This past week brought some Sydney action complete with all the usual harbour bridges, opera houses and beaches, plus a touch of industrial heritage, a couple of dodgy pubs, Eastern Suburbs pram pushers, fairground rides, the sexiest Westfield food court in the world, regression models and a chimichanga. Wouldn’t get all that in Canberra now would we?!
I was here for a work conference which was happily located in Luna Park, on the north side of that bridge thing. Like the weather, the conference was all sunny periods one minute,
dark clouds and torrential downpours the next. The highlight was the free fairground rides at the end, combining just superbly with the sufferings of a previous night on the turps. If you look closely you might see me taking a few deep breaths on one of the rides.
The weekend weather was pretty fine though – the birds certainly seemed to enjoy it at 5am – and it was a nice clear view from the legendary Westfield food court in Bondi Junction over the city and harbour. Of course it was inevitable that I would hit the harbour one way or another. For a change though it wasn’t the usual Manly ferry but a boat ride to Cockatoo Island, home of evil magpies and dangerous seagulls and no cockatoos. This was something of a contrast to all the usual glitz and glamour of the harbourside, instead providing an interesting look back on what has been a former convict island, a site of some serious shipbuilding and a soon to be campsite. The really good thing was the way you could wander around at will, sometimes quite eerily, at other times thinking you could be in a movie set or one of those pop videos with some dancing girls or something.
Normal service was resumed in the afternoon, with a beautiful ride over the water to Taronga and a bus ride through wealthy parts to Balmoral Beach, a sedate spot to stroll on the beach, walk over to an island and generally feel jealous of the youth of today.
It was also an ideal spot to take a tokenistic snap of me on a beach just to say here I really am. I urge you to notice once again the very important wearing of shorts. Also, notice the reasonably clean shaven look which is not set to last as Movember approaches.
The journey ride back to Circular Quay was pleasing as the sun lowered in the sky on the last day before daylight savings.
I was here for a work conference which was happily located in Luna Park, on the north side of that bridge thing. Like the weather, the conference was all sunny periods one minute,
dark clouds and torrential downpours the next. The highlight was the free fairground rides at the end, combining just superbly with the sufferings of a previous night on the turps. If you look closely you might see me taking a few deep breaths on one of the rides.
The weekend weather was pretty fine though – the birds certainly seemed to enjoy it at 5am – and it was a nice clear view from the legendary Westfield food court in Bondi Junction over the city and harbour. Of course it was inevitable that I would hit the harbour one way or another. For a change though it wasn’t the usual Manly ferry but a boat ride to Cockatoo Island, home of evil magpies and dangerous seagulls and no cockatoos. This was something of a contrast to all the usual glitz and glamour of the harbourside, instead providing an interesting look back on what has been a former convict island, a site of some serious shipbuilding and a soon to be campsite. The really good thing was the way you could wander around at will, sometimes quite eerily, at other times thinking you could be in a movie set or one of those pop videos with some dancing girls or something.
Normal service was resumed in the afternoon, with a beautiful ride over the water to Taronga and a bus ride through wealthy parts to Balmoral Beach, a sedate spot to stroll on the beach, walk over to an island and generally feel jealous of the youth of today.
It was also an ideal spot to take a tokenistic snap of me on a beach just to say here I really am. I urge you to notice once again the very important wearing of shorts. Also, notice the reasonably clean shaven look which is not set to last as Movember approaches.The journey ride back to Circular Quay was pleasing as the sun lowered in the sky on the last day before daylight savings.
In the quay, a huge passenger liner was taking up all the space and views but deciding to leave for the night, doing a uu-ey at the harbour bridge and heading out towards the heads. It provided quite a spectacle on top of the thousands of people quaffing by the opera house and watching the sun set.
The daylight saving jetlag kicked in on Sunday, but a coffee in Centennial Park helped out, along with a strong desire to avoid the biggest pram push of the year which was going on. To be truthful, it was nothing on a walk through Swilly to Plymco! Eastern suburbs pram pushing is a totally different affair, all designer ‘pushchairs’ 
and jolly well behaved children. The park is pretty big though, so it is easy to escape the many kids birthday parties going on.
Nearby, is Woollahra, home of Elle McPherson and er, I can’t remember many other facts. Has a nice place for pizza though and is quietly leafy. By this time, I was ready for a nice afternoon nap and it wasn’t long until I boarded the coach back to Canberra and tried in vain to sleep my way past Mittagong and Collector. The coach was pretty quick though and especially good was the fact that it was still light when I got back. Bring on the summertime!
and jolly well behaved children. The park is pretty big though, so it is easy to escape the many kids birthday parties going on.Nearby, is Woollahra, home of Elle McPherson and er, I can’t remember many other facts. Has a nice place for pizza though and is quietly leafy. By this time, I was ready for a nice afternoon nap and it wasn’t long until I boarded the coach back to Canberra and tried in vain to sleep my way past Mittagong and Collector. The coach was pretty quick though and especially good was the fact that it was still light when I got back. Bring on the summertime!
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