Sydney - Australia 2004 - page 154

The older building contains many older books on the ground floor, and often
hosts free art and photography displays in the upstairs galleries. A small library
section in the Sydney Town Hall building has international newspapers.
Macquarie St. & 02/9273 1414. Free admission. Mon-Fri 9am-5pm; Sat-Sun and selected holidays
11am-5pm. Closed New Year's Day, Good Friday, Christmas, and Boxing Day (Dec 26). CityRail: Martin Place.
Sydney Explorer bus.
Sydney Jewish Museum Harrowing exhibits here include documents and
objects relating to the Holocaust and the Jewish culture, mixed with sound-
scapes, audiovisual displays, and interactive media. There's also a museum shop,
a resource center, a small theater, and a traditional kosher cafe. It's considered
one of the best museums of its type in the world. Allow 1 to 2 hours.
148 Darlinghurst Rd., Darlinghurst. & 02/9360 7999. Fax [phone]. www.sjm.com.au. Admission A$10
(US$6.50) adults, A$6 (US$3.90) children, A$22 (US$14) families. Sun-Thurs 10am-4pm; Fri 10am-2pm.
Closed Jewish holidays, Christmas, and Good Friday. CityRail: Kings Cross.
Sydney Observatory The city's only major museum of astronomy offers vis-
itors a chance to see the southern skies through modern and historic telescopes.
The best time to visit is during the night on a guided tour, when you can take a
close-up look at some of the planets. Night tours are offered at 8:15pm from the
end of May to the end of August and at 6:15 and 8:15pm the rest of the year;
be sure to double-check the times when you book your tour. The planetarium
and hands-on exhibits are also interesting.
Observatory Hill, Watson Rd., Millers Point. & 02/9217 0485. Free admission in daytime; guided night tours
(reservations essential) A$10 (US$6.50) adults, A$5 (US$3.25) children, A$25 (US$16) families. Daily
10am-5pm. CityRail, bus, or ferry: Circular Quay.
Vaucluse House Also looking over Sydney Harbour, this house includes lav-
ish entertainment rooms and impressive stables and outbuildings. It was built in
1803 and was the home of Charles Wentworth, the architect of the Australian
Constitution. It's set in 11 hectares (27 acres) of gardens, bushland, and beach
frontage—perfect for picnics. Allow 1 hour.
Wentworth Rd., Vaucluse. & 02/9337 1957. www.hht.nsw.gov.au. Admission A$7 (US$4.55) adults, A$3
(US$1.95) children. House Tues-Sun 10am-4:30pm; grounds daily 7am-5pm. Free guided tours. Closed Good
Friday and Christmas. Bus: 325 from Circular Quay, or Bondi and Bay Explorer.
PARKS & GARDENS
IN SYDNEY
ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS If you are going to spend time in one of Syd-
ney's green spaces, then make it the Royal Botanic Gardens ( & 02/9231
8111 ), next to Sydney Opera House. The gardens were laid out in 1816 on the
site of a farm dedicated to supplying food for the colony. They're informal in
appearance with a scattering of duck ponds and open spaces, though there are
several areas dedicated to particular plant species, such as the rose garden, the
cacti and succulent display, and the central palm and the rainforest groves
(watch out for the thousands of large fruit bats, which chatter and argue among
the rainforest trees). Mrs. Macquarie's Chair, along the coast path, offers
superb views of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. (It's a favorite stop
for tour buses.) The sandstone building dominating the gardens nearest to the
Opera House is the Government House, once the official residence of the gov-
ernor of New South Wales. (He moved out in 1996 in the spirit of republican-
ism.) The pleasant gardens are open to the public daily from 10am to 4pm, and
the house is open Friday through Sunday from 10am to 3pm. Entrance to both