Honey, simply 5 days? Virtually a whirlwind! However, as you recognize, Wealthy Auntie doesn’t consider in losing a single second. So off I went to Sydney, Australia, and I’m right here to declare that it’s well worth the 24-hour journey!
Now, I do know what you’re pondering (as a result of I’ve already been requested): “Are there Black individuals in Sydney?” The reply is complicated. Whereas we encountered a number of Black and Brown faces, Sydney’s demographics mirror its difficult European historical past of pressured assimilation for its Indigenous inhabitants, a ache that’s nonetheless felt in the present day. However let’s save the cultural classes for later. This journey was to rejoice a milestone birthday for my Mum, because the Aussies say, and kick off 2025 because the 12 months of journey.
The Keep: Kimpton Margot Sydney
Wealthy Auntie selected the Kimpton Margot for an expensive keep in Sydney’s enterprise district, referred to as the CBD. A part of IHG Resort and Resorts, it’s inside strolling distance of the Queen Victoria Constructing, the Sydney Tower and Darling Harbour, the fabulous tourist-y spots one has to see throughout one’s keep. Now, this lodge is the town’s former Head Water Workplace, constructed within the late Nineteen Thirties, and it has saved a few of its valuable designs from the previous.
The foyer homes its on-site restaurant Luke’s Kitchen. Whereas it was closed for lunch and dinner as a result of it was Sydney’s summer season season, we loved a hearty breakfast there, sampling traditional morning bites like chorizo and roast tomato and, after all, a style of Vegemite (which tastes like placing soy sauce on buttered toast). Complimentary scorching drinks and chilly peach tea had been out there every morning, and drinks may very well be bought at The Wilmot Bar, additionally positioned within the pastel-hued foyer.
Don’t miss Harper Rooftop Bar, which providers the rooftop pool. We had the Waygu beef burger for lunch, and it was good. Each night from 5 to six, we loved social hour within the foyer, the place the lodge’s hardworking employees served wine, bubbles, Pimm’s cocktails and mocktails.
Our spacious one-king-bed suite featured a separate dwelling space, a big rest room and a pleasant resident plant named Harvey, who joined us throughout our keep. Kimpton is huge on psychological wellness; our room included yoga mats and on-demand lessons.
We stayed on the sixth-floor, which has retained a few of that unique structure. Think about Wealthy Auntie’s shock when she realized she was additionally standing in a film set! The Fall Man, starring Winston Duke and Ryan Gosling, filmed simply down the corridor from our room.
The Sights: Sydney’s Should-Sees
Naturally, we needed to safe coveted seats on the Sydney Opera Home (Cinderella was on the marquee). And we loved one completely chilled glass of one thing bubbly on the Opera Bar whereas gazing upon the Harbour Bridge. It’s virtually a requirement.
On the Taronga Zoo, we noticed one irresistible koala leaping so enthusiastically it was well worth the early morning entry. We additionally obtained up shut and private with kangaroos and emus. As for the Chinese language Backyard of Friendship in Darling Harbour? It’s a welcomed second of tranquility contained in the pleasant chaos of Darling Harbour.
Now right here’s a Wealthy Auntie non-negotiable: Excessive tea at The Tea Room QVB, with scones and finger sandwiches, sure, please! Indulging in such refined pleasures is what Wealthy Auntie does. And, after all, a little bit dip of the toes within the Pacific Ocean at Bondi Seashore was the proper solution to finish our final day.
The Historical past: Acknowledging the Previous
Some of the impactful experiences was visiting Sydney’s Hyde Park Barracks. This web site illustrates the historical past and scars of European convicts despatched to Sydney to serve their sentences. Nonetheless, it additionally highlights the pre-existing presence of the town’s Brown individuals. As European settlement expanded, these Indigenous communities had been forcibly assimilated, their land taken with out consent and their lives disrupted. That is the shameful, repetitive historical past of disregarding unique inhabitants that seem like us throughout the globe.
Sydney is dedicated to acknowledging the land’s conventional custodians, the Gadigal individuals. The Australian Museum, which is free to the general public, gives additional perception into its previous, and we had been comfortable to take in the teachings.
Sydney’s tradition is distinctive, welcoming influences from neighboring Asian cultures like China, Taiwan, and Japan (we had some glorious Japanese meals throughout our keep).
Wealthy Auntie by no means felt misplaced throughout this journey, having fun with a protracted dialog with a pair celebrating their thirtieth anniversary, who had met whereas working within the Sydney Water Head Workplace earlier than its transformation, and different metropolis natives. It was a wonderfully curated five-day expertise, simply sufficient to tease the urge for food for our subsequent journey.
That’s the magic of Sydney. And Wealthy Auntie can’t wait to return.