I overnighted it this year on Friday Saturday and Sunday (for the 3rd week in a row now) @ Railway Square YHA (this time in a 4 share female carriage rather then an 8).
Friday after work there was a signal problem at Flemington therefore all trains were backed up between Chatswood and Central. It took me almost 2 hours to get from St Ives Shopping Centre to Railway Square YHA!I was so tired by the time I arrived I just went to sleep instead of my planned visit to the Chinatown Friday night markets.
Saturday I got up early to head for my favourite markets at Carriageworks returning to the YHA to dump my purchases before heading off to an 11.30 am Beginner Ballet class at SDC. (Since I missed my dance class on Thursday night I thought I would make up for it as a final training session before tomorrow's race - I had left work early on Thursday night so I could pick up my race kit @ Lower Town Hall to avoid the Saturday rush and then go to my dance class but missed the bus down to Walsh Bay because the volunteers at the race expo were so slow at retrieving the race kits)
Then it was shopping for essentials and a return to the race expo at Lower Townhall to look at race gear before heading back to the YHA and preparing for tomorrow morning's race.
I was expecting the annual Beams Art Festival to be on Saturday night at Central Park but disappointingly it is no longer an annual event ending its five year run for the last time in 2016.
Sunday Blackmores Sydney Running Festival 8 am start - 10 km certified Bridge Run . TBC.
The race course has changed again. Starting at Milsons Point under the Harbour Bridge from the Bradfield Park across the road from the Olympic Pool, it now runs uphill past the Welcome to North Sydney arch and continues up the narrow laneway of Middlemiss Street rather then cutting under one of the harbour bridge archways directly onto the Harbour Bridge.
The enormous amounts ts of clothing disposed of by runners before each race at Bradfield Park - hopefully donated to charities for those in need
The B Group starting area and Welcome to North Sydney Archway
The usual half an hour wait for the
port-a-loos
The crowd of runners at Bradfield Park located at Milsons Point beneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge
Lining up waiting to start behind the tape
All the runners behind me gathering waiting to start
And we are off slowly uphill towatds the Welcome to North Sydney Archway.
Running across the Harbour Bridge
Running and cheering through the Cahill Expressway Tunnel
Taking a photo stop along the Cahill Expressway where you can see the Opera House forecourt - the distant finishing line!
The race continues into the Domain around the first of 2 hairpin turns to Mrs Macquaries Chair where you hit the 6 and 7 km marks - you feel better as you have passed the half way mark and back onto the main road where there is a 2nd hairpin turn and pass the 8 km mark.
Looking back at the finishline after crossing it in the Opera House forecourt and the thousands of people gathered on the steps of the Opera House and surrounds with the Harbour Bridge now in the distant background.
Basically this was the EXIT sign out of the Recovery Village - confused? I was. This was nowhere near the baggage collection area or food and drink and what stage? and I'm surprised it doesn't include toliets which were just behind the sign!
Onto the Recovery Village via confusing signage to collect a medal and onto collect my prepaid preordered breakfast and then a free piece of fruit from the Blackmores Fruit Market tent - note 1 piece of fruit per person only - no free giveaways this year except for queuing for a post race massage where you can get a tube of Blackmores muscle pain cream or a post race selfie. Plenty of water but no sports drinks this year. No baggage to collect this year - it takes too long and I don't have time as I still have to get out to Parramatta. Straight to the train station across the Marathon race course.
Crowds waiting to cross the marathon race course to Circular Quay station.
The Blackmores Sydney Running Festival is an annual event which is as big as the City to Surf (14 km) which is a combination of 4 races rather then just 1 race. It consists of the Full Marathon, Half Marathon, Bridge Run and Family Fun Run. Each race starts at a different time and has staggered starting groups.
I made it to the finish line in 1 hour and 37 minutes. I allowed myself 2 hours but was aiming for 1 hour and 30 minutes. I lost a bit of time because I walked most of the course and took photos not at every km mark but at landmarks because it was the first year the course had changed to a certified 10 km.
A quick bottle of water, collection of medal and onto the Recovery Village to collect my preordered BLT and juice and a piece of fruit from one of the Blackmores tents.
I started to feel a little sick - a slight sore throat but after finishing my BLT juice and fruit it was back to the YHA by train for a quick shower change of clothes and a change of backpack then back on the train to Parramatta and free vintage shuttle bus for a few hours at Elizabeth Farm for the annual Spring Harvest Festival run by the Sydney Living Museum. A little disappointed yet again food was running out once again by the time I reached the event and by around 2 pm all pies and sausages had sold out yet again. Same food stores were on site but there were a lot more people this year and more food talks and demonstrations happening. The dairy was open for butter churning this time round which was interesting. No collared eel this time round but there was curry making and the colonial kitchen at Elizabeth Farm house was in full swing. It was nice and warm inside the kitchen with the smell of all those mixed spices. I noticed that there was a tin of Keens or was it Clives Curry Powder on the kitchen table amongst all the ground spices in glass canisters and jars - I don't think instant curry powder was available from the local supermarket back in colonial kitchen days!
In the farm house there was also a demonstration on how the table was set and a little room off the dining room was where the crockery cutlery and linen was stored. A small child has a peep into this room and makes a comment about how little supplies there were in the room and adding that the family must have been less well off because they couldn't affort much crockery cutlery and linen - which is contrary as the Macarthurs were VERY well off! (Just a look at their menu for a meal gave you this impression!)
New to the Spring Harvest Festival was Crop Swap - exactly as it says - people bring their excess produce they have grown to swap eg potatos for carrots.
Also there was the tea making stall where I tasted some freshly brewed native tea. This was a very sweet tea not unpleasant at all - so this is what colonial tea tasted like! I was trying to soothe my sore throat so thought having a taste of this tea with a tasting of Bilpin honey would help but unforunately it didn't.
I didn't spend much time out at the Spring Harvest Festival as I did last Spring as I was not feeling the best therefore left after an hour and lots of photos onto the rickety old vintage bus to take me back to Parramatta Station. There were quite a few passengers on this free shuttle bus to and from Parramatta Station to and from Elizabeth Farm which was suppose to travel via Parramatta Wharf but somehow bypassed it on the return route. A little too slow to reach Parramatta and no timetable either which makes it difgicult for people wanting to make use of the shuttle bus. It was suppose to run every 15 minutes on a loop but I am sure I waited much longer then that and because of not having a timetable people missed the shuttle.
The free vintage shuttle bus to/Parramatta Station to/Elizabeth Farm
The exterior of Elizabeth Farm House
The interior of Elizabeth Farm House
The formal dining room inside Elizabeth Farm House and table setting demonstration
This is the dairy where the butter churning demonstrations were. This was a section of Elizabeth Farm House I had not seen before and it was quite a small dairy - I wonder how they got the cows in and out of this "shed"?
This was where all the action was inside Elizabeth Farm House in the colonial kitchen where the currues were being made and tasted. Wouldn't you love to have a kitchen like this!!! It was nice and warm inside the kitchen not too hot and not too cold as this kitchen can get throughout the year.
The exterior of Elizabeth Farm House with its window shutters and long varandas.
The Sydney Living Museum Pop Up Store
The small variety of market stalls around the gardens
The many talks given in the garden area which deck chairs to relax in the sun in
The teahouse where you can have a Devonshire Tea
The gardens around Elizabeth Farm
Kids grinding grain in the farm house courtyard
The kitchen garden near the rear of the farm house
This is where I sampled some traditional native tea which was sweet to the taste. I felt the leaves which made up the tea and squashed them by tearing them up in my hand to see if they gave out any aroma but they didn't. The sweetness from the leaves only comes out then they are bolied and infused. A comment was made that if you saw the leaves in a garden they would certainly have been missed as there is nothing distinctive about their look or scent.
Straight back to the YHA by train where I slept for the rest of the afternoon in pain and took 2 panadol. My sore throat was getting worse and I was cold and aching all over. It has been a massive week for me. No more adventures planned for next weekend.
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