Australian Adventures, Part IV - Hyde Park and The Australia Museum
Well, what else is there to describe in Sydney? Ha. What's there NOT to describe in Sydney?
I took a ferry to Manly and back. The view was incredible. The waters in the harbor were well-protected enough to keep the ride from getting choppy until we came out in to the open ocean. But the scene from behind was beautiful. The harbor bridge really is an enormous site, spanning the deep inlet to both sides of a district full of sky-scrapers and green trees. The Opera House is in a beautiful position along the bay, glowing in the sunlight. I think its best sight is definitely at night, when the muted tones of yellow make it glow an iridescent white. During the day, the sunlight reflects its architecture better, so you can see the scales that form the "sails," which are definitely out of the 1970s. Still, it is an incredible landmark, and beautifully positioned. Right behind it are the Royal Botanic Gardens, which I had a wonderful opportunity to run through. The gardens are filled with both native flora, and sections of well-maintained exotics. I had to ignore the hoard of fruit-bats (technically - flying foxes) that were hanging in the banana trees of one section. The gardens consider them a pest and are trying to remove them to prevent the guano from damaging the plants. Despite that, the gardens, like many parks in Australia, are very accessible. You can pretty much run anywhere on the place, touch any of the plants, and roll around on the lawn. Its a very friendly environment. In one of the public lawns just south of the park, there was even an outdoor concert. Apparently I lucked out with January being the Sydney Festival, where the city had events going on all over the place throughout the month. I tried going one night to see on of my favorite groups do a performance of Gypsy Music. The music was great, and the sight was incredible, but the hordes of people made it a bit uncomfortable to be there.
A few times I had a run through Hyde Park and up to the Botanical Gardens. The harbour views always made running by the water just beautiful, and its always nice to have a good iPod sound-track to assist in the beauty. On my way through Hyde park, I stopped for a bit and just walked, enjoying the canopy of over-arching live oaks that reached overhead. There was also a beautifully sculpted fountain at the center, designed with a Greek Mythology motif including Apollo, Theseus, and Artemis. There was a guy playing bag-pipes there, which made for another moment of picturesque beauty combined with sonorous melody. Turned out he was Canadian and collecting donations for his own world-tour. Seems like a fun way to get around, playing bagpipes in various cities of the world and traveling.
At Hyde Park I stopped by an Italian cafe for some tasty eats. Had a delicious chicken salad in vinaigrette with a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, perfect for the warm outdoor weather and sun. The main was home-made artichoke ravioli with sun-dried tomatoes and cheese. I was stuffed by the end of the affair, but so glad that I had courted it.
I ended up staying at another hotel for the last two days, the Paddington Hotel on Oxford St. The conditions were a little more austere, but it was still a good deal, and they were generous enough to upgrade my room with a view of the garden and free Wifi. The location was great as well, being right next to the scene on Oxford St. and some of the restaurants there. I became indulgent of a few of the late-night eateries that served take-away (Aussie for take-out/to-go) pizzas and falafel. The bars were pretty fun too, though the best night was by far the last Friday I had in Australia.
Near Hyde Park I visited the Australia Museum, a Natural History of sorts that included a wildlife photography exhibition. Their exhibits on Indigenous Australian culture were very enlightening, particularly for younger visitors who I think would learn alot from the exposure. The natural wildlife section was also pretty engaging, including a whole section on all the things in Australia that can main you, kill you, or otherwise torment you in utter agony. If its not the snakes, its the sharks, the crocodiles, the lizards, the fish, the spiders, the scorpions, the monotremes, the octopi, the birds, and yes, even the sea-shells. In Australia, picking up a sea-shell you find on the beach can result in being stung with a barb full of venom so vile that you'll end up writhing in convulsions reminiscent of green-vomit-spewing exorcisms. Despite this, I never really felt like I was in much danger during my travels. I noticed that the Australians have a similar view of Americans with our high-speed traffic accidents, gang/mafia-related violent crime, and tornados. For some reason, tornados are terrifying to some Australians, though many Americans have no problem just living in the wind-tunnel of the Mid-West. I suppose I would take leaving alone venomous sea-shells to vastly destructive funnel clouds.
The Australia Museum also contained a very engaging section on the Australian fossil record. Some of the Australian megafauna were truly impressive, though they died out not long after the first humans arrived on the continent 50,000 years ago. Included were birds the size of horses, wombats as big as mini-vans, and a 12-foot meat-eating kangaroo with fangs (of note, kangaroos are the only herbivores with canine teeth). For the ornithologist, you could also peruse the vivid sections on Australian bird life and the reptile section of the museum was also quite diverse. One of my favorites was an entire exhibit on the things living in your backyard at Sydney. They included everything from birds that were found to have a propensity for dive-bombing postal carriers, to one of the most venomous spiders in the world, the Sydney Funnel-Web Spider (though the crown still goes to the Brazilian Wandering Spider). You could also see the variety of exotic birds and marsupials that had taken to invading the city from the outside. One of these is the bald-headed ibis.
This native bird was once found almost exclusively along the banks of the Murray-Darling River, Australia's equivalent of the Amazon or Nile. However, its habitat has been slowly drained due to water-use and hydro-electric dams, on-top of a 20 year drought that threatens to permanently alter the watercourse. So, the ibis decided to fly off in search of greener pastures. That search led them directly to the verdant, and well-maintained gardens of Sydney. Unfortunately for the Sydneysiders, this meant that the native fauna became an endemic pest. The bald-ibis are now much the same as Canada geese in their incessant fertilizing, trash dissemination, and thievery of un-guarded sandwiches. I don't really think they were quite so obtrusive as some claim, and they technically have more of a right to be there than we do. In all honesty, there is some ironic justice in the invasion. Perhaps it could be better received, like the welcome resurgence in Peregrine falcon populations, that were threatened with extinction until they moved in to New York City and started feeding off the pigeons and nesting in sky-scraper alcoves. Only time, and the gracious Australian attitudes of acceptance and hospitality, will tell.
Of all these sections, however, my favorite exhibit by far, was the artistry of the wildlife photography. The photographs were gorgeous and incredible in their positioning. I was impressed by the skill of many of the photographers in not just creating a beautiful image of the natural world, but also in their selection of color, pose, and even the relation of lines and shapes within the works. Some were very well done, and drew inspiration from their composition. Others were symbolic in presentation, such as the ferns growing the floor of an abandoned apartment building, or one of the winners, a scene of a lion attacking a giraffe while a herd of oryx looks on. I was also pleased to see so many people taking advantage of the opportunity to view the works. Even though it was early afternoon on a Wednesday, the place was packed!
The cap off a great week in Sydney, the grand finale was a dinner at the top restaurant in the city, Quay. Now, I should note that it wasn't my intention to be so flamboyant or indulgent in my selection of cuisine. A great deal of how the evening turned out was pretty much due to personal pride and chance. I found a restaurant that sounded good, and without really consulting the prices, ended up with an incredible meal. I'll suffice to dwell on the bill by saying that I won't be attempting a similar culinary excursion probably ever again for the next decade. Maybe two. However, the meal itself made it well worth it.
The four of us, rather than choosing similar selections decided to go for individual tastes, and in consequence, managed to sample pretty much the entire menu. The chef's were indeed world class, high marks not just for flavor, but for presentation and service. I mean, the meal looked like a work of art, let alone tasted like one. To start, still water and a sherbet-glace to cleanse the palate (I should note that I did have a gin and tonic to start off, mostly to calm my nerves and quiet the voice in my head that said "I can't believe I'm doing this!") Then the entree (Australian for appetizer). I think the award went to the salad on this one. One of my friends had a marvelous combination of fruit, cheese, greens, and flowers that were structured in an artful and extremely delicate display. Crisp, clean, and perfectly sweet to tartness. The next course I think went to the quail, which was graced by polenta and herb combination (corrections may be needed on that, I was too engrossed in it to think more clearly). Following, the next course was a superb lamb, gently braised on the outside, with another flavorful assistance by selected vegetables and cheeses. During the course we also enjoyed so warm baked breads and our wine. Oh the wine. Superb. Splendid. Spectacular. I don't think there's any appropriate way to describe it. My applause goes to my friend for the selection, as she did a marvelous job. A Shiraz of incredible flavor. Peppery, with the spice I enjoy along with a medley of flavors, I'm no kind of connaiseur to attempt to describe it with any justice. Just incredible. Though, to end an otherwise amazing dinner, was the dessert. While I enjoyed a cake/sauce/sorbet combination that was everything cherry, I think the award for best dish went to the eight layered chocolate cake. The waiter presented it by saying "oh, there's only seven layers, but with here's the last..." upon which he poured melted chocolate on it until it melted delicately in through the center. I about died, it was hilarious and just so wonderfully inventive, I give great credit to the dessert-chef for that one. And by far, one of the best tastes I've ever had, I don't think I'll ever experience anything quite like it again in my lifetime. Though the evening and meal were a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I think I should give alot of credit to the company. Australians are by far some of the most gracious, forgiving, brave, and accepting people I've ever met. I hope to have many more opportunities in the future.
More to come, Australian Adventures Part V...
I took a ferry to Manly and back. The view was incredible. The waters in the harbor were well-protected enough to keep the ride from getting choppy until we came out in to the open ocean. But the scene from behind was beautiful. The harbor bridge really is an enormous site, spanning the deep inlet to both sides of a district full of sky-scrapers and green trees. The Opera House is in a beautiful position along the bay, glowing in the sunlight. I think its best sight is definitely at night, when the muted tones of yellow make it glow an iridescent white. During the day, the sunlight reflects its architecture better, so you can see the scales that form the "sails," which are definitely out of the 1970s. Still, it is an incredible landmark, and beautifully positioned. Right behind it are the Royal Botanic Gardens, which I had a wonderful opportunity to run through. The gardens are filled with both native flora, and sections of well-maintained exotics. I had to ignore the hoard of fruit-bats (technically - flying foxes) that were hanging in the banana trees of one section. The gardens consider them a pest and are trying to remove them to prevent the guano from damaging the plants. Despite that, the gardens, like many parks in Australia, are very accessible. You can pretty much run anywhere on the place, touch any of the plants, and roll around on the lawn. Its a very friendly environment. In one of the public lawns just south of the park, there was even an outdoor concert. Apparently I lucked out with January being the Sydney Festival, where the city had events going on all over the place throughout the month. I tried going one night to see on of my favorite groups do a performance of Gypsy Music. The music was great, and the sight was incredible, but the hordes of people made it a bit uncomfortable to be there.
A few times I had a run through Hyde Park and up to the Botanical Gardens. The harbour views always made running by the water just beautiful, and its always nice to have a good iPod sound-track to assist in the beauty. On my way through Hyde park, I stopped for a bit and just walked, enjoying the canopy of over-arching live oaks that reached overhead. There was also a beautifully sculpted fountain at the center, designed with a Greek Mythology motif including Apollo, Theseus, and Artemis. There was a guy playing bag-pipes there, which made for another moment of picturesque beauty combined with sonorous melody. Turned out he was Canadian and collecting donations for his own world-tour. Seems like a fun way to get around, playing bagpipes in various cities of the world and traveling.
At Hyde Park I stopped by an Italian cafe for some tasty eats. Had a delicious chicken salad in vinaigrette with a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, perfect for the warm outdoor weather and sun. The main was home-made artichoke ravioli with sun-dried tomatoes and cheese. I was stuffed by the end of the affair, but so glad that I had courted it.
I ended up staying at another hotel for the last two days, the Paddington Hotel on Oxford St. The conditions were a little more austere, but it was still a good deal, and they were generous enough to upgrade my room with a view of the garden and free Wifi. The location was great as well, being right next to the scene on Oxford St. and some of the restaurants there. I became indulgent of a few of the late-night eateries that served take-away (Aussie for take-out/to-go) pizzas and falafel. The bars were pretty fun too, though the best night was by far the last Friday I had in Australia.
Near Hyde Park I visited the Australia Museum, a Natural History of sorts that included a wildlife photography exhibition. Their exhibits on Indigenous Australian culture were very enlightening, particularly for younger visitors who I think would learn alot from the exposure. The natural wildlife section was also pretty engaging, including a whole section on all the things in Australia that can main you, kill you, or otherwise torment you in utter agony. If its not the snakes, its the sharks, the crocodiles, the lizards, the fish, the spiders, the scorpions, the monotremes, the octopi, the birds, and yes, even the sea-shells. In Australia, picking up a sea-shell you find on the beach can result in being stung with a barb full of venom so vile that you'll end up writhing in convulsions reminiscent of green-vomit-spewing exorcisms. Despite this, I never really felt like I was in much danger during my travels. I noticed that the Australians have a similar view of Americans with our high-speed traffic accidents, gang/mafia-related violent crime, and tornados. For some reason, tornados are terrifying to some Australians, though many Americans have no problem just living in the wind-tunnel of the Mid-West. I suppose I would take leaving alone venomous sea-shells to vastly destructive funnel clouds.
The Australia Museum also contained a very engaging section on the Australian fossil record. Some of the Australian megafauna were truly impressive, though they died out not long after the first humans arrived on the continent 50,000 years ago. Included were birds the size of horses, wombats as big as mini-vans, and a 12-foot meat-eating kangaroo with fangs (of note, kangaroos are the only herbivores with canine teeth). For the ornithologist, you could also peruse the vivid sections on Australian bird life and the reptile section of the museum was also quite diverse. One of my favorites was an entire exhibit on the things living in your backyard at Sydney. They included everything from birds that were found to have a propensity for dive-bombing postal carriers, to one of the most venomous spiders in the world, the Sydney Funnel-Web Spider (though the crown still goes to the Brazilian Wandering Spider). You could also see the variety of exotic birds and marsupials that had taken to invading the city from the outside. One of these is the bald-headed ibis.
This native bird was once found almost exclusively along the banks of the Murray-Darling River, Australia's equivalent of the Amazon or Nile. However, its habitat has been slowly drained due to water-use and hydro-electric dams, on-top of a 20 year drought that threatens to permanently alter the watercourse. So, the ibis decided to fly off in search of greener pastures. That search led them directly to the verdant, and well-maintained gardens of Sydney. Unfortunately for the Sydneysiders, this meant that the native fauna became an endemic pest. The bald-ibis are now much the same as Canada geese in their incessant fertilizing, trash dissemination, and thievery of un-guarded sandwiches. I don't really think they were quite so obtrusive as some claim, and they technically have more of a right to be there than we do. In all honesty, there is some ironic justice in the invasion. Perhaps it could be better received, like the welcome resurgence in Peregrine falcon populations, that were threatened with extinction until they moved in to New York City and started feeding off the pigeons and nesting in sky-scraper alcoves. Only time, and the gracious Australian attitudes of acceptance and hospitality, will tell.
Of all these sections, however, my favorite exhibit by far, was the artistry of the wildlife photography. The photographs were gorgeous and incredible in their positioning. I was impressed by the skill of many of the photographers in not just creating a beautiful image of the natural world, but also in their selection of color, pose, and even the relation of lines and shapes within the works. Some were very well done, and drew inspiration from their composition. Others were symbolic in presentation, such as the ferns growing the floor of an abandoned apartment building, or one of the winners, a scene of a lion attacking a giraffe while a herd of oryx looks on. I was also pleased to see so many people taking advantage of the opportunity to view the works. Even though it was early afternoon on a Wednesday, the place was packed!
The cap off a great week in Sydney, the grand finale was a dinner at the top restaurant in the city, Quay. Now, I should note that it wasn't my intention to be so flamboyant or indulgent in my selection of cuisine. A great deal of how the evening turned out was pretty much due to personal pride and chance. I found a restaurant that sounded good, and without really consulting the prices, ended up with an incredible meal. I'll suffice to dwell on the bill by saying that I won't be attempting a similar culinary excursion probably ever again for the next decade. Maybe two. However, the meal itself made it well worth it.
The four of us, rather than choosing similar selections decided to go for individual tastes, and in consequence, managed to sample pretty much the entire menu. The chef's were indeed world class, high marks not just for flavor, but for presentation and service. I mean, the meal looked like a work of art, let alone tasted like one. To start, still water and a sherbet-glace to cleanse the palate (I should note that I did have a gin and tonic to start off, mostly to calm my nerves and quiet the voice in my head that said "I can't believe I'm doing this!") Then the entree (Australian for appetizer). I think the award went to the salad on this one. One of my friends had a marvelous combination of fruit, cheese, greens, and flowers that were structured in an artful and extremely delicate display. Crisp, clean, and perfectly sweet to tartness. The next course I think went to the quail, which was graced by polenta and herb combination (corrections may be needed on that, I was too engrossed in it to think more clearly). Following, the next course was a superb lamb, gently braised on the outside, with another flavorful assistance by selected vegetables and cheeses. During the course we also enjoyed so warm baked breads and our wine. Oh the wine. Superb. Splendid. Spectacular. I don't think there's any appropriate way to describe it. My applause goes to my friend for the selection, as she did a marvelous job. A Shiraz of incredible flavor. Peppery, with the spice I enjoy along with a medley of flavors, I'm no kind of connaiseur to attempt to describe it with any justice. Just incredible. Though, to end an otherwise amazing dinner, was the dessert. While I enjoyed a cake/sauce/sorbet combination that was everything cherry, I think the award for best dish went to the eight layered chocolate cake. The waiter presented it by saying "oh, there's only seven layers, but with here's the last..." upon which he poured melted chocolate on it until it melted delicately in through the center. I about died, it was hilarious and just so wonderfully inventive, I give great credit to the dessert-chef for that one. And by far, one of the best tastes I've ever had, I don't think I'll ever experience anything quite like it again in my lifetime. Though the evening and meal were a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I think I should give alot of credit to the company. Australians are by far some of the most gracious, forgiving, brave, and accepting people I've ever met. I hope to have many more opportunities in the future.
More to come, Australian Adventures Part V...