My Daily Walk in Sydney

Unlike the other cities we stayed in up until now, this time I chose an AirBNB on the outskirts. I later saw a tourist map of Sydney and my street was on the far left side of the map, though still on the map, in a part of town called Rushcutters Bay. Doing research for this blog post, it is where the first English settlers collected rush (hence its name). Turns out there is a huge recreational park I did not see.

Lots of restaurants
on this pedestrian street

107 steps, yes I counted

My walk, as I came to think of it, took me through a neighborhood with small restaurants. I went down 107 stairs (which I knew meant I would have to go up them at the end of the night). It skims past a wharf called the Woolloomooloo naval dockyard. When I described where I was staying, people were surprised I was farther away from that. 

At the edge of the water is a Sydney institution called: Harry's Café de Wheels.

Some of the famous patrons include Frank
Sinatra, Elton John, and Prince Harry

Over 80 years old

Cheapest food in town with meat pies starting at $6AUS ($4.50 USD). It was a great quick meal in a picturesque setting. According to their website, it moves about 12 inches a day due to a township requirement. It was started during the Depression in 1936 because the original owner, Harry "Tiger" Edwards, wanted a good late night snack. The business was put on hold while he served in World War II and reopened in 1945. In 2004 it was named by the National Trust as a Sydney icon. I'm so glad I stumbled upon it and had one of their pies. For the full experience, though, I should have had another one after seeing a show.

My walk continued up another flight of stairs near the Art Gallery of New South Wales North Building, technically a detour because (according to locals I met a few nights later), the stairs I should have been able to take have been closed for months.

Giant sculptures in the courtyard

Then across the street through the botanical garden.  

Note the googly eye

An oasis in the middle of the city

From there I went down another flight of stairs to the area around the water that leads to the Sydney Opera House.

If the return trip took place after the gates closed at the Botanical Garden, and yes, unlike other cities, this one had gates with a phone number to call if you accidentally get locked in at night, the walk home was longer. I would continue up Macquarie Street to the State Library of New South Wales, the back across a busy road to a small, well-lit park before reaching the art museum. It added at least 5 minutes, perhaps 10, to an already long walk.

 I felt safe at all times, even on some dark alleyways.