50 + buildings to visit in 1 day - impossible!!!! The event is getting bigger and more popular each year.
In selecting the final sites/building to visit on my original list, I first eliminated any museums, galleries or buildings that are open to the public year round , I am a member of or could visit at a later date or have visited previously. These included Sydney Harbour YHA & The Big Dig Education Centre, The Justice Museum, Museum of Sydney, Hyde Park Barracks, The Mint, Susannah Place Museum etc as well as buildings that are regulars on the Sydney Open List such as 155 Clarence St, Australia Square, Macquarie Group etc
I had a number of buildings/sites on my original list that I planned to visit but did not have time to visit at least 6 of them. I think I could have spent less time at a few of the sites/buildings and more time at others. There was at least 1 site/building that wasn't included on my original list to visit that I included on my site/building visit as it happened to be on the way to another site/building.
The 6 sites/buildings on my original list and that I did not have time to visit were :
# 14 Glover Cottages
124 Kent St
# 43 Sydney Observatory
Watsons Rd Millers Point
# 15 Government House
Macquarie St entry via Government House Gate on Conservatorium Rd
# 13 Fort Phillip Signal Station
Watsons Rd, Millers Point entry via Observatory main gate
#7 BVN
Lvl 11, 255 Pitt St
Entry via Pitt St in Hilton Hotel
# 4 Arup Studios & Workshop
Level 9 201 Kent St
Below is the original list of sites/buildings I planned to visit excluding above sites/buildings (in order of walking route taken)
# 18 Hong Kong House
80 Druitt St
10 am and first stop of the day. I am Chinese yet I have never visited Hong Kong House. The interior of Hong Kong House from top to bottom was impeccably restored - everything from the old board room lounges to the marble and granite stairs and floors to the carpet the spiral stair case lifts and stain glass ceiling and the window certains and their tassels. I spent quite a bit of time here. The first thing upon arrival was a welcome greeting and a souvenir magnet.
By the time you reached the top floor and stepped out onto the roof top where the views of the top of the adjacent QVB building and Town Hall ( both on the list of Sydney Open sites/buildings to visit as well) were amazing - a photographers dream, you were given another welcome and a chance to enter a lucky draw prize. There was a board indicating the prize attached to each coloured ball drawn - you could cheat Yellow balls were the book prizes and although I saw a few yellow balls in the box I just picked a blue ball out which mean I had won an Australian/HK(China) friendship pin and made a comment " My father would like that!" when I received it. I was more interested in taking heaps of photos though inside and outside. It was a bit narrow on the roof top but I found a favourite view through a hole in the sandstone.
After taking countless photos on the roof top , I took the stairs down a few floors to view one of the board rooms - there was a presentation video playing however all the lounges had "Do not sit" on them therefore to watch the video you had to stand for its duration - most visitors did not bother to stay and watch it.
On my way back to the ground floor entrance I spotted the Chinese flags on either side of a wall opposite a the life and the Chinese em
One of my favourite buildings visited .
Rating 👍👍👍👍👍
# 23 Legion House
Level 1, Legion House,
161 Castlereagh St
Working my way anti clockwise around the city to my selected sites/buildings to visit I made my way towards my second stop on my original list only deciding to bypass it for my 3rd site/building to visit.
Unsure about the exact location of this stop, I made a detour to Legion House as it was on the way.
This was an interesting building to visit a little like Melbourne Central's shot tower surround within a modern shopping centre with glass ceiling abd surrounding panels. I had not read up or heard of Legion House or the organisation it housed. After entering a glass enclosure and up a lift, there was a table with black markers and long strips of white paper with ask me or tell me. you are encouraged to write something to start a conversation - I wrote "Is it really bad luck to be born on the 4th which means death in Chinese?" These strips were then hung up on a large wooden frame.
I then had a quick look into the open planned "meeting" room - I found the industrial looking ceiling light fittings fascinating . Very quick visit due to small site/building area.
Rating 👍👍👍👍
Onto my next site/building which I thought was across the road diagonally but was actually around the corner and down a little further. A little lost and I wasn't the only one!
# 47 The Great Synagogue
166 Castlereagh St
Entry via 187a Elizabeth St
I regret visiting and spending time inside this site/building. My time could have been better spent at an alternative site/building.
Notice that I have not included any religious sites/buildings on my original list to visit and there were quite a few churches open to the public to visit during Sydney Open. This is because I do not belong to or believe in any type of faith.
I wanted to visit a Synagogue because I have never seen the inside of one. I was expecting to be able to photograph and enjoy not just the ornate set of metal gates outside the Synagogue but the interior of one.
When I arrived I felt so unwelcome already because of all the checking of everything I had with me and the number of security guards - 100 times worse then passing through airport security! We were hearded inside the Synagogue and it almost felt like being made to sit through a religious lecture - I felt trapped once inside and committed to stay for the duration of the lecture. I felt as if I was visiting a cult probably more extreme then Scientology.
Visitors were not free to walk around the inside of the Synagogue and I became pretty disinterested in the lecture given because it was quite region oriented rather then just a straight architectural and design related lecture. I had so many questions - the comment about the segregation of the male and female congregation - males sat down stairs whereas females sat upstairs - the "Bible" apparently mentions it to be this way - I would call this inequality . I was more interested in seeing and learning about the Torah and looking around the congregation to see the number of Asians visiting the Synagogue - only me and one other Asian couple in the adjacent group.
Is it even Kosher for Orthodox Jews to be working on their Sabeth ie their day of rest- surly there is some Jewish rule or regulation stating this is "forbidden"
I could not be an Orthodox Jew - It does not seem to be to be a religion but a cult.
It was pure disappointment with very tight security - no photos allowed inside the Synagogue no phones, bags or personal items allowed inside the Synagogue and rude security guards.
Rating 👎👎👎👎👎
Onto my next site/building visit just down the street. Still travelling in an anti clockwise direction around the city.
# 35 Reserve Bank of Australia
65 Martin Place
If you love the opulence of the old Commonwealth Bank building and all the other top 4 banks around Martin Place surround in marble and marble pillars, very high ceilings, little rectangular desks with chairs eith the pens attached to chains and the littke rectangular holders with the old fashioned deposit and withdrawal slips and old fashioned tellers with the bars across them then you will love the foyer area of the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Housed within the Reserve Bank of Australia building on the street level is a museum.
I have not been in the museum before and found it fascinating with the old metal printing press, old currency and the story behind the production of currency. A meeting room was set up with a video presentation giving the history , design and production of paper currency "no coinage at this museum"
There is a new interactive section near the exit of the museum dedicated to the new $5 note. I never knew that it had so many security features. 2 large interactive screens allowed you to move around 2 large images of the new polymer $5 to take a magnified view of it.
Again I spent quite a bit of time at this site/building but was beginning to feel the presdure to get to Barangaroo in time for the 1 of only 2 tour/talk commencing at 2.30 pm.
I enjoyed this visit as well. I wonder how much my old paper notes are worth now????Spotted an old Commonweath Bank Building rectangular metal money box from the 1970s???? Remember these we all had one back then!
Rating 👍👍👍👍
# 31 Parliament if NSW
6 Macquarie St
Although this is open to the public and there are always "pre election" tours of Parliament House, I have not revisited Parliament House since my 6 week temporary assignment in the payroll department back in the 1990s I think it was.
I can hardly remember the building as I was hidden away in the upper floor offices a long way away from the entrance and the public. I don't even remember ever seeing the water feature surrounded by glass in the centre of Parliament House or the upper and lower house chambers.
A carpeted panel removed from one of the chambers floors reveals what lies underneath this sand stone building. I am sure there are lots of secret entrances and exits within the grounds of the Parliament of NSW - I spotted one set of "no public access" stairs in one of the rooms which led down below the building probably to some private offices.
The wall paper the carpet and all the history within Parliament House was amazing to look at - the blend of old and new throughout and the rows and rows of "books" - Parliamentary Acts probably were visible.
Worth taking a proper guided tour one day.
I spent quite a lot of time at this site/building and if course took heaps of photos. Be aware that all bags and personal belongings have to be put through an X ray scanner when you are about to enter the grounds of Parliment House and you have to walk through an X ray scanner as you would at the airport. There was no queue at all when I arrived but be prepared to wait during peak visiting times. One way in and one way out via rotating exit.
Rating 👍👍👍👍
# 46 The Calyx
Royal Botanic Garden
Entry via Mcquarie St
OK by the time I arrived at this site/building I was beginning to feel the pressure of having not enough time to get to Barangaroo. I had no idea where The Calyx was and even less of an idea of where the Two International Towers Barangaroo was - all I knew was that they were on the other side of town.
I still had time - lost , I just followed the crowds hopefully in the right direction through the Botanic Gardens to The Calyx.
When I arrived at its entrance I saw this amazing white circular structure with a central water feature with topery like animated monkeys around the circular water feature.
Part way around The Calyx structure is a semi circular building with clear glass facades and frosted etched or embossed glass doors. This building housed an enclosed green house with a high glass ceiling - a glass house creating an artifucal rainforest complete with a humid environment and mists of moisture soraying out from the top of the livjng vegetation wall. The most spectacular features within this artifical rainforest were the living walls full of vegetation - floor to ceiling the entire length of the wall was flourishing with a wide variety of plants and flowers creating a patchwork mosaic and a wall depicting the image of a cow all created with shades of vegetation.
There artifical animals such as birds and insects scattered above the artifical rain forest. Rows of shelves displaying fruits and vegetables nuts and seeds plants and animals and food products all coming from a rain forest with a focus on the history and production of cocao.
Currently on at The Calyx is the Sweet Addiction The Botanic Story of Chocolate exhibition. It is all about chocolate - the history of chocolate , the cocao, chocolate processing and what would a chocolate exhibition be without free tastings of white milk and dark chocolate along with tastings of pure cocoa butter and chocolate nibs (my favourite) thanks to Lindt Chocolates as well as a small gift store and a "Win a years supply of Lindt chocolates" competition. To win the competition visitors had to guess the number of Lindt chocolate balls used to create a giant "Sweet Addiction" mural hung on the wall just outside the exit of the artifically created rainforest.
One visitor makes the comment that is not a square and another visitor is quietly counting the chocolate balls.
Me well I counted the number of chocolate balls down and then across, got my smsrt phone calculator out and multipled one by the other giving a total of ............ balls as all balls were stacked on top of each other perfectly and not over lapping. Simple right? Not quite after I entered my answer, which I quickly jotted down on my Sydney Open map above the # 46 location, on the competition website and hitting "submit", I realised I had made a boo boo. wouldnt the corner chocolate balls be counted twice???? Any mathematicans out there want to comment?
If by any chance I got it correct and won the competition which is a probability of almost zero then I would request the years supply of chocolate to be delivered to my work place for my work collegue(s) - yep that one!
I sent a text message to my work collegue "If you haven't been to The Calyx go there's chocolate!"
There were a few parents OKing their kids to sample one final chocolate before they exited The Calyx.
Another one of my favourites and it's not all about the chocolate. Even if you don't visit the Calyx it is a lovely walk or run around the surrounding Botanic Gardens.
Rating 👍👍👍👍👍
200 Barangaroo Ave, Barangaroo
Entry via Shipwreck Walk
This is where a membership or VIP wristband comes in handy to avoid queing up for over half an hour and missing out on any talks or tours at this site/building. There were only 2 talks on today and people were queing up from 8 - 8.30 am for the early talk for over half an hour.
I still had time but had priority to go straight up - white wristband flash.
First stop level 35 then 36 and finally 41. You can stop on each floor but it is a one way trip therefore if you miss a floor you cant go back down. Example you can't go from level 41 back down to level 36 if you got on at ground floor. Anyway all too confusing and whether or not it was to minimise the use of lifts that day I am unsure so I ensured I stopped at level 35 got off looked around then back into the lift to level 36 got off and looked around and stay for the talk/tour in the staff canteen then finally back in the lift to level 41 where I stayed for the next hour or so before getting back in the lift to travel non stop all the way to ground/street level.
There were live performances on the ground floor - a celloist and guitarist and a harpist playing on the 41st floor.
There are actually 3 International Towers at Barangaroo - only Tower 2 was open to the public for Sydney Open.
Each of the levels were different level 35 was all about layout and the view from every office/meeting room and boardroom.
Level 36 was occupied by Swiss Re a reinsurance company giving the public an idea of a real office layout - everything from flooring furnishings staff amenities hot desks meeting rooms board rooms reception area kitchen staff canteen toliets staff lockers sustainability noise reduction etc and level 41 was all open plan giving the public spacial awareness and how much floor space availability is on each level and of course the best 360 degree view of Sydneys harbours and surrounds - skyline and below. Yes "Make It Happen"
Easy walking connection back to Wynyard Station via Wynyard Walk.
Rating 👍👍👍👍👍
# 8 City Recital Hall
2 - 12 Angel Place
Entry via Angel Place off Pitt Street
Stayed tuned - still visiting my last Sydney Open site/ building for the day and it is now 3.50 pm.......
This was an interesting visit. I arrived too late and missed the final guided tour of this site/building.
The first thing I noticed was the recital hall was full of Asians - I only spotted one older Caucasian couple exiting at the end of the piano recital.
I had spent too much time at Barangaroo and had missed the first half of the piano recitals already , I debated whether or not to not stay until the end of the remainder of the piano rectitals or shoot across the other side of the city to thr Rocks area to try and fit in one last site/building visit - I still had until 5 pm until the Sydney Observatory closed but decided to stay and watch/listen to the remainder of the 60 minute piano recitals which started at 3.30 pm and finished at 4.30 pm. I was tired and didn't think I would get much out of my visit to the Sydney Observatory in under an hour (it would take me approximately 30 minutes or so to get there from where I was currently).
A little bit art deco not quite Opera House.
Rating 👍👍👍
Ok blogging is caught up on but photos uploaded I have not. I still have some to upload onto this blog of The Calyx and Tower 2 Barangaroo and of the new Wynyard Walk (photo below)
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