Sydney, New South Wales, is one of the world's great cities, well-organised and well-developed but still very relaxed with several fine green spaces - most notably the cockatoo-frenzied Royal Botanic Gardens.
Australia's main cities are all designed in the same vein: spacious, attractive waterfronts, plenty of greenery and pedestrian-friendly sidewalks but Sydney hit the biggest seam with the world's largest natural harbour - and absolutely gorgeous it is too.
Trivia: the world's second largest harbour? Poole, south England. And Botany Bay, Captain Cook's first landing point, is an industrial zone about 10kms south of Sydney.
A capital city: Some deluded folk think Sydney is Australia's capital, or possibly Melbourne. Not at all, it's a city in Australia's south-east that few tourists visit [Bugcrew included], Canberra, purpose built because politicians could not afford to give the title to either of the two serious contenders - Sydney and Melbourne - for fear of dreadful sanctions from the great and good of the losing city.
Still, Sydney - aka 'Sin City' by locals though we can't imagine why, the sinny side must be well hidden - is unquestionably the city that tourists have to see, along with Uluru and Cairns for a minimum Australia experience. Melbourne, it's true, is very pleasant, but it lacks the harbour and being further south the climate is cooler - some even liken it to Britain's dire weather.
Climate: And on the subject of weather...don't expect too much from Sydney. Rain is not uncommon in any season, nor sweater-inducing temperatures, though in all probability your shorts [short pants] will see considerable usage. Just don't wear tiny tight shorts like too many of Sydney's older, pot-bellied underclass males - unless you're a fit young female of course. And if you yearn for guaranteed sunshine then the central east coast is your best bet, where 300 days of sunburn is apparently the norm. Probably the best time to visit Sydney is March, April, Oct, Nov when temperatures are moderate and crowds are reduced by school terms, though if you are a show freak and organised enough to book ahead then January's Sydney Arts Festival month might suit you. Sadly, without a mad 'Fringe' Festival that Scotland's Edinburgh does so well, Sydney's event is rather staid, lacking in fire and not worth making a special effort to attend.
The Bugcrew preferred the larger and lower-key Manly beaches to Bondi. Manly has a small but well-supplied village feel to it, with plenty of bars and eateries, not to mention a lot of low cost accommodation near the beach and good surf gear rental places adjacent. Then there's the lovely ferry ride through the harbour to Manly from the city centre vs. the not very pretty urban train/bus ride to Bondi. On the other Bondi's beach folk are arguably more glamorous and the coastal path south is stunning, while Manly's walks are not so inspiring...Visit both but stay in Manly if you have the time?
Sydney Pictures: the few Sydney Pictures following, as usual are not attempting to capture every aspect of the city, merely to give a hint of the ambience.
Cuisine: Sydney is a fairly asian-oriented city with an extensive area in the centre where the anglo-saxon look is rare and sushi is menu du jour though in other areas rat coffins [meat pies] are an Australian quick-eat tradition. Generally seafood is big and white wine with oysters scoffed beside Circular Quay are a must, though Darling Harbour, a rebuilt-for-tourists dock area is where many travellers end up spending their dollars.
Outside the city and away from the surf-smashed beaches lie a good few National Parks though the #1 tourist target is the cool Blue Mountains with its canyons, cliffs, dense forests, waterfalls, good bushwalks and mad activities. A train from Central Station takes a couple of hours to travel the 109kms to the Blue Mountains' staging point, chilly and attractive Katoomba. But don't expect to see any 'roos leaping around! |
