Exploring greater Sydney

Sydney Australia, one of the largest cities in Australia, with a population of 5.3 million people. Known for beautiful bridges, a darling harbour and the iconic Opera house. Sydney was once a British colony of exiled convicts and has slowly turned into a roaring city. Sydney is filled with art, music and culture.

After finishing Quarantine I had decided to take some time, 2.5 days, to explore Sydney before making the trip up to Brisbane. I had severely underestimated how large the city was! After discovering how widespread the city was I had decided to at least see some of the main sites here.

Getting around

Getting around with public transit is easy, you just need to get yourself an Opal card, with you can buy at any metro. Then download the app, and say where you want to go and follow the directions. Obviously there is Uber and Taxi service, however because Sydney large city it will be expensive. Getting across the city will cost about $6 with public transit and take an average of 1.5 hours. Where as an Uber will be a $200 dollars and take roughly 45mins, depending on traffic. I had chose the public transit to get a round, with the app it was super easy and the way the system is set up you tap on and off with your card and the same card works for metro, trains, bus and ferry!! It make it super easy to see the city in a less expensive way! Now with Covid and the concerns around it they do have rules in places including, wearing a mask on all public transit, and social distancing.

Harbour Bridge

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is the largest steal arch bridge on the world. It took over eight years to build with 16 lives lost. The bridge was a huge step towards modern Sydney and a focus on optimism durning the Great Depression. Walk, bike, or drive, you can ever do the famous Sydney bridge walk and walk on top of the arch. You can view this bridge for many different locations including a ferry, the Opera Bar, Observatory Hill, Blue's Point Reserve, and many others! This is really magnificent in person!

Opera House

The Iconic Opera House, one of the most known sites of Sydney. It is one of the 20th century's most distinctive and is a architectural work or art. The Opera house is used as a multi function venue. It is absolutely stunning form the outside and the brief time I spent inside. It is currently open and following covid health rules, I was just unable to see any shows at this time but I will be back!

Botanical Gardens

The Botanical Gardens are conveniently located right next to the Opera house. Take a stroll through the gardens, have a picnic enjoy the views of the garden, Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. Going through botanical gardens in any city is a great way to see native plants and animals and it is usually FREE!!

The Rocks

What a unique area with a rich history! The rocks is right next to the Harbour Bridge and the oldest area of Sydney. This area was the first colonized when ships of convicts came to Australia. The name name itself comes from the buildings being made of sandstone. The cobblestone streets are filled with history and some of the best and oldest local cafes and restaurants!

Bondi Beach

This beach is only 1km long and has gained so much attention. When I was here the beach was fairly empty and a great day for beaching. I ended up getting a Lime bike for the day and doing a mini bike crawl and tasted the local beers around. The beach also has its own rescue show on Netflix, at least it's on the Australian Netflix. Such a beautiful place to be spending the day or even afternoon!

The Grounds of Alexandria

This place I had discovered while reading someone else's blog and it caught my eye! This is a venue/ shop/ experience/ restaurant. This place is all about the experience and wants you to share it withs those around you. Take your time, enjoy the food, and pick up some fresh flowers when you leave. With Covid shutting down most of the world and travel is at a standstill they have currently turned the grounds into a Moroccan dream. Taste the food and experience the culture. This was a great place to relax eat some food and take really nice photos. Plus the food tasted authentic and was absolutely delish!

With only a few days to explore and some terrible blisters on my feet from walking and slowing me down I felt that I had done a pretty good job at exploring the city. I was originally going to do a tourist bus or ferry tour but all of that was currently close since there is very few tourists. I was able to see a few friends that I haven't seen in few years and it was great to catch up with them over a few drinks! Sydney is a gorgeous city with plenty to see and do!

xo

Nicole W