Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Elizabeth Bay House
This good example of colonial architecture was built
in 1835 and was described at the time as the “finest house in the colony.” Visi-
tors can tour the whole house and get a real feeling of the history of the fledg-
ling settlement. The house is situated on a headland and has some of the best
harbor views in Sydney. Allow 1 hour.
7 Onslow Ave., Elizabeth Bay.
&
02/9356 3022.
Admission A$7 (US$4.55) adults, A$3 (US$1.95) children,
A$17 (US$11) families. Tues-Sun 10am-4:30pm. Closed Good Friday and Christmas. Bus: 311 from Circular
Quay. Sydney Explorer bus.
Museum of Sydney
You'll need your brain in full working order to make the
most of the contents of this three-story postmodern building near Circular
Quay, which encompasses the remnants of Sydney's first Government House.
This place is far from being a conventional showcase of history; instead, it
houses a rather minimalist collection of first-settler and Aboriginal objects and
multimedia displays that “invite” the museum-goer to discover Sydney's past for
him- or herself. Some Frommer's readers have criticized the place, saying it's not
just minimalist—it's simply unfathomable. By the way, that forest of poles filled
with hair, oyster shells, and crab claws in the courtyard adjacent to the indus-
trial-design cafe tables is called
Edge of Trees.
It's a metaphor for the first contact
between Aborigines and the British. There's a reasonable cafe out the front.
Allow anywhere from an hour to a lifetime to understand.
37 Phillip St.
&
02/9251 5988.
Admission A$7 (US$4.55) adults, A$3 (US$1.95) children under 15, A$17
(US$11) families. Daily 9:30am-5pm. CityRail, bus, or ferry: Circular Quay. Sydney Explorer bus.
St. James Church
Sydney's oldest surviving colonial church, begun in 1822,
was designed by the government architect, and former convict, Francis Green-
way. At one time the church's spire served as a landmark for ships coming up the
harbor, but today it looks totally lost amid the skyscrapers. It's well worth seek-
ing out, though, especially for the plaques on the wall, which pay testament to
the hard early days of the colony when people were lost at sea, “speared by
blacks,” and died while serving the British Empire overseas.
Queens Sq., Macquarie St.
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02/9232 3022.
Daily 8am-5pm.
St. Mary's Cathedral
Sydney's most impressive worship place is a giant
sandstone construction between The Domain and Hyde Park. The original St
Mary's was built in 1821, but the chapel was destroyed by fire. Work on the
present cathedral began in 1868, but due to lack of funds remained unfinished
until work began in 1999 to build the two spires. The stained-glass windows
inside are impressive. St. Mary's is Roman Catholic and was built for Sydney's
large population of Irish convicts. In perhaps Sydney's worst pre-Olympic plan-
ning, the beautiful brown sandstone building was marred by a wide stretch of
dark gray paving outside—now the battleground of skateboarders and city
council rangers. The two spires were completed in extra-quick time for the
Olympics, too.
College and Cathedral sts.
&
02/9220 0400.
Mon-Fri 6:30am-6:30pm; Sat 8am-7:30pm; Sun
6:30am-7:30pm.
State Library of NSW
The state's main library is divided into two sections,
the Mitchell and Dixon libraries, next door to one another. A newer reference-
library complex nearby has two floors of reference materials, local newspapers,
and microfiche viewers. Leave your bags in the free lockers downstairs. (You'll
need an A$2 coin, which is refundable.) I highly recommend the library's leafy
Glasshouse Café,
in my opinion one of the best walk-in lunch spots in Sydney.
