Words & Photography by Sevin Pakbaz. Edited by Joella Marcus.

Parramatta Road has been my muse lately.

I will continue to romanticise the 20-minute walk to my gym along this busy stretch. Despite the area being criticised for its grubby nature, I love staring into the abandoned buildings and trying to make sense of what they used to be. 

The other day my curiosity got the better of me and I ventured from Leichhardt to Annandale to probe the store owners for stories about this now-derelict space. Franco stood out to me, a chatty elderly Italian man selling kitchenware. He watched Parra Road change in front of his eyes—from a bustling social area to a source of traffic pollution. He described how trams used to run up and down the strip, and that “if you had a store on this road back then, you were a rich man”. Franco stood his ground, 30 years strong.

I met Lou and Terence, a lively father-son duo who operate an organic coffee shop and make homemade chilli oil. Next door, Billy, the owner of an antique store welcomed me in. I met Ken, another Parra Road resident, choosing to live in a collector’s shop due to cheap rent. He read the newspaper peacefully, uninterrupted while trucks sped past his window.

There’s magic between those dusty, forgotten walls. I see something new everyday. Parra Road is a visual lucky -dip, scattered with artifacts.The grimy music posters peeling back to reveal years of Sydney entertainment, foot fetish anonymous stickers and empty shops left behind with only their vintage banners identifying what once was. Drive by and you’ll easily miss the hidden character of Parra Road.