You Gotta Love This City (Sydney staycation)

Welcome back my dear reader. This is a rather long post, words and pictures, so you might want to pour a cuppa or grab a glass of something depending on the time of day and your particular needs.

Thursday

And the staycation commenced with a cracker of a spring day in Sydney. Blue skies and sunshine. We did what everyone should do on vacation: slept late and lounged around until we felt it was time to get motivated. And then we went for a walk around the neighbourhood and did some shopping for dinner. All very domestic. Dinner won't be as interesting as the last few evenings, but in keeping with the celebration of our anniversary week, it will be accompanied by a bottle of 1980 Grange Hermitage. There has been a little ullage over the years and the tasting notes online suggested we should have opened it for our 30th anniversary, but we shall see.

Let happy hour begin

Anyway, the day continued. Happy hour happened (I love alliteration) and then dinner and THE wine. It was much better than I thought it would be. The cork broke into three pieces. It was moist but wouldn't hold together. The wine was strained into the decanter and allowed to rest for an hour so before dinner. Oh, come on, it's an old wine, it needed a rest. In the glass the colour was tending to brown as expected, the nose was spicey and there was a restrained spirit on the palate. As an aged wine, really couldn't ask for more. The last two bottles of Grange have gone down the sink but not this one. That is reflective of the how the wines were kept over the years rather than wine quality.

As good as it gets

Friday we spent the morning at the Chau Chak Wing Museum, or the Nicholson Museum as we still call it, at our alma mater, Sydney University. Entry is free and timed for access, but once inside you stay as long as you like. We were there just over two hours.  It is well worth a visit.

It is a new building funded by the Chinese donor whose name it carries. If you're a Sydney local, it is the new concrete bunker-like building next to Fisher Library. While it doesn't permit the display of every artefact 'acquired'  by the university, it certainly provides a better space to see much more of the collection. And what an eclectic collection it is. From indigenous works from the Northern Territory to stuffed animals, pinned butterflies, photographs, art works, Egyptian mummies and numerous other pieces from China, the Middle East, Ancient Greece and Rome ... the list goes on. The photos below speak for themselves.

A dugout from the Tiwi Islands

Didgeridoos from Arnhem Land

The colours were stunning

Mummy

Not mummy but daddy

A couple of Jeffrey Smart paintings

Assorted stuffed animals

Look closely. A fly tried to add itself to the collection.

To continue in the tourist mode, we went shopping in the afternoon. Well, it is Black Friday, another piece of American imperial consumerism forced upon unsuspecting Australians. I can't wait for the day we celebrate Christopher Columbus Day too. Another day of great shopping bargains. Actually dear reader, if you cast your mind back to the first post in this series you may recall the ruby earrings I purchased for Jayne for our anniversary. As predicted, we ventured into Sydney CBD to exchange them.

And as happy hour and celebration of Friday night commences, Jayne is wearing her ruby necklace. Curiously, I liked the necklace but opted not to purchase it because she rarely changes the diamond pendant I bought for her 21st that hangs around her swan-like neck. Regardless. The ruby anniversary has been commemorated in ruby.

Pretty.

Back to the usual Friday night behaviour. Pizza dough is proving, the wine is breathing, we are listening to Powderfinger's new album (yes, it's a thing. Unreleased 1998-2010 is the title) and unusually, the air conditioning is on.

Saturday lived up to the prediction of extreme heat and hit 39°. Despite this, we continued with our planned walk around some of the parks and gardens of Sydney. It is really interesting. We did a similar walk a few weeks back, focussed on some of the historic buildings. That walk was called Public Sydney. Both can be accessed through the app Open Sydney. On both walks we have discovered things hidden in plain sight, things we have walked past without ever noticing. The focus is on post colonisation while recognising that Australia is, was and always will be Aboriginal land.

Today we commenced at the Hyde Park Barracks, walked through Hyde Park, the Domain and onto the Botanic Gardens. This time we actually stopped to look at fountains, bubblers and other structures that we have not noticed before. The app provides a commentary and it takes about 2 hours to complete. Below are some pictures of the walk. I opted not to take my proper camera, so all the photos are courtesy of my iPhone.

The barracks where we began the walk

The Archibald Fountain

The Archibald Fountain is another war memorial and has strong links to France. Apparently it is world famous. Who knew? It is quite spectacular and I've never really stopped to look at it before today. It is quite impressive and, had I been touring in Europe, I would have taken several photographs. Interesting how the things we grew up with we just take for granted.

Baptist Fountain in Hyde Park

I didn't even know this existed. It was donated by John Baptist Junior, a Portuguese migrant and one time resident of Redfern. Baptist Street is named after him because that is where he had his nursery and garden. He also donated the magnificent fountain in Redfern Park and the gates to the park.

The War Memorial and Reflection Pool

The water fountain was introduced to encourage temperance and back in its day, would have had metal cups attached by chain to it for people to drink from ... very sanitary. There is another at the entrance to the Domain. Water fountains for public use signify civilisation, apparently.

A water fountain

Looking to St Mary's from Sandringham Memorial Garden

The fountain in the Sandringham Garden

Sandringham Memorial Gardens was another aspect of Hyde Park that I knew nothing about. It is in the northern part of the park near the Park and College Street intersection. The fountain itself is part of a sunken garden that has arbours covered with wisteria. Shady and cool on a blisteringly hot Sydney day. The fountain was quite controversial when the design was revealed because the floor of the pool is covered with Aboriginal motifs.

The Domain was the next stop, named by Governor Bligh, to be maintained as a public space for the respectable people of Sydney Town to take a turn down the avenues of giant fig trees.  There was an inner Domain for the exclusive use of the Governor and then the outer Domain for the people.  This was another pioneering place as it was one of the first parks anywhere in the world to have public toilets.  Because it was deemed desirable to create a sub-tropical feel to the parklands, a number of palm trees were planted around the toilet blocks and they remain there to this day. 

In keeping with our tourist tradition, we paused at the restaurant and outdoor bar across the road from the Art Gallery, to have a cold beer and sit for a bit before we ventured across the Cahill Expressway, away from the Domain and into the Botanic Gardens.

Just inside the Woolloomooloo gates at the Botanic Garden

There was plenty to photograph inside the Botanic Gardens and the commentary looked briefly at the history of a few different sections of the gardens and some specific plantings. Again, and I've spent a lot of time here over the years, I saw things today that I'd never noticed before. It is a timely reminder to appreciate what we have and, in the time of Covid where travel is still restricted, perhaps we should be exploring our own backyard. And that brings us to the title of this post, a little number from The Whitlams in 1999, Gotta Love This City and we do. We noticed plenty of other statues and structures today that didn't form a part of the guided walk and we intend to go back and check them out - when the weather is a bit cooler.

Sunday is the last day of our Anniversary celebrations and also Jayne's break from work. The staycation saw us at the Museum of Sydney. We have lived in the 'fern for 6 years now and Jayne has been talking about visiting this museum since we moved in. Finally ticked that box.

The Edge of the Trees outside the museum

The Museum of Sydney is on the corner of Bent and Phillip Streets, on the site of the original Government House. Curiously, it is a museum about Sydney. So, it is aptly named. There aren't a lot photos because there wasn't a lot that was easy to photograph. The current exhibition features information on the architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin and their work in the design and construction of Castle Crag. There was plenty of static information and a number of video presentations. We were there for around 3 hours and could have stayed longer.

Fancy an 8 month cruise?

The first Government House, built in 1789, grew and was renovated in a ramshackle way by successive Governors, until is was demolished in 1845. The original footings are able to be viewed through special areas through glass panels in the floor. There are also a number of exhibits that were discovered when the site was excavated.

Some Aboriginal artefacts

All very interesting, but the main point, from my perspective, was the retelling of the story of the early colony through Aboriginal eyes, with scholars such as Marcia Langton (and others) providing commentary. It showed the story we were never told at school, but should have been. We didn't see the whole production because we had to be elsewhere but managed to watch around 45 minutes of it. It was a pity you were not informed as to the length of the film. Many people came and went as we watched.

Then it was time to make our way to Handpicked Wines at Chippendale. We braved the 40kmh winds that were ripping in from the desert and made our way to Circular Quay and the light rail stop where we boarded a tram. We alighted at Haymarket and walked the few minutes to Handpicked where we sheltered from the extreme weather and enjoyed a delightful bottle of their 2014 Marsanne and a cheese and charcuterie plate, building our strength for the assault on the final leg of our walk home.

And so ends our anniversary week of celebrations, dear reader, I hope you have enjoyed your time with us. We'll back in January when we are finally escaping NSW for South Australia, Adelaide and the Barossa to be specific.

Until next time.

Songbird (Marramarra Lodge)

Good morning my dedicated reader and welcome to my 300th blog post (sorry no pictures). That is a lot of holidaying. Fear not. I am focussed on bringing you many more. Indeed, there are plans afoot for 2021 already commencing with South Australia in January. Specifically, Adelaide, the Adelaide Hills and the Barossa Valley.

I'm here to report that our last night wasn't totally without incident. The birds began early in the morning. The Koel bird continued his mournful complaints about lack of sex, but was joined by a White-bellied Sea Eagle, numerous kookaburras and other local feathered fiends. I have no idea what was annoying the Eagle but he was very vocal for a very long time.

It was a pleasant morning and we again had breakfast on the pool deck stopping to chat with other guests about the bird 'song'. It turns out that Rick and Cathy operate their own luxury accommodation in Riverland South Australia. Check it out, it looks amazing. The Frames. Broken Hill was on my travel itinerary next year and The Frames might be just the place to rest up on the way home. On second thought, The Frames is a destination in itself. Stay tuned.

Obviously the birds inspired today's title and there were many choices available. I opted for Songbird by Fleetwood Mac from their 1977 album Rumours, a classic from start to finish. Mind you, I'm not sure the cacophony of noise that wrested me from my sleep could be considered bird song.

And so our time at Marramarra comes to an end. It wasn't quite what I expected but the weather curtailed our plans to get out on the river in kayaks. We spent the morning soaking up time until our departure; breakfast on the pool deck, time in the lodge on the computer checking out The Frames and chatting with other guests.

Marramarra bills itself as a luxury retreat and on the surface it ticks all the boxes. Jayne likened it to an adolescent, he/she knows what required to be an adult but isn't quite there. It lacked finesse. At Jonah's you were finessed without knowing you were being finessed. At times here it seemed all too obvious, the enquiries about whether we had enjoyed the meals were there, but ... did they really care? Probably not and they need to make the guests feel like they really do care, even if they don't.

Would I return? No. Been there, done that, but I'm glad I did it. If nothing else it was very relaxing and I discovered another place to holiday, hopefully sometime in 2021.

We are back at home now and are planning a couple of staycation excursions over the next few days. There will be one final post to bring everything to a conclusion, probably on Sunday.

Until next time

Cloud watching (Marramarra Lodge)

After a sound night's sleep, we were woken to the sound of voices. As it turned out, they were probably from the early breakfasters. Sound travels when there is precious little to compete with it. Tuesday's weather was proving to be as capricious and changeable as the previous day. We opted to breakfast al fresco in, what was at the time, sunshine. It was soon followed by light drizzle. That too didn't last before the clouds parted and so it went. Hence the title for today. We did a lot of cloud watching because they moved so fast. The song? A favourite from a favourite of ours Abby Dobson circa 2003.

The sun did come out

Just to keep Jayne guessing, I had a breakfast brioche roll which contained two foods I avoid if possible: egg and avocado (pronounced arvo-cardo in the 'fern). I didn't die, but it destroyed a good bacon roll. The service was attentive and efficient, as it has been since we arrived.

We ordered a picnic hamper for lunch in the vain belief that we would be kayaking somewhere on the Hawkesbury River to a destination to be decided. Should the weather hold of course. In the intervening period of time, I had decided we were going, not going, going, not sure, going, let's wait awhile and so it went. As I tap away at the moment we are going but the wind is now getting up ... perhaps a picnic in the boat shed would be a safer option.

Just relax and enjoy the view

And finally that was the option chosen. Our picnic was back-packed and we walked down to the boatshed where the wind was just as annoying. The backpack contained a neat little picnic set with wine glasses, well wine plastics, a corkscrew - wow, ancient artefact, but NO wine. The food was great. A quinoa, crab and beet salad, cheese, olives and crackers and chocolate and vanilla mousse with honeycomb shards. Again, I don't get it. The fridge in the boatshed was filled with beer but not a wine in sight. We've enjoyed our stay, and the staff couldn't be more effusive or responsive, but it's the little things. The finesse, Jayne would say. At Jonah's you were being finessed but you didn't notice, here you notice its absence.

Toys @ the boatshed

More toys

Post picnic lunch, the weather decided to turn again and the cloud cleared, the wind dropped and the sun shone. We opted for a couple of glasses of wine in the only place we can enjoy them, the lodge. Well, this time, the pool deck next to the lodge.

A pretty orchid on the path

We ticked the clock down, enjoying the afternoon and playing Scrabble. No, don't be concerned dear reader, we didn't keep score. Unusual I know. It was a friendly game, not our usual bloodsport battle-to-the-death event. And then the wind shifted into overdrive and we sought the relative safety of our tent, but not before we met one of the locals. He just came meandering through the pool area, unconcerned by all around him. Check out his photo.

Just popping in for a swim

The sun continued to shine as the wind picked up. The tent entered rock'n'roll mode and was buffeted from all sides. We were quite comfortable inside enjoying the view and cloud watching.

I went to dinner prepared for the sunset with both mobile phone and my camera. Neither were required, as the day slipped into night with barely a smudge of colour beyond the grey of the clouds. Dinner tonight was a five course cracker. Even jayne approved. The amuse bouche of Balmain bug was followed by ceviche of Kingfish, both were fresh and tasty. The zucchini, basil and macadamia soup was lovely, the macadamia a welcome addition and something I will use at home. The palate cleanser was a strawberry sorbet and signalled a change of wine from the NZ sauvignon blanc to a Victorian Cabernet Merlot. The main was wagyu steak accompanied by a miso and date sauce, followed up by a lemongrass creme brulee. All delightful.

Until next time

Sunsets (Marramarra Lodge)

And the day, dear reader, continued to be unpredictable as far as the weather was concerned. The skies were grey and the cloud moved fast. One minute we had sunshine, the next rain. As a result, the planned walk on Palm Beach up to Barrenjoey was abandoned as was my hope of chalking up 15,000 steps today.

It was only an hour's drive (ish) to the pick up point at Mooney Mooney which meant we would get there very early. The aborted morning beach walk had thrown out the timeline for the day. Brooklyn, I thought. We should stop in there. A lifetime ago we spent a magical winter's afternoon with Lyn and Wayne at the Angler's Rest Hotel. It was the only time we'd been to Brooklyn but I imagined we'd be able to burn an hour or so there.

Not quite. The rain had returned, discouraging any attempt to sit on the front verandah of the pub. A café, I thought. Ah, no. Well, if there was one it remained elusive to me. So after a few minutes of deliberating we hit the road again and in 10 minutes were sitting in the drizzle at the car park at the Mooney Mooney boat ramp, our designated pick up point for Marramarra Lodge.

And there we sat. Jayne read her book and I walked laps of the car park in between the rain showers. As 2pm approached, we gathered our bags and walked to the wharf just in time for another rain squall to sweep through and dampen our spirits a touch. The launch arrived, we boarded and sat back for the 20 minute ride to the lodge where we were greeted by Shona and a glass of 'champagne'. Despite the weather, the setting is rather idyllic. The 'tent' that is our accommodation has full length glass sliding doors that open to a magnificent view of the Hawkesbury River. We are secluded and private and no more than a 2 minute walk to reception.

Looking in from the deck

There is a complimentary bar fridge in the tent, that curiously, does not stock wine. The lodge itself has a fully stocked complimentary refreshment area, but you can't get a bottle of wine to enjoy on your deck overlooking the river. We repaired to the lodge and had a couple of glasses of wine and played a British trivial pursuit game that Jayne found. Rather apt really, considering I believe most things British are trivial - commencing with the monarchy.

On the deck looking east

From the lounge

Looking south down the river

Dinner was 6:30pm in the lodge. It was a five course affair with amuse bouche to start. The matching wines were a semillon and a shiraz durif blend from Rutherglen. Must get back there again, we haven't visited that wine region for many years. The first three courses were excellent: zucchini flower, snapper in tamarind sauce and a basil, lime and champagne sorbet. Sorry no pictures. Once again we ventured out sans mobile phones. Daring aren't we?

That was where dinner peaked. Well as far as Jayne is concerned. The lamb which followed was not quite the melt-in-your-mouth experience that was expected and the mushrooms overpowered the lamb. The dessert, a salted caramel truffle doughnut (one of those chunky American numbers without the whole), was not light enough. Goodness, this is reading like a review in the SMH Goodfood Guide. 

Jayne summed it up by saying that Jonah's was an adult and Marramarra was a teenager. One was restrained finesse, the other not quite there yet.

But the view of the sunset from the lodge! Hence today's title, a Powderfinger number from their 2003 Vulture Street record.

No words, just pictures, although they still don't do it justice.

Post dinner it was back to the deck to enjoy the sounds of the river at night. Fortunately the wind had died down so we weren't subjected to the whoomp and flap noises as the wind billowed the roof and then dropped it. There was however a very lonely koel bird looking for someone to love. I hope he finds her soon because he was driving some of the other guests mad with his plaintive call. You haven't heard one dear reader? Of course you have, but just in case try this

Until next time.

Deep Water (Jonah's Palm Beach)

November 22, 1980

Well hello my dedicated reader. Who would have thought that I'd be blogging again in the year of Covid? I mean after Mollymook, what could possibly be of interest? Today we find ourselves on the insular peninsula, Whale Beach to be precise. Jonah's Boutique Hotel and Restaurant to be exact. We have been trying to get here for years but found it difficult to co-ordinate work commitments. My retirement and Covid seem to have solved any concerns. Jonah's, like many establishments had been closed and when opening was imminent, I checked their website daily and booked as soon as they were up and running.

Jonah's is our first stop and then we head to Marramarra Lodge on Fisherman's Point. Why, you ask dear reader? Well, this was a big year for special numbered events. Jayne's birthday and also our wedding anniversary; 40 years. I know! We are supposed to be in an overwater bure in Tahiti. Covid. Enough said. Tahiti will still be there when the world re-opens for business and we will get there, just not for this anniversary.

The "going away" outfit

40 years. A ruby anniversary. Being the romantic, I bought Jayne a pair of ruby and diamond earrings. I bought them even though I was pretty certain she wouldn't like them. They are beautiful and exquisitely crafted, but they are just not the style she would normally wear and real rubies aren't really red. And she loves red. So despite my head telling me no, my heart won and I bought them anyway. Well, 40 years of tolerating me, that is some achievement and it deserves recognition. On Wednesday, we're heading to the jewellery store to exchange them. 

First things first, let's deal with today's title. Richard Clapton, that icon of Australian rock, from the Goodbye Tiger album (1977, cheers Vince). There is a line, "sitting out on the Palm Beach road, I'm so drunk and the car won't go, my crazy eyes keep looking out to sea. Sunday drivers are cruising round, wish they'd all go back to town. What do they expect to find? Sure as hell ain't peace of mind." Let me explain, when I was a child, one of my mother's more bizarre methods of torture was the family drive - generally on a Sunday, attendance compulsory. We would be loaded into the back of the ute (we didn't have a passenger vehicle until early 70s) and then driven from the outer 'burbs to places like Palm Beach. Why? Damn fine question? So we could look at houses we would never be able to afford? To be envious of a lifestyle we would never experience? To make us more disenchanted with our humdrum existence? To establish our place in the pecking order? Who knows? But Clapton nailed it, sure as hell wasn't for peace of mind. And it was a bloody long drive from Campbelltown.

From the balcony

Jonah's is everything I thought it would be. The welcome was warm, the glass of champagne on the balcony was much appreciated after the drive. Particularly given Jayne's fetish for duelling navigation systems. She uses one on her phone and directs me, while the in-car system wants to take me down a alternate path. Very confusing and as frustrating as last night's rugby test match. However, we made it. The Bolly was lovely, the view superb and the greeting and walk through our ocean view was excellent. Then it was time to relax with more Bolly and while away the hours until dinner. The biggest decision for the afternoon? Should we breakfast in our room or in the dining room? Life is tough.

The room is beautifully appointed, king sized bed, spa bath, rain shower, wifi and has a balcony that faces due east. The sound of the waves from the beach below are very relaxing. I can't believe it has taken us so long to get here, but I think we will be returning. Instant wind down.

Dinner was superb. From the G&T with fresh cucumber and verbena leaf while we perused the menu to the dessert with accompanying sticky, and all points in between. The food was excellent: grilled prawns, pasta with spanner crab, john dory, chocolate mousse and spiced cake. It was three courses, we had the same main. Sorry, there are no photos, we dined without mobile phones. The wine? The cellar extends to 1100 different wines and, while there were some familiar Australian names, we opted to go with Guillaume, the sommelier's advice and had an aged pinot gris from Alsace. A perfect match for our food.

It was very pleasant sitting on the balcony after dinner listening to the surf on the beach below. A pity the weather wasn't being co-operative. It was cloudy and there were thunderstorms to our north and rain to the south. The storms were just far enough away to preclude us from having a light show over the ocean. 

Breakfast, after a restful night's sleep, was enjoyed in the dining room. The view is stunning - unimpeded by expansive, crystal clear wall to ceiling glass, looking out over Whale Beach. Not so good for the lorikeet that didn't see the glass and smacked straight into it while we were breakfasting. Then coffee, juice, fruit, croissant, granola and a selection of cooked food. Lunch will not be required.

Today we have a few hours to kill before we head to Mooney Mooney and then by boat to Marramarra Lodge.

until next time