Chilling in the morning
What’s better than to start the day with a beautiful breakfast by the beach? While Bondi is Sydney’s most popular beach, it is also the city’s most crowded one. Sydney has beautiful quiet beaches on the North Shore, but if you want to stay close to the city, try Bronte beach for a delicious breakfast in one of its small cafes along the shore. Here you can enjoy the view and a swim afterwards without the Bondi masses. If you like it real intimate, walk over to Tamarama beach, which is only a ten minute walk from Bronte, taking you along the scenic Coastal Walk.
Strolling in the afternoon
Browsing shops and markets is a must if you want to get a real feel for any city and its culture. Rather than going down to Sydney’s CBD (Central Business District), make your way to Paddington, one of the city’s Eastern suburbs. With its Victorian terraces, leafy streets, tiny boutiques and excellent coffee places, Paddington reminds a bit of Europe while simultaneously radiating the relaxed Australian lifestyle. Due to its quietness you’d be surprised to hear that Paddington, or ‘Paddo’ as called by locals, is only fifteen minutes away from the CBD by public transport. Worth a visit are the small boutiques on William street and the upper part of Oxford street. A must see are also the Paddington Markets, taking place every Saturday outside the Paddington Uniting Church on Oxford street, as well as the Saturday markets at the Fringe Bar on Oxford Street.
Not to be missed are also the numerous little galleries in the area such as the Blender Gallery on Elizabeth street. Housed in a typical Paddo terrace, this gallery specialises in exhibiting fine art music photography.
Relax your feet after strolling and have a latte in one of the cafes at Five Ways, a small intersection in the heart of the suburb. If beer is more your cup of tea, hit the Royal pub and kick back on its upper deck overlooking the picturesque terraces.
Bright city lights at night
With the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, Sydney Harbour is undoubtedly the most romantic place to be at night, but is also a crowded area. Instead of dining in one of the touristy restaurants in the harbour area, why not grab a bottle of wine and have a picnic in the Royal Botanical Gardens? Adjacent to the Opera House, the Botanical Gardens offer great grass areas and benches to relax with an even better view over the city scenery than from within the harbour, and without the crowds. On the other side of the Harbour Bridge, the Rocks area, Sydney’s oldest part of town, offers quiet alleyways where you can enjoy great food or a beer in some of Sydney’s best restaurants.
Fellow Aussie here, who’s been traveling all over the world. SouthEast Asia, Middle East, Europe and South America. Haven’t been to the U.S. I’ve also been living in Medellin Colombia for 8 years, so my Spanish is fluent.
