Hello. Happy new year. This is the North Shore.
Lane Cove
I've spent plenty of time in Lane Cove National Park, but how's the suburb itself? A surprisingly short 10 minute bus from Wynyard is all it takes to find out.
This dropped me off by a funky footbridge.
Carry on, under the footbridge,
by what is clearly the council building,
and you'll immediately hit the town centre.
After looking at one heritage pub,
and checking out the city skyline far in the horizon,
I was now ready to explore Lane Cove CBD on this weekend morning.
All seemed to be fairly conventional, with services,
restaurants,
a florist,
and cafes.
Speaking of cafes, I dragged Mrs Completing Sydney out today to join me for some baked goods at Pottery Green Bakers. Now, let me tell you about a thing that I do. When I hear about some place interesting, anywhere in the world, I head to Google Maps and "save" the place. Over time, my map is completely littered with these. Well, when I went to head out to Lane Cove, I found out that past me had at one stage saved this place as a "want to go", and I have no recollection of when or why.
Regardless, if there's a dot on the map, I must answer its call.
The dot of infinite wisdom led me to some glass windows full of sweets. I'm talking brownies, tarts, cakes, anything with sugar in it.
Between us, our perfectly healthy breakfast was a curry beef pie (very good with chunky beef), an absolute unit of a lamington (good but a jam version could have helped rather than just the giant sponge), and a chocolate-raspberry circle cake thing (incredible, and the jam inside this filled the lamington's void).
This was washed down with a his-and-hers coffee and chai latte.
If you enjoy the equivalent of lollies for breakfast, you may wish to mark Pottery Green Bakers on your own map.
After marking the bakery off my map, I'm now left with a national park in China, a volcano in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the ice cream shop my mum used to go to growing up in Palestine, to name a handful. Those will have to wait.
So without past-me as a guide, what else can be found in Lane Cove CBD?
Well for one, there's this dog groomer,
where you can give your puppy one of those afros that old ladies have.
There's this fair trade shop (this is the North Shore, after all),
and, a little up the road,
there's a plaza,
with a fenced-off Christmas tree.
This plaza's actually very nice, and seems to be well enjoyed by the locals.
There was even a performer when I visited.
But my walk soon took me through the plaza,
and out of the other side.
Past a more old school bakery,
a fancy looking hifi shop.
And, where the commercial suburb ends and the residential begins, a small neighbourhood reserve.
From here, I was now in suburban Lane Cove, where I was treated to one mighty fine footpath.
It has pictures of trees on it,
as well as actual trees all alongside it.
The homes here are tidy,
dignified,
and older, as is custom for the North Shore.
This one is kind of funky.
But my stroll through Lane Cove didn't last too long,
and after a few minutes strolling through this pleasant chunk of the North Shore,
I hit this intersection, marking the border with my next suburb.
Lane Cove: As recommended by me, without my knowledge.
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