Sydney Deliciousness

Um, not much to say here. Just some drool-worthy memories of food in Oz. Coming from Afghanistan where the DFac (dining facility) is affectionately known as the DCrap and the only fish we get has been flown for thousands of miles and cooked into oblivian, we were just excited at the mere thought of fresh fruits and veggies. Arugala. Heirloom tomatos. Oysters. Salmon. Sushi. I know I sound like one of the "blue staters" that Fox News loves to make fun of but seriously, I don't think I'll ever want an onion ring again after smelling them daily for this whole year.


While we were all about fish most of the time, all steak cravings (medium for me, medium-rare for him) were met as well. Good thing since I've been eating baked pollack since then. Lots of yummy oysters with all kinds of sides but my favorite was with simple squeezed lemon. Incidentally, neither Mark nor I had ever even tasted an oyster until our Edinburgh trip with friends in 2009. Thanks to our friends, we now have a new favorite food! The Sydney Fish Market (where all of Sydney goes during the holidays to get their Christmas seafood) was extraordinary. Besides having lots of yummy food to look at, there were some kitchen stores and I was able to get a few things that I've really been needing.


Lastly, we were lucky enough to be in Sydney for the annual Crave food festival. While there were a lot of cool components to the festival, we really didn't have enough time to research and take part in all the events we would've wanted to. One event that was easy to attend was the Singapore-style Night Noodle Market in Hyde Park. The beer garden served a variety of Aussie ales and there were about 50 stands sponsored by local Asian restaurants serving all kinds of dishes. They were serving in small portions which, when shared, allowed us to sample quite a bit of stuff and a crowded venue ensured that we got to chat with all manner of Aussies and expats. The mango and sticky rice at the end was a delicious finale to our time in Sydney...bodes well for our April trip to Thailand!

Sydney, Australia (aka My Kind of Town)

After leaving the cool weather and clean air of Tasmania, we headed back to the big city. Luckily, there was plenty of fresh air and warm (but definitely not hot) temperatures in Sydney as well. We spent a fair amount of time sitting in scenic areas, drinking beers, and people-watching but did a whole lot more walking here too.

We stayed in an area of Sydney called The Rocks at the Lord Nelson Pub and Brewery. It's the oldest pub in Sydney (yes, they brew their own beers too) and there's also a hotel attached. Some rooms have adjoining bathrooms but since we're cheap and Sydney is expensive, we opted for the traditional inn-style of a shared hallway bathroom. Luckily, it wasn't a problem to share and the hotel kept things very clean. The rooms were small but well decorated and we really loved the atmosphere (plus the stumbling distance to the room after a pint or two).


The first two days after we'd hit Sydney, we were lucky enough to catch a street fair in The Rocks, right on the street leading to the water. We came accross it the same way we come across most things while on vacation - by wandering around. The first day, the market was oriented to cheese and locally made foods (think olive oils and jams rather than veggies) with a smattering of arts & crafts and clothing. The second day (I think it was a Saturday), the market had quadrupled in size and had almost everything you could possibly want. We continued our tradition of buying a Christmas ornament to mark this new country and admired how the stalls were covered with a roofing reminiscent of the Sydney Opera House.


Speaking of the Opera House, we decided to stop by the box office on our first full day and were pleased to discover that there were reasonably priced seats left to the theatrical production of "Our Town". We went back later in the evening and though it wasn't in the grand auditorium, the production was great and it was really need to be there and have our intermission cocktails on the deck, admiring the lights of the Opera House. Mark got another great view of the Opera House a couple days later when he completed the Sydney Bridge Climb! On an escorted tour, he strapped in and climbed to the top. I joined him later to take the steps to the top of the turrets along the side of the bridge (can you see it in the picture below?) and since even the views there were great, I know that what he saw was amazing.


A friend from my wild Paris days left Paris shortly after me to return to her native Australia. Six years later (my, how time flies) she's married with an adorable baby. We were lucky enough to meet up in her 'hood of Manly Beach. We sat in a cafe, played with baby Poppy, took a walk along the shore, and caught up. At nap time, Mark and I explored the rest of Manly (including yet another street fair) and wished that we'd had more time to surf (or in my case, learn to surf).

Our visit to Manly only made us want to spend more time on the beach so we hopped on a bus from Circular Quay to the famous Bondi Beach the next day. The sky was blue and sun shining so it was nice to take off our shoes, roll up our pants, and stroll in the sand. We saw a group of kids running off to surf school with their boards and sat for a couple hours just talking and taking in the waves. Put Sydney on my "dream assignment" list for the future.