Sydney: Neutral Bay and a trip down memory lane..

Sydney in summer…beautiful one day, and gorgeous the next!

The day I took these photos a sea mist was coming in, consequently the photos are slightly hazy.

National Geographic tells me that a sea mist can form when warm air from land suddenly encounters cool air over the ocean.

We overheard some early morning joggers say that this usually means a hot steamy day ahead…and that was true.

Sydney is about a four hour drive from our home in Canberra, and it is a trip we do often because we have many relatives and friends living in this beautiful city.

Neutral Bay

The aerial  photo below shows Sydney’s inlets and bays, and those who are lucky enough to live around the bays, can take a ferry into the city.

We stayed in Neutral Bay on the right in the photo below..

Sydney Routes and Tours Maps Big Bus Tours

This is a trip down memory lane for me because I began my teaching career in Sydney, and l lived in a shared house in Neutral Bay….

Isn’t it grand? I shared the ground floor of this house with three other people, and a couple lived upstairs.

it seems amazing to think, in the ’70s, there were many large houses, (I lived in two) that were relatively cheap to rent…this is now one of the most expensive suburbs in Sydney.

The name Neutral Bay comes from the early colonial period of Australia when Governor Arthur Phillip declared this bay as a neutral bay where foreign ships could anchor and take on water and supplies, but far enough away from the settlement to avoid trouble!

We did a family walk back to my lovely rented accommodation, but it is now surrounded by high walls and is hardly recognisable.

Never mind, I have wonderful memories of sitting on the ferry to go to work, and there is no better way to de-stress from a noisy class than to come home on a ferry in the afternoon and feel the cool breeze from the harbour.

the sea mist across Sydney..

We went for plenty of early morning walks and I was reminded of how important trees are in  all cities, but especially those with long hot summers.

In summer Sydney is full of incidental colour, plants love the climate..

Hibiscus

 

Bougainvillea

 

Penstemon

 

Perhaps it wouldn’t be too bad living in a unit (apartment) if you looked out on these tranquil gardens..

We passed this Uniting Church every day. They had a flourishing vegetable garden

and this little  Internet garden with free Wi-Fi and two comfy chairs… so thoughtful!

In some ways the suburb hasn’t changed since my relaxed days living here.

It still has a village feel, with locals enjoying the warm night air, sitting outside small restaurants eating good food and drinking wine and craft beers. (well, we were anyway)

The Uniting church street library.

Since our trip to Sydney the weather has deteriorated, and we are now experiencing a heatwave across the country.

….so I hope you are keeping cool or warm where ever you are in the world..

Thanks for going down memory lane with me!

Copyright Geraldine Mackey: All Rights Reserved.