Parra News May 28 2024

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Issue 175
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Index
Troy Dodds
@troydodds
A team NSW fans can get behind
During the years that Queensland dominated
the State of Origin arena, as desperate as I
was for the Blues to win, it never really felt like
a team you wanted to get behind.
Now, with a fresh set of eyes, Michael Maguire
has delivered a Blues team that the whole
State should passionately barrack for next
Wednesday night.
It’s been quite a week out for a boy from Parramatta.
On Tuesday, I was summoned by my
boss for an intimate work dinner with clients
at a restaurant on the Opera House foreshore.
With the Harbour Bridge behind us, we
snacked on an “Indigenous Australian Grazing
Plate”, including lemon myrtle tandoori
crocodile, native thyme hummus and smoked
kangaroo.
By Friday evening, I was at the Sydney Writers
Festival at City Recital Hall in Angel Place.
The city’s intelligentsia were out in force with
their titanium metal glasses to hear from Richard
Flanagan and Anna Funder.
To the chink of bubbly and warm ‘Q&A’-style
applause, they expounded on the craft of writing
and the general lot of an author’s life.
And now we’re doing it all again with Vivid.
It’s Sydney’s annual showcase of lights,
lasers and installations, illuminated against
the city’s architectural landmarks – which this
year include train tunnels transformed into
fluorescent rave caves.
Vivid, which runs for three weeks until June
15, is now in its 14th year. Key locations of
the eight-kilometre Light Walk include Barangaroo,
Circular Quay, Darling Harbour and
Tumbalong Park.
There is an ancillary program of arts, music
and comedy events, as well as crackling,
sumptuous dishes at the Vivid Fire Kitchen
held along The Goods Line in Ultimo. This has
been converted into a public corridor from old
rail tracks.
Vivid has always been a great event and
Alan Mascarenhas
@alanmasc
News...........................................................1-15
Business................................................16-17
Life & Style..........................................17-18
How good is the story of Dylan Edwards at
fullback? From an outcast just five years ago,
to now a three-time Premiership winner, Clive
Churchill Medal recipient and the Blues fullback.
Nicho Hynes may not be the first choice
halfback for the Blues but he is one of the nice
guys of rugby league, and a fitting number 7.
showcase for Sydney. Less appreciated is that
it’s also an annual highlight for residents in
western Sydney.
It’s a low-cost family night out at a time when
cash is tight. We’re at a point in late autumn
when it’s not quite uncomfortably cold to be
outdoors. Already, Western Line trains are
filling in the evenings, before emptying out in
the city as Mums and Dads clutching thermal
flasks and beanie-clad babies pour out into
the streets.
I’ve often wondered about the special appeal
of Vivid for western Sydney. This year’s theme
is humanity and the search for meaning and
purpose, apt sentiments in today’s troubled
world.
I think the appeal has something to do with
the innate human attraction to light. We flock
to light, perhaps, in the hope that it will illuminate
some truth deep within.
We go for a morning walk, cycle with mates –
or catch waves at the beach – as the sun comes
up. We film, photograph and Instagram it. In
the Catholic Church, we light candles at the
altar and at crypts, even passing the flame
between the pews at special times of year.
For those in our community of Hindu or Sikh
background, Diwali is a time of year where
people decorate their homes with diyas to
attract joy, peace and goodness. Muslims all
over the world similarly believe in a deity that
is the “light of the heavens and the earth”.
Whatever the reason, Vivid’s appeal taps into
something universal. It is an event for everyone
– and no coincidence that the families
Entertainment................................19-29
Business Directory.....................30-31
Sport..............................................................32
As you look through this New South Wales
side, there’s so many great stories that go
along with it.
I’m confident Maguire has found the perfect
balance and the Blues can kick off the series
with a win next Wednesday night.
The Origin arena is the best rugby league has
got. This series will be something special.
Vivid is more than just a light show
packing onto those trains reflect the full multicultural
diversity of our suburbs.
The reality is that for many of us living in the
Parramatta and Cumberland region, heading
into the city these days is also a big novelty,
even an adventure. When I dined at the Opera
House or attended that Writers Festival
event, a part of me felt like a stranger, a tourist
in my own city. It reflects how far we’ve come
in seeing Parramatta and the greater West as
something analytically distinct from the Sydney
CBD.
While it’s fun to get onto the train and soak
up the atmosphere, the corollary is that perhaps
it’s time we shouldn’t need to. From
Parramatta to Harris Park to Cabramatta, Fairfield,
Liverpool and Lakemba, we have major
suburban centres, attractions and iconic
buildings that should be sharing in the Vivid
spirit.
According to the most recent figures, Destination
NSW spent just $2.5 million of its $82.5
million budget in 2021-22 on tourism-generating
projects west of Olympic Park.
There is always talk of bringing Vivid to
Western Sydney. The Sydney Festival and Film
Festival always have offshoots events in the
suburbs, which come off a bit token. But as
for the upcoming South by Southwest Festival
actually being held in Sydney’s south-west?
Forget about it.
So, let’s enjoy this year’s spectacular attractions
in the Sydney CBD. But always remember,
that the places where we live are already
pretty vivid as well.
For more local news as it
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4 parra news » Tuesday, May 28, 2024