'The Rocks' is where it all began for Sydney. It's the place where the first European settlers in Australia disembarked, and still hosts an Overseas Passenger Terminal for those arriving in Australia by ship. The 19th century warehouses have since then been converted to restaurants & pubs, and the narrow cobblestone streets are now home to The Rocks Market where you can buy arts & crafts, clothes/jewellery etc. as well as fresh produce. The Rocks is also the place where Sydneysiders can go to enjoy free events such as the on-going Vivid Light Festival.
Yesterday was a bright & sunny day, and this being the last weekend of Vivid, I decided to go to The Rocks with a couple of friends for a little bit of Sydney lovin' that I so seem to need right now. Besides, there was the lure of having a mocha at Guylian, a place highly recommended by The Knife. Unfortunately, the weather turned by the time we reached Circular Quay, the area leading up to The Rocks.
The Circular Quay is home to the iconic Sydney Opera House. Being adjacent to the Harbour Bridge, The Rocks also offers stunning views of the bridge. We were wet and cold to the bone but we just stood there watching the rain meet the open sea. It reminded me of Bandstand during the monsoon...there were so many times when my roommate & I would walk down to Bandstand in the rains, sit inside the Barista with a hot drink and watch the rain lash at the swollen sea. Then we'd take a walk down the promenade, get drenched and go back home wet, cold but utterly satisfied. I miss Bandra :-(
Anyway, back to Sydney and The Rocks. The mocha at Guylian didn't happen because there was a 20 minute queue to be seated inside the cafe, and being almost soaked, we weren't feeling adventurous enough to rough it out in their outdoor seating area. But a double cheeseburger with fries from Hungry Jack (Burger King as it's known in Australia) and a hot chocolate later, we were good to slum it out for another couple of hours to watch the Vivid light show and the fire dance.
The Vivid light show is this thing where they decorate the trees with dancing lights of various colors, project 3D lights on to the Opera House (I think they were trying to go for fish shapes but they came across looking like sperms!) and have choreographed fire shows and the likes.
It was a long evening...felt longer because we were wet and cold to the bone. But it was such a lot of fun. We shared umbrellas, took horrible pictures (thanks to the rain & cloudy skies!), and I realized once again how much I really love cities that have the sea.
Yesterday was a bright & sunny day, and this being the last weekend of Vivid, I decided to go to The Rocks with a couple of friends for a little bit of Sydney lovin' that I so seem to need right now. Besides, there was the lure of having a mocha at Guylian, a place highly recommended by The Knife. Unfortunately, the weather turned by the time we reached Circular Quay, the area leading up to The Rocks.
The Circular Quay is home to the iconic Sydney Opera House. Being adjacent to the Harbour Bridge, The Rocks also offers stunning views of the bridge. We were wet and cold to the bone but we just stood there watching the rain meet the open sea. It reminded me of Bandstand during the monsoon...there were so many times when my roommate & I would walk down to Bandstand in the rains, sit inside the Barista with a hot drink and watch the rain lash at the swollen sea. Then we'd take a walk down the promenade, get drenched and go back home wet, cold but utterly satisfied. I miss Bandra :-(
Anyway, back to Sydney and The Rocks. The mocha at Guylian didn't happen because there was a 20 minute queue to be seated inside the cafe, and being almost soaked, we weren't feeling adventurous enough to rough it out in their outdoor seating area. But a double cheeseburger with fries from Hungry Jack (Burger King as it's known in Australia) and a hot chocolate later, we were good to slum it out for another couple of hours to watch the Vivid light show and the fire dance.
The Vivid light show is this thing where they decorate the trees with dancing lights of various colors, project 3D lights on to the Opera House (I think they were trying to go for fish shapes but they came across looking like sperms!) and have choreographed fire shows and the likes.
It was a long evening...felt longer because we were wet and cold to the bone. But it was such a lot of fun. We shared umbrellas, took horrible pictures (thanks to the rain & cloudy skies!), and I realized once again how much I really love cities that have the sea.
PS: Should I kill myself before I admit that I'm in love with Katy Perry's 'Firework'? Or is it acceptable to like her? :p
PPS: I have a retarded wi fi connection. I just spent an hour uploading 4 pictures on Blogger and then I lost them all. There's no way I'm going thru' that painful process again, so picts will come when they come. @#$%^&*%$#@@!$%
2 comments:
The Rocks is where I fell in love with Sydney after my first afternoon there. I shouldn't have written about Guylian. You would have got a place then ;) Please go to pancake on the rocks. You can't go to Oz and eat Burger King for God's sake
@The Knife - Burger King was the only place that didn't have a queue, and let's face it - no one makes a greasy cheeseburger as well as they do. Where's Pancake on the Rocks? I didn't see it.
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