So, this weekend, we...

Week 35 ~ I is for ‘igh Tea at the Hydro Majestic

Posted: September 4, 2015 in Cafe, Driving NSW
Tags: blue mountains, Sydney weekends, Things to do in Sydney, this weekend in Sydney, Weekends in Sydney, what to do in Sydney, What to do in Sydney this weekend

Yes, I know it’s a complete cop-out… but we had a lovely day in the Blue Mountains staying at my sister’s house at Hazelbrook while she’s away riding Route 66.

We did a few touristy things – morning tea at the Carrington Hotel at Katoomba

Visited the 3 sisters and Evans Lookout before High Tea at the Hydro Majestic at Medlow Bath.

They have done a beautiful job refurbishing this hotel – it’s obvious they’ve spent millions on the renovations and extensions.

Cold beer and champagne, beautiful live piano music in the background and delicious high tea.

Can highly recommend it. A great day out.

Morning Tea at the Carrington at Katoomba

Views over Megalong Valley

High Tea at the Hydro Majestic

Week 34 ~ H is for Hope Estates in the Hunter Valley

Posted: August 23, 2015 in Bars, Driving NSW
Tags: driving NSW, hope estates, hunter valley, wine

What a treat!

Dinner with Michael Hope and his wife Karen for Robyn and me and 10 others at Hope Estates winery on the weekend.

Hope Estates ales and cider as well as beautiful wines matched to the dinner. The chef talked us through the courses during desert and a lovely Verdelho.

Sadly, no mention of coming back to enjoy Fleetwood Mac or Elton John later this year 😦

Will be a tall order topping this. Very cool.

Week 33 ~ G is for Gladesville Hospital

Posted: August 16, 2015 in Walking
Tags: Sydney, sydney harbor, Sydney Harbour, Sydney History, Sydney weekends, Things to do in Sydney, Weekends in Sydney, What to do in Sydney this weekend

We bought our first home unit at Gladesville in 1983 and lived there for a few years, but never visited the site of the former Gladesville “Mental Hospital”, a psychiatric hospital, established in 1838 in Gladesville. Its original name was Tarban Creek Lunatic Asylum.

It’s located at Bedlam Point. Those of you who don’t get that connection > look here

It was purpose built to house “lunatics” in 1838, and apparently was a genuine attempt to improve the treatment of the mentally ill, allowing relatives to visit, patients to have access to recreational facilities and worthwhile work in what were once beautiful grounds.

In 1997, all inpatient services were consolidated at the Macquarie (North Ryde) site in Wicks Road.

Beautiful grounds

The pool looks a bit tired, but was probably once pretty advanced for a psych hospital.

Bedlam Point (not joking… it really is called that)

Gorgeous old fig by the water

One of these graves is that of a patient who was a resident there for more than 60 years

Had no idea there was a tunnel under Victoria Road

Imagine being housed in wings like this for perhaps years and years. Imagine the tears shed by inmates and families visiting.

Week 32 ~ F is for Fort Denison

Posted: August 8, 2015 in Sydney Harbour, Transport, Walking

Old and new

Fort Denison, in the middle of Sydney Harbour. Beautiful winter’s day for a picnic.

Move on. Nothing to see here

Sneaky beer and wine with our ploghman’s lunch, sheltering from the wind.

Week 31 ~ E is for Ermington bike path

Posted: August 2, 2015 in bicycle

A beautiful Sydney winter’s day for a bicycle ride.

Parramatta council have done a great job building a terrific, wide, level (well it does follow the river) bike path along the Parramatta River.

We drove down to the end of Wharf Road (those who know the area, turn down to the river at Putt Putt at West Ryde) and rode west towards Parramatta through the bottom of Ermington up to James Ruse Drive, before turning back and heading to Meadowbank Park where we watched Matt play soccer. Double back to Wharf Road to complete the ride.

The old Nissan huts where Silverwater Road crosses the river are long gone… what they’re building there is surprisingly inviting, and with the currently being built addition of a riverside eat strip, we’ll definitely be back.

What a great afternoon. Looking forward to a different loop next time, probably down the other side of the river through Olympic precinct and over the old train bridge across the river… have only ever run that, not ridden.

Week 30 ~ D is for Darlington Village

Posted: July 23, 2015 in Inner West

Darlington is a small, inner-city suburb of Sydney, about 3 kilometres south of the CBD
The first significant white fella there was William Shepherd, a botanist who started a nursery garden. He named it Darling Nursery and so street names like Ivy, Vine, Rose, Pine and Myrtle are pretty self explanatory.

Many thanks to Clover Moore for tying the launch of the upgraded Darlington Village streetscape into our theme this weekend – perfect timing for “D”. Garden beds, trees, seats and lights along the widened footpaths make it nice for pedestrian visitors like us 🙂

To be perfectly honest, a bit of a dud ceremony – if Clover ever showed and occupied her security guard guarded parking spot, we missed it.

Still, a beautiful day for a walk around Redfern, the back of Eveleigh etc. and a coffee in the sun.

Week 29 ~ C is for Cat Stevens

Posted: July 23, 2015 in show
Tags: panthers, penrith, Sydney

It’s taken me nearly 54 years, but I did it! I am no longer one of the minority of Sydney residents who have never been to Penrith Panthers! What a huge club! 7 restaurants, venues… a small city within a city!

With a dozen friends we headed out west to see the Peace Train – A Tribute to Cat Stevens show by Darren Coggan.

It was great. The story told of the life and times of Cat Stevens through spoken word and his songs.

Good fun 🙂

Week 28 ~ B is for Breakfast at Breakfast Point

Posted: July 14, 2015 in Cafe
Tags: breakfast, cafe, Sydney weekends, what to do in Sydney

On a frosty Sydney winter’s morning, we went to Breakfast Point in Sydney’s Inner West for breakfast at Olive Kitchen.

Delicious 🙂

I had the Italian style baked eggs with tomatoes and other fare in a cast iron pan – a difficult choice from a good menu.

Week 27 ~ A is for Art

Posted: July 4, 2015 in Cafe
Tags: cafe, kids hospital, Sydney, Sydney weekends, Things to do in Sydney, this weekend in Sydney, Weekends in Sydney, What to do in Sydney this weekend

Back to the letter A again 🙂

Westmead Kids’ Hospital (The Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children Hospital at Westmead, near Parramatta) runs an annual art competition for school children. From the thousands of entries, the best 50 are selected and framed and displayed on the walls of the corridors of the wards.

This has been happening for years, and as a result there’s hundreds of paintings that brighten the walls and corridors for the hundreds of sick kids and their parents, some of whom spend months and months within the confines of the hospital.

Even tough this year’s competition hasn’t been judged, we enjoyed what we saw from previous years.

http://bandagedbear.org.au/schools/operation-art/