preserved thankfully as a reminder of less politically correct times.  Check them out.  Kind of creepy....kind of fun.....kind of mad.....

This is what Luna Park looked like back in the 50s.  This is a slide from my husband's family collection



It has changed a little bit but not much.

Here are some photos of it now.  



This is the back of the entrance gate from the inside.

There were wedding parties there the night we went.  It's a very popular venue for weddings and 40th Birthday parties and the like.



Outside Coney Island....




Inside Coney Island.....

It probably all looks very quaint now by modern standards...timber floors (a fire trap now I suppose) but all I remember is the pounding of feet and shrieks of over excited teenage laughter. 




Those slippery dips are huge.  I admire my nephew and nieces for getting on a sack and sliding down them.









Did I mention politically incorrect?








See that blur in the bottom right of the photo?

That's nephew Charlie wizzing by!  What a hero!




Remember trying to walk on the moving floors?

First you spin around and then your legs are going in different directions!




Cough cough...ah yes...the little woman.


Last night we had our office Xmas party.  Much fun was had by all - Scavenger hunts, carol singing, secret Santa.  I am constantly amazed by the creativity of my colleagues...tables were decorated with the broad theme of Adventure .



Library luaus...


Our team's table - Dr Seuss theme - Oh the places you'll go!


Riding the Peace Train !  The hippies were lots of fun.



The Lakers table won best table and it was just stunning - such detail and thought.


I was channeling The Cat in the Hat.  
Who knew tinsel makes you hot? Well not hot but you know, warmish.


photo credit to Amy Etherden - party organiser extraordinaire


All in all a great night but I'm a bit weary today.

I know I haven't provided many Sepia photos today....but I hope I ticked some boxes....for more silly season festivus click here.

Comments

Jofeath said…
We took our kids to Sydney's. Luna Park once or twice when we lived there, but I don't think they really appreciated the nostalgic aspects of the place, compared with the modern theme parks they were used to. Looks like the office party was a fun night!
Postcardy said…
The old slide with the big face makes Luna Park look more scary than fun.
Pat's Posts said…
A magnificent array of photos & cards, yes today those politically correctors would not allow the same cards...another Grace Brothers explanation for me.
Such fun photos! The Coney Island photos are particularly hilarious. Thanks for sharing!
Barbara Rogers said…
That's a great post...I now know lots about an old amusement park, as well as a department store. And someone who shall not be named made a comment on my blog about the store, so now I know where that was coming from.
ScotSue said…
What a fun collection of photos and your post complemented Jo' s post. We talk about today's traffic, but that road was certainly busy then.
Boobook said…
"Now and then' photos are fascinating. A fun post - especially the Christmas Party. Looks like the workers were planning instead of working:)
Alex Daw said…
Thanks Jo. The office party was an unmitigated success I think.
Alex Daw said…
Hi Postcardy. It does look a bit scary.
Alex Daw said…
Thanks for dropping by Pat. I'm glad you enjoyed the post.
Alex Daw said…
Thanks Teresa. It was fun to go back to Coney Island as an adult.
Alex Daw said…
Hi Barbara. I'm glad you are feeling more informed and I hope entertained too!
Alex Daw said…
Thanks ScotSue. Wasn't Jo's post great? I thought Broadway looked very busy for the time. Some things don't change do they?
Alex Daw said…
Hi Lorraine. Thanks for dropping by. I'm glad you found the post interesting. Yes there was lots of planning going on at work!
Mike Brubaker said…
A wonderful post! I wish modern amusement parks still had the old charm. That was real fun.
La Nightingail said…
Your post reminded me of the Fun House at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk here in Calif. The tall bumpy wooden slides you slid down on a burlap sack, the rolling tunnel, the floors that jiggled this way & that & bumped up & down - so much fun. I loved it all. But it's all gone now - replaced completely by electronic game machines. What a shame.
Unknown said…
That's really you, isn't it, in the Cat in Hat outfit? What a fun post...never knew that Grace's Dept. Store was a real place; I remember that sitcom...how absolutely ridiculously funny it was!
Little Nell said…
Walking staircases remind me of an attraction at the fair of my childhood; it was called the cake walk. I wonder if it was similar.
Anonymous said…
I just can't imagine having a wedding at Luna Park. The noise for one thing. But a lovely nostalgic blog. Long live political incorrectness.
Wendy said…
The old Luna Park gates were kinda creepy, for sure! You do great cat-in-the-hat makeup! What a fun party that must have been.
I favour creepy for the Luna Park gates. I didn't get to Sydney until my late teens and I was on my own...I've never been tempted, but amazed by what's behind those gates. Equally impressed by your innovative work Xmas...loved your getup!

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