A new era has dawned for Newcastle. Built on the back of convicts and forged by fire and steel, NSW's second largest city is midway through a mighty metamorphous from industrial port to contemporary, thriving metropolis.
Tug boats hustle freighters on the briny harbour, students stream in for classes at the vertical university building, cafes serve up single origin brews, surfers jog home barefoot from a morning wave.
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Along the main street, light rail whisks passengers past an ever-expanding gallery of striking street art while cranes reach for the sky filling in the city's jagged skyline.
Best known for coal, steel and the band Silverchair, you could easily fail to recognise the former industrial city that once again stands on the cusp of a certain greatness at a time when small cities have special appeal.