Dinner

Thank goodness for easy cooking! Chicken kebabs with rice and salad. I threw chicken stock and thyme  in with the rice for added flavour.

Yesterdays post

Whoops! I was too tired to do my daily post yesterday (in the disguise of a travel journal) so here it is now.

Better late than never!

Nah, just kidding.

Today I'm grateful to my mother in law for offering us dinner this evening. It was very yummy and saved me from cooking at home. Thank you!
Amazing roast potatoes.

Final Day in Sydney

Awoke to the sounds of the council cleaning the streets. At least, I think that's what it was. When we went out later the streets and footpaths were certainly wet and it hadn't rained. They cleaned up very fast after the Australia Day festivities.
It was also the end of the Sydney Festival, of which they were shutting down and tidying up when we walked through contemplating our breakfast. I made the mistake of leaving the hotel a touch too early, as the few places that were open for breakfast didn't open until 9 or 10am.

I've just thought of something I failed to mentioned the other day. After the trip out to Bondi beach, we got off the bus at Hyde Park and had a wander around to look at the ANZAC memorial and the Archibald fountain. Both monuments are impressive, but of course they were what you would expect to see in the middle of an iconic park in the middle of a city. What you wouldn't expect to see would be something like, say, a blow up massive Stonehenge. Yes, that's unexpected.
It better come to Perth, that's all I can say! We didn't want to queue for over an hour to go for a bounce, so hopefully it does make an appearance here. Looking at it all deflated on the lawn after Australia Day did raise a giggle or two from me.

STOP PRESS! It is coming to Perth, thank God. Along with some other fantastic works of art and entertainment.

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/your-perth/ten-things-to-look-out-for-at-the-2014-perth-festival-20131108-2x5jm.html

After making bad inflatable jokes, we wandered off to the The Rocks in the hope of finding breakfast there and luckily we weren't disappointed. It was a cafe just next to the entrance of Suez Canal laneway, so we wandered up the lane after breakfast as we'd seen it on the first day but didn't want to deviate from our main street wander then.
I just love The Rocks for all it's twisty winding lane ways. Just when you think you couldn't find another one, there's an archway entrance with a bar or restaurant just around the corner.

I would recommend you pop into the Susannah Place museum and The Rocks Discovery museum. Unfortunately we only made it to the latter, as the SP museum only opened at 2pm and we weren't sure where we'd be then. The SP museum comprises of a corner shop circa 1800's with 3 houses attached. I will have to put it on the list for another Sydney trip another time.
The Rocks Discovery museum is a nice little place to explain the local Aboriginal people's culture and the significance of the area to them. Plus there's a bit on some notorious English blokes who made a name for themselves back in the First and Second Fleet days.

Bottom line, The Rocks was originally a small village which then turned into a bit of a slum and then a lot of it got knocked down by the government early on due to fears of the plague. I can understand why they did it; seeing the close quarters living and imagining disease being spread in the early days was quite scary.
Thankfully they didn't get too carried away with the demolition, and quite a few beautiful buildings still exist to wander into and around.

After checking out the local markets at The Rocks (some nice locally made stuff), we wandered back through Circular Quay to the lift that takes you above the station there and then a short walk across to the Royal Botanic Gardens.
The weather was quite warm, so I was taken by surprise and unfortunately got a tad burnt. By this stage though we were quite tired and footsore and in need of food and drink. So we only saw the Governor's House (from the outside) and some of the gardens before exiting and walking past The Domain (concert area) back to the CBD.

By this stage all the shops and food courts were open so we ended up in the Westfield Tower Eye complex for a bite to eat.
After that, a little shopping was required. Although I didn't find my new favourite store until after our afternoon coffee and cake. It took me about 10 minutes to find a heap of clothes I liked, try them on and pay for them. Whew!

We had a shuttle bus pick us up and take us to the airport, and this time we had a larger plane which meant two aisle four aisle two seating. The plane on the way over was smaller and we had another person sitting next to us (which was fine!). We also had no entertainment screens/options, so it was a good thing we bought magazines/books/tablets.
The larger plane on the way back had everything we've come to expect from flying, so I have no idea why we got such a crap plane on the way over. Thankfully Sydney is such a short flight that it doesn't matter.

Back to reality today - what to eat this week...fresh basil, tomato and pasta dish?

Australia Day Sydney

But first, the Lion King. The most amazing musical l have seen to date. l will waste no words more other than 'go see it'. The Capitol Theatre ain't too shoddy either! The interior is so glitz and glamour as to be almost camp; naturally I fell in love with it. Unfortunately they do tours on Mondays and not on public holidays. Ces't la vie.

Just got back from the fireworks for the 25th Australia Day celebrations here in Sydney. It was so crowded. I couldn't believe the number of people flooding down to Darling Harbour. For the actual fireworks they used classical music instead of pop songs which gave it all a really formal feel. To top it off, they sang the national anthem twice and both verses too! I can't remember the last time I heard both verses!!
So I feel very Australian right now, especially with all my newly aqquired mozzie bites.

Most of today was spent at Bondi beach townsite and surrounds, and it was very beautiful. We actually had a bit of drizzle and the rain clouds over the bay made for great photography. Despite the weather, there were plenty of people around for the annual floating Haviannas record attempt down on the beach. We wandered along the cliff side path past Bondi Icebergs and round the corner to views of Tamarama, Bronte and the infamous Waverly Cemetery which is precariously perched on the edge of a cliff.
Had I bought sensible shoes with me, we would probably have walked to Coogee, but I was very satisfied with what we saw. Wandering back from our turn around point, we walked through the suburban streets to check out the local properties. I loved the eclectic mix of buildings - more old than new and sometimes with just as eclectic paintwork.

There were also some local markets on at the Bondi Beach Public School which were excellent. There were heaps of locally made things so I'd definitely recommend it as a spot for some souvenir shopping.

Food notes

Lunch - a little pizza pasta and salad bar in a side street just off the main drag. Very nice. A little like Stuzzico, if you're looking for a comparison.

Dinner - Jamie's Italian! Very good. lncredibly efficient staff, fantastic food and a great atmosphere. We went in at about 5.30pm and didn't leave till 7pm.

A day of reflection

Today, the Powerhouse museum and the Chinese Garden of Friendship. Later, the theatre to see 'The Lion King'. Lovely mid weather again which made pounding the pavement more pleasant.

Breakfast was at a cafe in the QVB, but not quite as nice as we'd hoped. After wandering through a few more shops, we made our way down to Darling Harbour and the Powerhouse museum. It has a rather ordinary looking entrance, but an amazing interior. And it's huge. I got museum'd out by the end of it and we didn't even try to see all of it.
The cafe at the entrance makes it's own pies and tarts; l had the onion quiche which was delicious. My husband chose it for me so I'm still allowed to sleep in the same bed tonight.
Speaking of food, last night's dinner was at the food court in the Sydney Eye Tower at Dergarah (l think). We shared a plate for two of chicken and beef with side salads dips and bread.

Anyway, after the museum we spotted the old monorail station just next door and starting to look the worse for wear. There was no way to guess if it will be taken down or just stripped back to make a sort of memorial. 

On the retrace of our steps back to the hotel, we entered the Chinese Garden of Friendship (see below photo) which was incredibly elegant and serene. Even with a steady stream of fellow tourists! I think I managed to get some shots that were different in their perspective along with the expected photo opportunities. The 'take photos of stairs joke ' has now extended to taking photos of my hubby with his back turned. Makes for a nice photo in all seriousness. 

We wandered through Chinatown, then Paddy's markets (wonderfully tacky) and then past the Capitol Theatre on the way back to our hotel. We've scoped out a place for dinner called lzukaya Masashi so we shall see...

Sydney- Day One

Aways press the save key! Blogger app doesn't like you switching screens.*Sigh* Start again!

Flight perfect, weather perfect, Sydney perfect.

We did a massive walk after we checked in this afternoon - Town Hall, past the glorious and gorgeous Queen Victoria building shops, George street (slow incline), The Rocks (cool waterfall stairs), Harbour Bridge, and Dawes Point. Then the Sydney Observatory (steep incline, top of a hill!), Circular Quay, Sydney Opera House (more stairs), Pitt street, and the Sydney Tower Eye (elevator, yay!) to finish off the day.
Sydney is such a joy to walk around though, despite the stairs! And the weather is perfect, warm without being too hot. Perfect walking weather.

Sydney is a real eye opener to a Perthite, as it's so big and appears to have everything and at least twice of it. We spotted 4 or 5 McDonalds,  3 Telstra shops and way too many tacky opal jewelry stores for tourists. I can only assume that Sydney people exercise a lot as I'm sure they don't need quite so many McDonalds stores!

So I find myself in awe of Sydney and completely happy with it.  I can't wait to get out to the parks and the Powerhouse museum tomorrow. 
If my legs have recovered...

Travelling

In 9 hours or so I'll be on a plane to Sydney! Yay!
I am looking forward to seeing a little more of my wonderful country. So today I'm grateful for the ability to travel; physically, mentally and financially.

Food!

Today I'm grateful for food. Specifically the amount of food we can afford to buy, and therefore I can share my plate with my daughter and neither of us go hungry.
The stirfry tonight went down a treat!

Positive thought attempt

I am tested quite strongly with coming up with a  positive thought tonight as my daughter is currently screaming her head off for no reason. Why she can't throw tantrums in the day is beyond my comprehension. 

So tonight I am grateful for doors and a daughter with healthy lungs.

New Year's resolution

Dangerous subject, I know. I've never bothered before, but seeing as I've kept this blog mostly alive for the past year I figured I might just have the discipline for a resolution this year.

So, the resolution? To post positive things/thoughts for the day. But they will be my own, not something I've grabbed off the net. I find myself too often depressed,  stressed or grumpy and that's quite pathetic considering the great life I have. I guess that's today's positive thought then; I have a great life.

On a food note, I'm currently baking some orange and lemon biscuits ... http://more-to.org/2011/03/09/orange-lemon-cookies/.... with sr flour instead of baking powder, salt and plain flour. I will buy some baking powder. One day!
They smell amazing. Just waiting to see what the first batch come out like size-wise.

I'm also mixing up a batch of turkish apple iced tea, courtesy of T2. I've used two tsps of Turkish Apple, with two Bushells Extra Strong tea bags in 450mls boiling water. I'll wait till it cools down a bit then I'll give it the taste test.
The Turkish Apple is a bit pricier than their usual teas as it's a flavoured sugar mix more than it is a tea. So I'm going to attempt to stretch it out by using normal tea bags for added strength and flavour.
Gotta love experiments!