This is an absolutely terrific hike along the coast between Rose Bay and Watsons Bay (or you can…read moreexpand it way way out and start at the Botanic Gardens by Circular Quay). Catch the ferry to either end and walk in either direction. The views back to the city and the Harbour Bridge and Opera House are nothing short of spectacular! and you'll probably see lizards like water dragons and blue tongues along the way. There are easily a half-dozen places to swim, with the highlight probably Parsley Bay and its suspension bridge (although the leg of the trip there from Nielsen Park, through the residential streets of Vaucluse, is somewhat surreal). We stopped for a swim at Nielsen Park (which has shark nets if you're worried about such things) and it was so wonderful it made me very grateful that I live in a city with such a clean harbour. My international friend was pleased that you can stretch out on the grass and avoid getting covered in sand. The recommended time for the walk is 4.5 hours but I think that's pretty generous and definitely allows for lazy hiking and swimming - the Hermitage Foreshore part is the most strenuous, and even then it only has gentle inclines. You don't need hiking boots or any special gear either - I've done it in battered Chucks. In Watsons Bay check out the Gap, and Camp Cove (arguably the most beautiful beach in Sydney), and maybe treat yourself to a fish dinner at Doyle's. If the queue for the ferry back to the city is too long (expect an hour wait on nice days during school holidays) you can always get the bus (although if it goes via Bondi expect an equally horrendous crawl to the Junction), or if you walk in reverse and finish at the Rose Bay end you can walk a bit further past Double Bay and get the train from Edgecliff. On a warm summer's day this is really the perfect Sydney outing!

Free WiFi is a hit. Thank you to the City of Sydney consortiums of libraries for making this…read morepossible. You just need to arrive early enough if you're planning on doing some work or study. Bring your own tablet or laptop device too. Well organised library. A great way to touch base and find out on what is happening in the community. Great kids corner, with a dedicated junior fiction area. So convenient too. In the hub of it all. I am so looking forward to attending an art workshop that goes for three hours next month, as at the time of writing this. You only pay $5 and this covers all materials. Held every Wednesday (with the exception of school and public holidays) and all materials are included. Held at this library, and class is run by the Surry Hills Neighbourhood Centre. Plus you do not need to be a Surry Hills local or resident in order to enjoy. Nice one :)

First off, the Surry Hills library is a beautiful building. It's architectural design fascinates me…read moreand who doesn't love a wall made entirely of glass? (Armando Pamperdine, that's who, but who cares what that glass hating freak likes.) It's a large library and an air conditioned one, whether you're going there to rent out a book, do a bit of study or simply escape the heat and use the free wifi, it's a modern and attractive work space. Situated in the middle of Surry Hills, the library stands like a beacon of knowledge along Crown Street. With a wide selection and multiple levels. It is, without a doubt, a library.

This is a small branch of the Marrickville library that doesn't get alot of traffic. It's located…read morewith the St Peter's Town Hall on Unwins Bridge Road. If you are after a bit of peace and quiet, however, this is the library for you. Its head branch Marrickville is quite simply, a circus at the best of times. It is full of people at all times of the day and filled with kids after school as a sort of unofficial (and unsupervised) after school care. St Peters library actually has some great fiction, whoever is doing the book buying and allocation there is doing a fantastic job, because I can walk in and see three or four books I want to read based on well known titles and authors. Park in surrounding streets or on Unwins Bridge Road during the day. Although it is a clearway southbound from 4pm-6pm.

We went to Old Government House in Parramatta to soak in the local history. I knew that a lot of…read moreinvestment went into the suburb, and was curious about the train stop on the way to the CBD. Did not realize the significant history Parramatta played in the survival of the original colony. This house was the seat of major agricultural work that produced food that fed Sydney. We paid for the volunteer led tour ($14?) and was pleased by the quality of information provided. Our guide was kind enough to allow the young boy in our group unlock the tour with the large key and ring the bell :) You can see the care that this group has put towards preserving this space. If you like history, and don't mind a trip to the Western suburbs, I would definitely recommend the visit to Parramatta Park and Old Government House.

The ferry service at Meadowbank is ideal when you have time to relax. Many people use the ferry of…read morea morning to commute into areas along the river and to Darling Harbour and Circular Quay. The trip takes about an hour and is a good alternative to the train. The ferry ride on a Sunday unfortunately is very busy with families.If the ferry is full at the previous stop the ferry won't pick anyone up. Go early on Sunday or avoid!

They have clean toilets. Lockers. Free wifi. Comfy couches and sitting nooks with plug areas for…read morelaptops and all your other gadgets. And they have books. Granted, it's a library that doesn't stock Terry Prachett (or maybe there wasn't any on the shelves, let's go with that shall we instead of my poor broken heart!) - and a library without Terry Prachett, to be honest, is no library to me. On the plus side, they have a huge area for children's books and entertainment. On the other side of the library is a place for adults. It's hushed tones and book peace was soul soothing. The way the adult area is set out is that they have the shelves with books in a U shape with the tables in the centre with power points and couches around the outside with small tables. Half of the U is dedicated to Fiction. The other half to Biology, Travel, Self Help, etc. The difference in this library is that they don't have different areas for different genres of books. And to be honest, I was expecting more books than what was on the shelf. Instead they have a fiction area that runs from A-Z and then they have wee stickers on the bottom of the spines of books to let you know if it's fantasy (dragon), romance (love heart), hot romance (love heart with horns), comedy (smiley face), family (family of 4 sticker), crime (Sherlock Holmes style hat and magnifier), horror (horror written in blood dripping writing) and more. And they don't mind you grabbing a book and kicking your shoes off to snuggle up in a couch to read a book you never thought you'd read in your life.

They have a good selection of books, magazines, CDs and DVDs, and they can get books that are not…read morecurrently available at West Ryde from the other Ryde libraries for you if you reserve them online. You can also extend your loans online, provided there are no reservations for the item. There are plenty of desks with power points and LAN outlets to allow you to plug in your laptop and do your work. There is also free wifi available but there is a limit of 500mb and I've found the speed to be slow, slower than my 4g connection on my mobile. There is a section for kids on one side of the library. They also have a volunteer JP service, not too sure of the date though, but this information can be easily found on their website. Patrons here are generally quiet though some talk on their phone.

Oh where do I begin? Rookwood is my home away from home. When I am there, it is like I walk with…read morethe comforting force that is Death. It is like he holds my hand as he walks through the Garden of stones with me. The old graves there are beautiful in that they tell a Story, they are so full of Death and yet so full of life. They tell a Story about the people who died. I have felt nothing but Comfort at the sight of these graves.

This is a review of two parts. I mainly went to Rookwood for the Hidden Sculpture Walk. I love to…read moresee public sculpture in interesting locations, and a cemetery is definitely the most unusual I've been to. It was great how many of the works fit in with the surrounding landscape or sentiments, and it was far easier to park than in Bondi for Sculpture by the Sea! The exhibit is on until 18th October (plus every year), so I recommend you get there! 4 stars for the sculptures. However, while we were there, we also tried to visit some graves. If you have family who have passed away in Sydney, it's likely that you'll know someone buried or cremated here - there's over a million burials or memorials here! It wasn't too hard finding my husband's grandparents, whose graves he last visited 5 years ago. But I made the mistake of trying to find my great-grandparents for the first time. I had the full details written down, but they are in the huge Anglican section and unfortunately there was no map of the individual Anglican sections at the cemetery, and the office is closed on weekends. (The map is online, but linked from the footer of the web page, which isn't displayed on a mobile phone.) I eventually found Anglican Section 2 and their supposed plot (with no headstones), but unfortunately Anglican Section 2 is not the same as Anglican Lawn Section 2 (annoyingly enough, back up next to the start of the sculpture walk!) Also be warned that many of the roads are currently closed and being rebuilt, including the one along most of the old Anglican sections. 2 stars for usability...

Olympic Park offers many things like ANZ stadium, multiple sports stadiums, Concert venues and the…read moreOlympic Park Showgrounds is another pearl among this vast constructed urban metropolis. The Sydney Showgrounds is a great venue for large events to showcase what they have to offer. I attended the Sydney Showgrounds to visit the Sydney Cake Bake and Sweet show. The venue is a large dome which features a large open plan hall perfect for all the different exhibitors this or any event has to offer. The room is spacious and can facilitate multiple stage areas as well as many small stalls. The hall comes complete with a cafe and toilet facilities and multiple levels. Having been to many exhibitions elsewhere this place is as good a venue as any.

Big! So big you will get lost at least once, possibly twice, maybe even thrice depending on how…read morepoor your wayfinding is. You only ever come to the Showground for an event, like the Easter Show or the Big Day Out, or a giant food show where you try to cram as many chocolate samples into your mouth before diabetes sets in. It's within Sydney Olympic Park which is monolithic, and which comprises many different buildings, so factor on some wandering around time. Oh and the car parking is about $5 an hour and tops out at $25 max for the day, which ain't so bad.