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Guest reviewer - John Brogan
My Rocks Experience - Winter 2011
After a 21-year hiatus, guest reviewer John Brogan fell in love with The Rocks all over again.
Wherever you live, it's not uncommon after awhile to take your surroundings for granted. Having been born and raised in Sydney, I'm guilty as charged. I tend to ignore the city's attractions until I have interstate or international visitors. Then I'll take them in to the city and I'm blown away all over again by the charm and sheer quality of the gems we have available to us, if only we'd take the time to look.
So I was absolutely enraptured to have the chance to spend a very special weekend with my partner experiencing some of what The Rocks has to offer.
BridgeClimb
My partner and I started early on Saturday morning with a BridgeClimb experience. Climbers are given a comprehensive safety briefing and then fitted out with all the gear, including a radio headset. This allows everyone in the group to hear a running commentary from the Climb Leader (g'day Richard!), including interesting historical facts about the construction of the bridge, as well as pointing out such things as a raven's birds nest which has survived for more than two years high up in the structure.
Many of us see the bridge every day from various aspects, but nothing can compare with the experience of actually climbing to the summit and seeing the city of Sydney from the best vantage point of all, with helicopters and seaplanes whizzing by overhead. BridgeClimb really is the ultimate Sydney experience.
Imperial Peking Harbourside
After a quick shower and change of clothes, we arrived at the Imperial Peking Harbourside, where I had my 21st birthday dinner 21 years ago. Even then it had already been operating for more than 10 years, but time has not wearied this Sydney icon. The food was as good as I remember it being. Our waiter, David, must have sensed the difficulty we were having choosing from the multitude of tempting dishes on the menu, so he suggested that he put together a custom offering of house specialties.
We were grateful for the offer, as it allowed us to soak in the awesome view directly across to the Opera House, while sipping on a cold beer. The food started arriving soon after. We started with scallops served with glass noodles in a soy and shallot broth, deep fried Pacific oysters in the shell served with XO sauce, and scampi in the half-shell steamed with Chinese wine.
The main course was a generous serving of shelled plump, juicy king prawns in sweet mustard sauce with deep-fried shredded spinach, along with Wagyu beef with wasabi sauce and a plate of steamed green vegetables.
We chatted with General Manager Roger Lui about the extent to which Chinese cuisine in Sydney has progressed from the days when sweet and sour pork and lemon chicken, were all we knew. The Imperial Peking Harbourside was a pioneer in offering top-shelf food at a top-shelf location, and they have remained true to their vision.
Four Seasons Hotel
Following lunch, we checked in to the Four Seasons Hotel. I spent my 21st birthday celebration in this same hotel when it was The Regent. It was great back then, but from a grown-up perspective, it has certainly moved with the times. We were lucky enough to be given a Harbourview King Deluxe room on the 21st floor, which was huge (what's with all these 21s?...it must be an omen). The decor was exceptionally modern and the view was awesome: Harbour Bridge to the left, Circular Quay below, and the Opera House to the right.
(The next morning we woke to find that a cruise ship had docked at the Overseas Passenger Terminal, completing the picture-perfect outlook. We then had a quick breakfast in Kables and continued with our adventure in The Rocks.)
Caminetto
Caminetto is a rustic Italian restaurant somewhat hidden away in a back lane. However, the courtyard area is quite large and we were able to garner a table right next to the laneway - a great spot for people watching.
The menu is fairly traditional and since we were still quite full from lunch, we chose a half-dozen BBQ king prawns and a smoked salmon salad, followed by a refreshing mango and lemon sorbet for dessert. We were a bit pressed for time so we appreciated the quick and efficient service.
Sydney Observatory
After dinner, we walked up the hill to Sydney Observatory for the night telescope viewing. The skies were a little cloudy, but we were shown three extraordinary movies in 3D, followed by an explanation of the various stellar constellations in the bean-bag planetarium. Then we headed to the historic Northern Dome to view the moon and a couple of stars through the hi-tech computer-controlled telescope. This is a magical part of Sydney, and the tours are conducted by very enthusiastic people - our guide was a charming young lady who is studying astrophysics at Sydney University.
Billich Gallery
Sunday morning saw us wander up George Street to check out a few galleries. The highlight was the Billich Gallery. Charles Billich is an extraordinary artist with an amazing spectrum of styles in his repertoire. From modern, surrealist cityscapes to classic portraiture, there is something for all tastes over the three levels of his gallery. Although very subjective, the feature which really stood out to me was the combination of shape and colour which 'just works'. If I was decorating a new house or apartment, this would be my first stop for prominent Australian artwork.
The Rocks Discovery Museum
Our last stop was The Rocks Discovery Museum and, in a way, I almost wish we'd come here first, because it gives you a truly good overview of what to look out for in The Rocks. The three-level museum is housed in an historic, restored 1850s sandstone warehouse. The displays are all expertly assembled to tell a story as you progress from room to room and are supported by historical artefacts from local archaeological digs. I noticed many younger children engrossed in the interactive displays - this is a wonderful educational facility for the whole family.
Another interesting aspect is the coverage of the 1970s Green Bans, when 'people power' and union bans combined to defeat the demolition of part of The Rocks. There is a particularly appalling scale model of what might have been, showing a collection of cookie-cutter high rise boxes which were proposed around 1970.
This was one of the last things I saw before we had to head home, and it truly made me appreciate the unique quality of The Rocks. It reinforced my view that you really need to appreciate your surroundings. Whether you are a resident of Sydney, or a visitor to our fair city, do yourself a favour and devote the time to really exploring The Rocks.
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