This entry was posted on 2/7/2007 4:30 AM and is filed under Australia.
After more than 2 months on the road it feels great to
rent an apartment with a little kitchen and hunker down for a little
bit. We started craving some home cooked meals and a little more
space than we could get from our hotel rooms. We also liked it
here in Sydney so much that we felt we could easily stay a month or two.
We
spent a few days looking at what was available and kept coming back to
our dream apartment that we saw early in our search. Everything
was perfect about it except the way too high price. Located right
on the Circular Quay (pronounced "key") with the harbour in the front
yard and the Botanical Gardens in the back yard. It was a one
bedroom modern flat with full kitchen, washer/dryer, big tub and shower
in the bathroom and best of all, a balcony overlooking the harbour with
a little table and two chairs. Flat screen TV's in both the
living room and bedroom and beautiful art work on the walls and on
every floor. And a gym and swimming pool too.
Just before
we were going to take the 2nd best apartment (located in the business
center of town) we made one more call to a different apartment search
company and they offered us the same apartment on the 6th floor at the harbour for 1/2
the price. We took it instantly! And here we are - so happy
and content. It's called the Quay Grand Suites on 61 Macquarie St. (61 2 9256 4000). We even emptied the suitcases and put the clothes away
in the drawers. And we have very fast internet service here so
our trading is going really well. Here's our digs...
Our front yard is the Circular
Quay - the most "happening" place in town, where we can look right over
our balcony to the harbour below. Our backyard - literally just
across the street from our apartment/hotel building - is the Botanical
Garden - a 66 acre park filled with walking paths, amazing birds and
bats and diverse plant zones.
Here's a look from one of the paths back towards our 'hood and the city...
The giant film screen you see on posts in the middle of the water is
the summer film festival, sponsored by the St. George Bank. A
different first run movie is shown every night. People gather and have
dinner and drinks and then stay for the flick. We hope to catch
one while they are still playing.
Here's
the view from our balcony overlooking the harbour. Notice the
rainbow flags in honor of the upcoming "Mardi Gras" which lasts the
whole month we're here. It started as a gay pride parade, but now
encompasses the whole city and all of its inhabitants.
This
photo is lovely with the monks below, their robes matching the
flags. I called down to them - "Hey Swami Ji". When they
looked up, I gave them a high Namaste which they returned with a
smile. Very fun!
And here's a view from the opposite side of the Quay looking back toward our place...
There's a very slick market here in the center of town called David Jones
- lots of fresh deli salads and a huge assortment of meats, cheeses,
fruits and veggies. It's in the bottom of the David Jones
Department Store. It's amazing and beautiful. In it they
have different food bars where you can order things and have them
cooked fresh by a chef - Noodle Bar, Sushi Bar, Grill Bar, Oyster Bar,
Antipasto Cheese bar, Seafood Bar, etc. all interspersed with the food
they sell. They have tons of curries, exotic jams and sauces,
walls of vinegars and specialty oils, about 75 mustards to choose from
and a separate wine room. All the Australian wines have screw
caps, so no corkscrews needed. They even have a section with
various kinds of hot roasted nuts. There is an antipasto bar with
about 40 kinds of olives and tons of spreads like pesto, pumpkin pesto,
tahini, eggplant spread, etc. And there's a deli case filled with
patés and sausages, prosciuttos, and smoked fish. Everything and
anything you could possibly want. It's fun for us to go there
every 3 days and just buy enough for a few meals. We load up our
backpacks and our shopping bags and head for home. It's a good
aerobic workout with the added weight of the bags.
Here's a look at a few sections of the market. Don't look if you happen to be hungry....
Yummm! Now we're even hungry - gotta go have a snack....
2/7/2007 7:31 AM
Nancy wrote:
I know exactly where you are staying and it is as fantastic as you say. Good thing you will be back before school is out because I would be over there, begging to move in. What a great apartment! Party on Pea Pods, Party On!!! Reply to this
