AUSTRALIA | A DIY Sydney Walking Tour
Thursday, April 19, 2018
Our strides went longer and our pace quickened as dusk descended. We just came from the iconic Sydney Opera House, departing as the sun went below the Harbour Bridge. Our next query was food. We were on a strict budget, getting our meals mostly on supermarkets, Australia is extremely expensive, so we thought we’d just grab a bite on a small restaurant. Our friend M, who has just arrived that afternoon from Manila has other plans though, he’d like to eat on the revolving restaurant on top of the Sydney Tower. He’s treating, so alright, to the Sydney Tower it is!
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| SYDNEY’S SKYLINE AS SEEN FROM SYDNEY HARBOUR |
We thought we’d save a bit by walking. We went through Pitt Street, one of the major roads running across Sydney, and in the process got to see a cross-section of the city. To be honest, we haven’t seen much of Sydney yet—we visited some of C’s relatives on our first day, and on the second, went out to the Blue Mountain Sydney.
| SYDNEY DIY WALKING TOUR WHAT’S INSIDE? • Darling Harbour • Sydney Town Hall • St. Andrew's Cathedral • Market City Hay / Paddy's Market Chinatown • Circular Quay • Harbour Bridge • Sydney Opera House • Sydney Tower Eye • Sydney Mardi Gras ► AUSTRALIA ITINERARY 10 DAYS |
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| A KTM X-BOW AT SYDNEY’S CHINATOWN |
I was actually surprised at how small downtown Sydney is (which they dub as the Sydney CBD). Before arriving, I thought it’s one huge megalopolis, similar, say with Tokyo or Bangkok. But it’s not. Every place we pinned on our map seemed reachable by foot. There’s a metro and tram, but we didn’t even find the need to board one to see the sights within the CBD area.
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| SYDNEY’S TRAM OR THE SYDNEY LIGHT RAIL |
During our five-day stay here, lodging at the Sydney Central Inn and at Rydges World Square Hotel, we got to unintentionally see a few major sights in the city simply by walking from one errand to the next—like when we’re meeting a friend or needing to buy grocery for our meals. We haven’t totally explored Sydney yet, that I’m a hundred percent sure, but it was a great introduction to a city we’ll be surely coming back to during our travels.
DARLING HARBOUR
OPENING HOURS: ALWAYS OPEN | ADDRESS: LIVERPOOL STREET, SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.8748755, 151.1987113
Darling Harbour was one of the first places we saw in Sydney. Our initial visit was a meet-up with a friend for lunch and we got to explore the nearby Darling Quarter, Tumbalong Park, the waterfront esplanade, the historic Pyrmont Bridge, and Sydney’s National Maritime Museum (which has a real submarine docked along its pier!).
The second time we visited was for an expensive lunch (another treat) at one of the many restaurants littering the harbor. The third time was that same night, when we tried looking for a place to drink—we were promptly turned away by bouncers since we were wearing slippers though, lol.
The area is a good place to chill—sit right by the water’s edge and watch people go about their daily lives. If you’re into shopping, there’s the Harbourside Shopping Centre which are lined with branded shops, restaurants, and bars.
SYDNEY TOWN HALL
OPENING HOURS: 8:00AM TO 6:00PM, MON TO FRI | ADDRESS: 483 GEORGE ST., SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.873153, 151.203927
One morning, trying to find our way to Chinatown, we stumbled upon the Sydney Town Hall. The structure, constructed during the 1880’s from local sandstone, stands proud at the corner of George and Druitt Streets, and strangely, was built over Sydney’s first permanent cemetery.
According to Australia’s State Register, it is the most elaborate and exuberant work of Second Empire Style architecture in Australia. With corner towers, domed pavilions, pedimented breakfront entries, a hierarchy of decorative orders, columned and pedimented window treatment, venetian windows and elaborate decoration.
It still functions as a town hall, housing the Sydney City Council and the chambers of Sydney’s Lord Mayor. Tourists can actually enter its premises on guided tours. But as expected, we weren’t able to book one in advance—we contented ourselves on admiring it from the outside.
ST. ANDREW’S CATHEDRAL
OPENING HOURS: 10:00AM TO 4:00PM | ADDRESS: COR. GEORGE & BATHURST ST., SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.8738975, 151.2041573
And right next to the town hall, on its left side, is the St. Andrew’s Cathedral. The Anglican church was erected in 1868, making it the oldest cathedral in the whole of Australia, and sports an original take on the Gothic Revival style. It’s quite petite for a cathedral but it’s superb proportion, high level of ornamentation, and characteristic sandstone material, makes for an extremely impressive façade.
Daily mass services are held here, and like the town hall, visitors can also enter its doors. Unfortunately for us, it was closed at the time, and we weren’t able to see its grand interiors.
MARKET CITY HAY / PADDY’S MARKET IN CHINATOWN
OPENING HOURS: 10:00AM TO 7:00PM | ADDRESS: 9-13 HAY ST., HAYMARKET, SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.8798045, 151.2012244
Finding our bearing, our feet finally led us to the Market City Hay and Paddy’s Market on Sydney’s Chinatown. We were told that this is where we can find the cheapest souvenirs to bring back home—and they were absolutely right. From shirts, and ref magnets, to actual boomerangs and aboriginal artworks, we didn’t find any other place that could beat their prices.
CIRCULAR QUAY
OPENING HOURS: ALWAYS OPEN | ADDRESS: ALFRED ST, SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.8613011, 151.2086329
The boat we boarded for our Sydney Harbour cruise was docked on one of the jetties in Circular Quay. From here, the famous Sydney Opera House is only a few minutes by foot away. And on the other side of the quay, set on a massive art deco brick building, you’ll find the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.
We spent too much time watching people around the quay, especially the buskers, that by the time we entered the museum’s doors—entrance fee is free, by the way—it was already closing time. Tsk.
HARBOUR BRIDGE
OPENING HOURS: ALWAYS OPEN | ADDRESS: SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE, SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.8523018, 151.2085984
Walking northward from the museum, we went for the southern end of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The steel through arch bridge connects Sydney’s CBD with the city’s North Shore. Nicknamed The Coathanger due to its form when seen form afar, it’s definitely one of the city’s most notable landmarks.
Constructed in 1932, its design was actually taken from New York’s Hell Gate Bridge and currently has the title of being the sixth longest spanning-arch bridge in the world.
People can actually book a tour to climb the top arches of the bridge, and we even considered booking one, but as always our lazy bones won over it.
SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
OPENING HOURS: OPEN FOR SHOWS & GUIDED TOURS | ADDRESS: BENNELONG POINT, SYDNEY | GPS MAP: -33.8567799, 151.213108
Australia’s iconic Sydney Opera House is located on Bennelong Point, a few minutes away from the Circular Quay. We went here as the sun was setting, making its shells glow with the afternoon rays.
I actually wrote a whole article regarding the construction and history of Sydney Opera House.
SYDNEY TOWER EYE
OPENING HOURS: 9:00AM TO 8:00PM | ADDRESS: 100 MARKET ST, SYDNEY | GPS COORDINATES MAP: -33.8704465, 151.2065713
Rising to a height of 309 meters, the Sydney Tower Eye, or simply Sydney Tower, is the city’s highest tower. It’s also the second tallest observation tower in the Southern Hemisphere, trumped only by Melbourne’s Eureka Tower. Restaurants and shopping areas occupy its lower floors while the observation decks, skywalk tours, and a revolving restaurant fill the upper levels.
We had a very expensive dinner on the Sydney Tower Buffet restaurant. The food, which range from salads and pastas, to steaks and seafood, were actually just okay—with the exception of their kangaroo steak and crisply roasted pork belly which were really, really good. It’s main attraction, really, is the view. The restaurant slowly revolves around the evening view of Sydney, completing a full rotation after an hour and a half—and that actually signals the end of your dinner time.
SYDNEY MARDI GRAS
SCHEDULE: EVERY 2ND THURSDAY OF FEBRUARY TO THE 1ST SATURDAY OF MARCH
As a bonus during our stay, we got to witness the culmination of the annual Sydney Mardi Gras. Sydney’s version started as a demonstration to end discrimination against gay people in 1978. It has since grown into a full blown festival attended by hundreds of thousands of people from Australia and all over the world.
Parts of Sydney were closed to traffic as float after float filled with flamboyant performers from the LGBTQ communities—including the Cher—flooded the streets. Crowds gathered on the barricaded sidewalks, us included. We were quite lucky we got there early, as we found later that the police has actually stopped people from entering the parade area since it’s been filled to capacity. The after party, which spread through the roads and bars across Sydney, was even wilder!
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| SCOOT HAS DAILY PROMO FARES FROM MANILA TO AUSTRALIA |
2 comments
Nice post thaanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteEnjoy Sydney!
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