Dixon Street

With a discordant soundtrack of blaring Canto pop, Dixon St is the heart and soul of Chinatown: a narrow, shady pedestrian mall with a string of restaurants and their urgently attendant spruikers (see Super Bowl ). The ornate dragon gates (paifang) at either end are topped with fake bamboo tiles, golden Chinese calligraphy (with English translations), ornamental lions to keep evil spirits at bay, and a fair amount of pigeon poo. This is actually Sydney’s third Chinatown: the first was in The Rocks in the late 19th century before it moved to the Darling Harbour end of Market St. Dixon St’s Chinatown dates from the 1920s.