Sydney Escorts

SYDNEY ESCORTS TRAVEL GUIDE

BOTANIC GARDENS AND THE DOMAIN           

This tranquil part of Sydney can seem a world away from the bustle of the city centre.  It is rich in the remnants of Sydney's convict and colonial past:  the site of the first farm, and the boulevard-like Macquarie Street where the barracks, hospital, church and mint - bastions of civic power - are among the oldest surviving public buildings in Australia.  This street continues t assert its dominance today as the home of the state government of New South Wales.  The Domain, an open, grassy space, was originally set aside by the colony's first governor for his private use.  Today it is a democratic place with joggers and touch foot-ballers sidestepping picnickers.  In January, during the Festival of Sydney, it hosts outdoor concerts with thousands of people enjoying fine music.  The Botanic Gardens, which with The Domain was the site of Australia's first park, is a haven where visitors can stroll around and enjoy the extensive collection of native and exotic flora.

GETTING THERE
Visit on foot, if possible.  St James and Martin Place train stations are close to most of the sights.  The 311 bus from Circular Quay runs near the Art Gallery of NSW and past the Woolloomooloo Finger Wharf.  The Sydney Explorer also stops at several sights.

ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDENS
The Royal Botanical Gardens, an oasis of 30ha  (74 acres)  in the heart of the city, occupy a superb position, wrapped around Farm Cove at the harbour's edge.  Established in 1816 as a series of pathways through shrubbery, they are the oldest scientific institution in the country and house an outstanding collection of plants from Australia and overseas.  A living museum, the gardens are also the site of the first farm in the fledgling colony.  Fountains, statues and monuments are today scattered throughout.  Plant specimens collected by Joseph Banks on Captain James Cook's epic voyage along the east coast of Australia in 1770 are displayed in the National Herbarium of New South Wales, an important centre for research on Australian plants.

PALM GROVE
Begun in 1862, this cool summer haven is one of the world's finest outdoor collections of palms.  There are about 180 species.  Borders planted with kaffir lilies make a colourful display in springtime.

HERB GARDEN
Herbs from around the world used for a wide variety of purposes - culinary;  medicinal and aromatic - area on display here.  A sensory fountain and a sundial modelled on the celestial sphere are also features.

SYDNEY TROPICAL CENTRE
Two glasshouses contain tropical ecosystems in miniature.  Native vegetation is displayed in the Pyramid, while the Arc holds plants not found locally, commonly known as exotics.

MACQUARIE WALL
In 1810, work began on this 290m  (950ft)  long wall intended to separate the convict domain from the town's  "respectable Class of Inhabitants".  Only a small section remains standing today.

MRS MACQUARIES CHAIR
Where the governor's wife liked to sit and watch the harbour, is marked by a carved rock ledge seat.

THE FLEET STEPS
Met those disembarking from ships in Farm Cove.

CADI JAM ORA
A bush tucker display, encourages visitors to taste bush foods from local plants.

CHORAGIC MONUMENT
This replica of the eponymous statue of Lysicrates in Athens was carved in sandstone by Walter McGill.

ANDREW  (BOY)  CHARLTON POOL
Is popular for swimming.

AUSTRALIA'S FIRST FARM
It is claimed that some Middle Garden oblong beds follow the direction of the first furrows ploughed in the colony.

NATIONAL HERBARIUM OF NEW SOUTH WALES
About one million dried plant specimens document biological diversity.  Discovery and documentation of new plants aims to slow down extinction rates of species.

CONSERVATORIUM OF MUSIC, Macquarie Street.
When it was finished in 1821, this striking castellated Colonial Gothic building was meant to be stables and servants' quarters for Government House, but construction of the latter was delayed for almost 25 years.  That stables should be built in so grand a style, and at such great cost, brought forth cries of outrage and led to bitter arguments between the architect, Francis Greenway, and Governor Macquarie - and a decree that all future building plans be submitted to London.

Between 1908 and 1915,  "Greenway's folly"  underwent a dramatic transformation.  A concert hall, roofed in grey slate, was built on the central courtyard and the building in its entirety was converted for the use of the new Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

Recently added facilities include a cafe which holds regular lunchtime concerts during the school term and an upper level with great harbour views.  "The Con"  continues to be a training ground for future musicians as well as being a great place to visit.
Open:  9am - 5pm Monday - Friday, 9am - 4pm Saturday  (public areas only).
Closed:  public holidays, Easter Saturday, December 24 - January 2.)
Tel:  93 - 51 - 12 - 22.

GOVERNMENT HOUSE, Macquarie Street.
What used to be the official residence of the governor of New South Wales overlooks the harbour from within the Royal Botanic Gardens, but the grandiose, somewhat sombre, turreted Gothic Revival edifice seems curiously out of place in its beautiful park setting. 

It was built of local sandstone and cedar between 1837 and 1845.  A fine collection of 19th and 20th-century furnishings and decoration is housed within.
Open:  10am - 3pm Friday - Sunday, Garden:  10am - 4pm daily.
Closed:  Good Friday, December 25.
Tel:  99 - 31 - 52 - 22.

MRS MACQUARIES CHAIR, Mrs Macquaries Road.
The scenic Mrs Macquaries Road winds alongside much of what is now the city's Royal Botanic Gardens, from Farm Cove to Woolloomooloo Bay and back again.  The road was built in 1816 at the instigation of Elizabeth Macquarie, wife of the Governor.  In the same year, a stone bench, inscribed with details of the new road, was carved into the rock at the point where Mrs Macquarie would stop to admire the view on her daily constitutional.

Although today the outlook from this famous landmark is much changed, it is just as arresting, taking in the broad sweep of the harbour and foreshore with all its landmarks.

WOOLLOOMOOLOO FINGER WHARF, Cowper Wharf Roadway.
This is the largest of several finger wharves that jut out into the harbour.  The wharf, completed in 1914, was one of the points of embarkation for soldiers bound for both world wars.  Following World War II, it was a landing place for many of the thousands of immigrants who came to Australia. 

The wharf was the subject of public controversy in the late 1980's and early 1990's, when demolition plans were thwarted by conservation groups.  Since then, this National-Trust - listed maritime site has been redeveloped to include a hotel, lively restaurants, bars and apartments.

THE DOMAIN, Art Gallery Road.
People who swarm to the January concerts and other Festival of Sydney events in the Domain are part of a long-standing tradition.

This extensive public space has long been a rallying point for crowds of Sydneysiders whenever emotive issues of public importance have arisen, such as the attempt in 1916 to introduce military conscription or the dismissal of the elected federal government by the then governor-general in 1975.

From the 1890's, part of The Domain was also used as the Sydney version of   "Speakers' Corner".  Today, you are more likely to see joggers or office workers playing touch football in their lunch hours, or simply enjoying the shade.

ART GALLERY OF NEW SOUTH WALES
Established in 1874, the art gallery has occupied its present imposing building since 1897.  Designed by the Colonial Architect WL Vernon, the gallery double in size following 1988 building extensions.  Two equestrian bronzes - The Offerings of Peace and The Offerings of War - greet the visitor on entry.  The gallery itself houses some of the finest works of art in Australia.  It has sections devoted to Australian, Asian, European, photographic and contemporary and a photographic works, along with a strong collection of prints and drawings.  The Yiribana Gallery, the largest in the world to exclusively exhibit Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and culture, was opened in 1994.

SOFALA  (1947)
Russell Drydale's visions of Australia show  "ghost"  towns laid waste by devastating natural forces such as drought.

MADONNA AND CHILD WITH INFANT ST JOHN THE BAPTIST
This oil on wood  (1541)  is the work of Siena Mannerist artist Domenico Beccafumi.

SUNBAKER  (1937)
Max Dupain's iconic, almost abstract, Australian photograph of hedonism and sun worship uses clean lines, strong light, and geometric form.  The image power lies in its simplicity.

PUKUMANI GRAVE POSTS  (1958)
Carved by Tiwi people of Melville Island  (north of Australia)  and now in the Yiribana Gallery, these posts represent qualities of the deceased whose grave they solemnly surrounded.

TRIBAL SHIELD
This Melanisian shield, found in 1969 near Lake Kopiago in Papua New Guinea, is made from wood, bark and split bamboo.  Brilliantly decorated with colourful natural pigments, the shield is likely to have had a ceremonial purpose but may also have been used in tribal warfare.

GUARDIANS, TANG DYNASTY
These 7th-century Chinese figures are part of a collection high-lighting different traditions, periods and cultures from the many countries of Asia.

THE GOLDEN FLEECE  (1894)
Also known as Shearing at Newstead, this work by Tom Roberts marks the coming of age of Australian Impressionist art.

GALLERY GUIDE
There are five levels.  The Upper Level has the Rudy Komon Gallery for temporary exhibitions, which are also held on Lover Level 1.  The Ground Level has European and Australian works, 20th-century European prints are on Lower Level 2 and the Yiribana Aboriginal Gallery is on Lower Level 3.

EXPLORING THE ART GALLERY'S COLLECTION
Although local works had been collected since 1875 the gallery did not seriously begin seeking Australian and non-British art until the 1920's, and not until the 1940's did it begin acquiring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander paintings.  These contrasting collections are now its great strength.  Major temporary exhibitions are also regularly staged, with the annual Archibald.  Wynne and Sulman prizes being most controversial and highly entertaining.

AUSTRALIAN ART
Among the most important colonial works is John Glover's Natives on the Ouse River, Van Diemen's Land  (1838), an image of doomed Tasmanian Aborigines.

"The old wing holds paintings from the Heidelberg school of Australian Impressionism.  Charles Conder's Departure of the Orient - Circular Quay  (1888)  and Tom Robert's The Golden Fleece - Shearing at Newstand  (1894)  hang alongside fine works by Frederick McCubbin and Arthur Streeton.  Rupert Bunny's sensuous Summer Time  (1907)  and A Summer Morning  (1908), and George Lambert's heroic Across the black soil plains  (1899), impress with their huge size and complex compositions."

Australia was slow to take up Modernism.  Implement blue  (1927)  and Western Australian Gum Blossom  (1928), both by Margaret Preston, are her most assertive of the 1920's.  Sydney Nolan's works range from Boy in Township  (1943)  to Burke  (1962), exploiting myths of early Australian history.  There are fine holdings of William Dobell and Russell Drysdale, as well as important collections of Arthur Boyd, Fred Williams, Grace Cossington Smith and Brett Whiteley.

PHOTOGRAPHY
Australian photography from 1975 to today, represented in all its various forms, is a major part of the collection.  In recent years, however, the emphasis has been on building up a body of 19th-century Australian work in a range of early mediums. " Nearly 3,000 prints constitute this collection with pieces by Charles Kerry, Charles Bayliss and Harold Cazneaux, the latter a major figure of early 20th-century Pictorialism. 

ASIAN ART
This collection is one of the finest in Australia.  Chinese art is represented by a chronological presentation of works from the pre-Shang dynasty to the 20th-century.  The Ming porcelains, earthenware funerary pieces  (mingqi)  and the sculptures deserve close attention.

The Japanese painting collection contains fine examples by major artists of the Edo period  (1615 - 1867).  The Indian and Southeast Asian holdings consist of lacquer, ceramics and sculptures, with painting displays changing regularly.

PRINTS AND DRAWINGS
As so many of the works in this collection are fragile, the exhibitions are changed frequently.  The collection represents the European tradition from the High Renaissance to the 19th and 20th-centuries, with work by Rembrandt, Constable, William Blake and Edvard Munch.  A strong bias towards Sydney artists from the past 100 years has resulted in a fine gathering of work by Thea Proctor, Norman and Lionel Lindsay and Lloyd Rees.

CONTEMPORARY ART
The significance of the art of our time is reflected in the collection of recent work by international and Australian artists, only a fraction of which can be displayed at any time.  The collection highlights the artistic themes that have been central to art practice of the last three decades.  Works by Australian artists, such as Pataphysical Man  (Imants Tillers, 1984)  and Suspended Stone Circle II  (Ken Unsworth, 1988), are on display alongside pieces by notable international artists of the calibre of Cindy Sherman, Yves Klein, Phillip Guston and Anselm Keifer.  The gallery also has a contemporary project space that features temporary experimental installation.

YIRIBANA GALLERY
Devoted to the exhibition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artworks bought since the 1940's, traditional bark paintings hang alongside innovative works from both desert and urban areas, including stone and wood carvings, ceramics and weavings.  The ability of contemporary artists to apply traditional ceremonial body and sand painting styles to new media forms, and the endurance of  "Aboriginality", and repeatedly demonstrated.  The significant early purchases are mainly natural pigment paintings on bark and card, often containing a simple, figurative motif of everyday life.  Also of interest  are tow sandstone carvings by Queenslanders Linda Craigie and Nora Nathan, the only women artists in the collection until 1985.  Topographical, geographical and cultural mapping of the land is displayed in a number of intricate landscapes.  The qualities and forms of the natural world, and the actions and tracks of Ancestral Beings, are coded within the images.  These paintings are maps of Ancestral journeys and events.  The bark painting Three Mimis Dancing  (1964)  by Samuel Wagbara examines the habitation of the land by Spirits and the recurrence of the Creation Cycles.

Pukumani Grave Posts Melville Island  (1958)  is a solemn ceremonial work dealing with death, while the eminent Emily Kame Kngwarreye honours the land from which she comes.  The canvases of her intricate dot paintings, created using new tools and technology, appear to move and shimmer, telling stories of the animals and food to be found there.

STATE LIBRARY OF NSW, Macquarie Street.
The State Library is housed in two separate buildings connected by a passageway and a glass bridge.  The older building, the Mitchell Library wing  (1906), is a majestic sandstone edifice facing the Royal Botanic Gardens.  Huge stone columns supporting a vaulted ceiling frame the impressive vestibule.  On the vestibule floor is a mosaic replica of an old map illustrating the two voyages made to Australia by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman in the 1640's.  The original Tasman Map is held in the Mitchell Library as part of its large collection of historic Australian paintings, books, documents and pictorial records.

The Mitchell wing's vast reading room, with its huge skylight and oak panelling, is just beyond the main vestibule.  The newest section, a modern structure facing Macquarie Street houses the State Reference Library and a gourmet cafe.

Outside the library, also facing Macquarie Street, is a statue of explorer Matthew Flinders.  Behind him on the windowsill is a statue of his co-voyager, his faithful cat, Trim.
Open:  9am - 9pm Monday - Friday, 11am - 5pm Saturday - Sunday.
Closed:  some public holidays.  Mitchell library closed every Sunday.
Tel:  92 - 73 -  14 - 14.

PARLIAMENT HOUSE, Macquarie Street.
The central section of this building, which houses the State Parliament, is part of the original Sydney Hospital built from 1811 - 1816.  It has been a seat of government since 1829 when the newly appointed Legislative Council first held meetings here.  The building was extended twice during the 19th-century and again during the 1970's and 1980's.  The current building contains the chambers for both houses of state parliament, as well as parliamentary offices.  Parliamentary memorabilia is on view in the Jubilee Room, as are displays showing Parliament House's development and the legislative history of New South Wales.

The corrugated iron building with a cast-iron facade tacked on at the southern end was a pre-fabricated kit from England.  It was originally intended as a chapel for the gold fields, but was diverted from this purpose and sent to Sydney.  In 1856, this dismantled kit became the chamber for the new Legislative Council.  Its packing cases were used to line this chamber: the rough timber is still on view inside.
Open:  9:30am - 4:30pm Monday - Friday.
Tel:  92 - 30 - 21 - 11.

SYDNEY HOSPITAL, Macquarie Street.
This imposing collection of Victorian sandstone buildings stands on the site of what was once the central section of the original convict-built Sydney Hospital - known as the Rum Hospital because the builders were paid by being allowed to import rum for resale.  Both the north and south wings of the Rum Hospital survive as Parliament House and the Sydney Mint.  The central wing, which was in danger of collapsing, was demolished in 1879 and the new hospital, which still functions today, was completed in 1894.  The Classical Revival building boasts a Baroque staircase and elegant floral stained-glass windows in its entrance hall.  Florence Nightingale approved the design of the 1867 nurses' wing.  In the inner courtyard, there is a brightly coloured Art Deco fountain  (1907.

At the front of the hospital sit II Porcellino, a brass boar.  It is a copy of a 17th-century fountain in Florence's Mercato Nuovo.  Donated in 1968 by an Italian woman whose relatives had worked at the hospital, the statue is an enduring symbol of the close friendship between Italy and Australia.

Like his Florentine counterpart, II Porcellino is supposed to bring good luck to all those who rub his snout.  All coins tossed in the shallow pool at his feet for luck and fortune are collected for the hospital.
Open:  daily
Tel:  93 - 82 - 71 - 11.

THE MINT, 10 Masquarie Street.
The gold rushes of the mid-19th-century transformed colonial Australia.  The Sydney Mint opened int eh 1816 Rum Hospital's south wing in 1854 to turn recently discovered gold into bullion and currency.  It was the first branch of the Royal Mint to be established outside London.  The Mint was closed in 1927 as it was no longer competitive with the Melbourne and Perth Mints.  The Georgian building went into its own decline after it was converted into government offices.  In the 1950's the front courtyard was even used as a car park.  In 1982, it opened as a branch of the Powerhouse Museum, but the collection moved to the main museum in Harris Street.

This building is now the head office of the Historic Houses Trust of NSW and you can wander through the front of the building, or view the small historical display near the entrance.
Open:  9am - 5pm Monday - Friday.
Closed:  Good Friday, December 25.
Tel:  82 - 39 - 22 - 88.
Tel:  82 - 39 - 22 - 11.  (Box Office).

HYDE PARK BARRACKS MUSEUM, Queens Square, Macquarie Street.
Described by Governor Macquarie as  "spacious"  and   "well aired", the beautifully proportioned barracks are the work of Francis Greenway and are considered his masterpiece.  They were completed in 1819 by convict labour and designed to house 600 convicts who had previously been forced to find their own lodgings after their day's work.  Subsequently, the building housed Irish orphans and then single female immigrants, before becoming courts and legal offices.  Refurbished in 1990, it reopened as a museum with exhibits covering the site and its occupants over the years.

The display include a room reconstructed as convict quarters of the 1820's, as well as pictures, models and artifacts relating to this period of Australian history.  Many of the objects recovered during archaeological digs at the site and now on display had been dragged away by rats to their nests: the scavenging rodents are acknowledged as valuable agents of preservation.

The Greenway Gallery on the first floor holds temporary exhibitions on history, ideas and culture.  From the Barracks Cafe, which incorporates the original confinement cell area, the visitor can enjoy refreshment, gazing out over the now serene courtyard, once the scene of brutal convict floggings.
Open:  9:30am - 5:00pm daily.
Closed:  Good Friday, December 25.
Tel:  82 - 39 - 23 - 11.

ST JAMES CHURCH, 173 King Street.
This fine Georgian building, constructed with convict-made bricks, was designed as a courthouse in 1819.  The architect, Francis Greenway, was forced to convert it into a church in 1820, when plans to build a grand cathedral on George Street were abandoned.

Greenway unhappy about the change, designed a simple yet elegant church.  Consecrated in 1824 by Samuel Marsden the infamous  "flogging parson", it is Sydney's oldest church.  Many additions have been carried out, including designs by John Verge in which the pulpit faced towards high-rent pews, while convicts and the military sat behind the preacher where the service would have been inaudible.  A Children's Chapel was added in 1930.

Prominent members of early 19th-century society, many of whom died violently, are commemorated in marble tablets.  These tell the full and bloody stories of luckless explorers, the governor's wife dashed to her death from her carriage, and shipwreck victims.
Open:  8am - 5pm Monday - Friday, 8am - 4pm Saturday, 7:30am - 4pm Sunday.
Tel:  92 - 32 - 30 - 22.

FRANCIS GREENWAY, CONVICT ARCHITECT
Until recently, Australian $10 notes bore the portrait of the early colonial architect Francis Greenway, the only currency in the world to pay tribute to a convicted forger.  Greenway was transported to Sydney in 1814 to serve 14 years for his crime.  Under the patronage of Governor Macquarie, who appointed him Civil Architect in 1816, Greenway designed more than 40 buildings, of which only 11 remain today.  He received a full pardon in 1819, but soon fell out of favour as he persisted in charging large fees while still on a government salary.  Greenway died in poverty in 1837.

MACQUARIE STREET
Described in the 1860's as one of the gloomiest streets in Sydney, this could now claim to be the most elegant.  Open on the northeastern side to the harbour breezes and the greenery of The Domain, a leisurely walk down this tree-lined street is one of the most pleasurable ways to view the architectural heritage of Sydney

Fine examples of Francis Greenway's Georgian style are within an easy walk of one another at the Hyde Park end of Macquarie Street.  The brick and sandstone of Hyde Park Barracks, St James Church and the Old Supreme Court Building form a harmonious group on the site the governor envisaged as the city's civic centre.

THE NEW WING
Of the library was built in 1988 and connected to the odd section by a glass walkway.

THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
The lower house of state parliament, is furnished in the traditional green of the British House of Commons.

THE MITCHELL LIBRARY
Wing's portico  (1906)  has Ionic columns.

PARLIAMENT HOUSE
Was once the convict-built Rum Hospital's northern wing.

THE LAMPS
Hanging over the gateways of Parliament House are reproductions of the 19th-century has lamps that used to stand here.

THE LITTLE SHOP
A tiny corner store, currently resides in one of two domed former gatehouses.

THE ENTRANCE STAIRS
Of Pyrmont sandstone have set the tone for all renovations.  The stone, quarried in colonial times, must be matched exactly.

THE ROOF
Of the Mint has now been completely restored to replicate the original wooden shingles in casuarina  (she-oak).

THE MINT
Like its twin, Parliament House, has an unusual double-colonnaded, two-storeyed veranda.

THE STONE WALL
Of Hyde Park Barracks' northwest pavilion still bears the marks of the convicts' chisels.

THE CLOCK
Dating from 1817 and one of Sydney's oldest, is on the Hyde Park Barracks facade.

THE LAND TITLES OFFICE
A WL Vernon building from 1908, has a Classical form with some fine Tudor Gothic detailing.

THE STAINED-GLASS WINDOWS
In St James Church are mostly 20th-century, and represent the union formed by air, earth, fire and water.

PADDINGTON             

Paddington is justly celebrated for its handsome terraces, but this  "village in the city", as is often dubbed, is also famed for its interesting speciality shops full of oddities and collectibles, fine restaurants, small hotels, fashionable art galleries and antique dealers' shops.  Paddington boasts a lively street culture, especially on Saturdays when people from far and wide flock to the famous weekly Paddington Bazaar, spilling out into the streets, pubs and cafes of the surrounding area.  Stretching from the Victoria Barracks at its western end, along Oxford Street to the green haven of Centennial Park, Paddington slopes away from this building central thoroughfare into the narrow lanes and elegant, leafy streets.  The suburb has undergone a series of quite radical transformations.  The first Paddington was built in the 1830's as a Georgian weekend retreat for the moneyed class.  These gracious homes had a short life, before being knocked down and sub-divided.  The terraces succeeding them fell into ruin by the 1920's, but are now admired as finely restored Victorian homes with their distinctive wrought-iron  "lace"  verandas.  The glimpses of harbour found in the quiet streets make Paddington one of  Sydney's most sought-after residential areas.

GETTING THERE
The best way to travel to and around this area is by bus.  Buses 378, 380 and 382 run along Oxford Street on their way between the city and beach suburbs, while bus 389 cuts through the back streets.

STREET - BY - STREET:  PADDINGTON
Paddington began to flourish in the 1840's, when the decision was made to build the Victoria Barracks.  At the time much of it was  "the most wild looking place .... barren sandhills with patches of scrub, hills and hollows galore".  The area began to fill rapidly, as owner builders bought into the area and built short rows of terrace houses, many extremely narrow because of the lack of building regulations.  After the Depression, most of Paddington was threatened with demolition, but was saved and restored by the large influx of postwar migrants.

FIVE WAYS
This shopping hub was established in the late 19th-century on the busy Glenmore roadway trodden out by bullocks.

DUXFORD STREET
Terrace houses in toning pale shades constitute an ideal of town planning: the Victorians preferred houses in a row t have a pleasingly uniform aspect.

GINGERBREAD HOUSES
Can be seen in Broughton and Union Streets.  With their steeply pitched gables and fretwork barge-boards, they are typical of the rustic Gothic Picturesque architectural style.

THE LONDON TAVERN
Opened for business in 1875, making it the suburb's oldest pub.  Like many of the pubs and delicatessens in this well-services suburb, it stands at the end of a row of terraces.

THE SHERMAN GALLERY
Is housed in a strikingly modern building.  It is designed to hold Australian and international contemporary sculpture and paintings.  Suitable access gates and a special in-house crane enable the movement of large-scale artworks, including textiles.

PADDINGTON STREETS
Are a treasure chest of galleries, bars and restaurants.

PADDINGTON STREET
Under the established plane trees, some of Paddington's finest Victorian terraces exemplify the building boom of 1860 - 1890.  Over 30 years, 3,800 houses were built in the suburb

WARWICK
Built in the 1860's is a minor castle lying at the end of a row of humble terraces.  Its turrets, battlements and assorted decorations, in a style somewhat fancifully described as  "King Arthur", even adorn the garages at the rear.

WINDSOR STREET'S TERRACE HOUSES
Are, in some cases, a mere 4.5m  (15ft) wide.

STREET - MAKING
In Paddington's early days was often an expensive and complicated business.  A cascade of water was dammed to build Cascade Street.

PADDINGTON STREET
With its huge plane trees shading the road and fine two, three and four-storey terrace houses on each side, Paddington Street is one of the oldest, loveliest, and at the same time most typical of the suburb's streets. 

Paddington grew rapidly as a commuter suburb in the late 19th-century and most of the terraces were built for renting to the city's artisans.  They were cheaply decorated with iron lace  (some of which had arrived in ships as ballast), as well as Grecian-style friezes, worked parapets, swagged urns, lions rampant, cornices, pilasters, scrolls and other fancy plastering.  By the 1900's, these terraces had become unfashionable but in the 1960's, tastes changed again and Paddington experienced a renaissance.

Paddington Street now has a chic atmosphere where small art galleries operate out of quaint and grand shopfronts.

FOX STUDIOS ENTERTAINMENT QUARTER, Lang Road.
There's a vibrant atmosphere at the Fox Studio complex, which is located next door to the working studios that produced such well-known films as The Matrix and Moulin Rouge. 

There are 16 cinema screens where you can watch the latest movies, and at the La Premiere cinema you can enjoy your movie with wine and cheese, sitting on comfortable sofas.  There are four live-entertainment venues which regularly feature the latest local and international acts.  You can also enjoy a game of miniature golf, bungy trampolining, bowling or seasonal ice-skating, and children love the three, well-designed playgrounds.

In addition to shops there are plenty of restaurants, cafes and bars offering a range of meals, drinks and snacks.

Every Wednesday and Saturday you can sample fresh produce at the Farmers Market or try a gourmet delicacy from one of the 40 stallholders.  Many of the stalls offer free tastings - from pickled garlic to chili sauce.  There is an International Food Market on Friday nights, and Sunday's market focuses on merchandise rather than food.

Shops are open until late, and there is a good selection - offering fashion, books and homewares.  There is plenty of undercover parking and the Studios are a pleasant stroll away from Oxford Street.
Open:  10am - 10pm.
Tel:  93 - 83 - 43 - 33.

PADDINGTON MARKETS, 395 Oxford Street.
This market, which began in 1973, takes place every Saturday, come rain or shine, in the grounds of Paddington Village Uniting Church and its neighbouring school.  It is a place to meet and be seen as much as it is to shop.  Stall-holders come from all over the world, and many young designers, hoping to launch their careers, display their wares.  Among the offerings are jewellery, pottery new and secondhand clothing and an array of other arts and crafts.  Whatever you are looking for, you are likely to find it here, from designer bags and clothes or a tarot reading, to Oriental massages, bonsai trees and handmade soaps.
Open:  10am - 4pm  (5pm daylight saving) Saturday.
Closed:  December 25.
Tel:  93 - 31 - 29 - 23.

FIVE WAYS, Corner of Glenmore Road and Heeley Street.
At this picturesque junction, a busy shopping hub developed by the tramline that once ran to Bondi Beach.  On the five corners stand Victorian and early 20th-century shops, one now a restaurant.

On another corner is the impressive Royal Hotel, built in 1888.  This mixed Victorian and Classical Revival building has a characteristic intricate cast-iron  "lace"  screen balcony offering stunning harbour views.

JUNIPER HALL, 250 Oxford Street.
The emancipist gin distiller Robert Cooper built this superb example of Colonial Georgian architecture for his third wife, Sarah.  He named it after the main ingredient of the gin that made his fortune.

Completed in 1824, it is the oldest building in Paddington still standing.  It is probably also the largest and most extravagant.  It had to be: he already had 14 children when he declared that Sarah would have the finest house in Sydney.

Juniper Hall was saved from demolition in the mid-1980's and restored in fine style.  Now part of the National Trust, it is used as private office space.
Closed:  To public.
Tel:  92 - 58 - 01 - 23.

PADDINGTON TOWN HALL, Corner of Oxford Street and Oatly Road.
The Paddington Town Hall was completed in 1891.  An international competition which, in spirit of Victorian self-confidence, was intended to produce the state's finest town hall was won by local architect JE Kemp.  His Classical Revival building, to which a clock tower was later added, still dominates the surrounding area, although it is no longer a centre of local government.

The building now houses Chauvel Cinema, managed by the Australian Film Institute, Paddington Library and a large ballroom that is available for hire.
Open:  10am - 4pm Monday - Friday.
Closed:  Public holidays.

PADDINGTON VILLAGE, Corner of Gipps and Shadforth Streets.
Paddington began its life as a working-class suburb.  The community comprised the carpenters, quarrymen and stonemasons who supervised the convict gangs that built Victoria Barracks in the 1840's. 

The artisans and their families occupied a tight huddle of spartan houses, a few of which still remain, crowded into the narrow streets nearby.  Like the barracks, these dwellings and surrounding shops and hotels were built mainly of locally quarried stone.

VICTORIA BARRACKS, Oxford Street.
Victoria Barracks is the largest and best-preserved group of late Georgian architecture in Australia, covering almost 12-ha  (29-acres).  It is widely considered to be one of the best examples of a military barracks in the world.

Designed by the Colonial Engineer, Lieutenant Colonel George Barney, the barracks were built between 1841 and 1848 using local sandstone quarried by mainly convict labour.  Originally intended to house 800 men, it has been in continuous military planning, administration  and command.

The main block is 225m  (740ft)  long and has symmetrical two-storey wings with cast-iron verandas flanking a central archway.  The perimeter walls, which are designed to repel surprise attacks, have foundations 10m  (40ft)  deep in places.  In a former jail block, a museum traces New South Wales' military heritage.
Open:  10am - 12:30pm Thursday, 10am - 3:45pm Sunday.
Closed:  December 25 - 26, January 1.
Tel:  93 - 39 - 30 - 30.

CENTENNIAL PARK
Entering this 220-ha  (544-acre)  park through one of its sandstone and wrought-iron gates, the visitor may wonder how such an extensive and idyllic place has survived so close to the centre of the city. 

Formerly a common, it was dedicated  "to the enjoyment of the people of New South Wales forever" on January 26, 1888, the centenary of the foundation of the colony.  On January 1, 1901, more than 100,000 people gathered here to witness the Commonwealth of Australia come into being, when Australia's first federal ministry was sworn in by the first governor-general.

Today picnickers, painters, runners, and those on horses, bikes and in-line skates  (all of which can be hired nearby)  use this vast recreation area.

Once the source of Sydney's water supply, the swamps are now home to many waterbirds.  Within the park are ornamental ponds, cultivated gardens, an Avenue of Palms, a sports ground and a cafe.
Open:  March - April 6am - 6pm daily, May - August 6:30am - 5:30pm daily, 
September - October 6am - 6pm daily, November - February 5:45am - 8pm daily.
Tel:  93 - 39 - 66 - 99.