MCA Sydney - arty

The new extension to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney opened in late March, and it's a wonderful addition to the harbour foreshore. This is a quick visit, in pictures.

First, though, we took the ferry from Balmain, past Luna Park and under the Harbour Bridge to Circular Quay.

The new wing is all white and stark and modern, very different to the Art Deco original building next door.

The MCA Cafe occupies a prime spot next to the Loti Smorgon Sculpture Terrace.

The menu and dishes look fab.

Here are some of the exhibits.

More on these on the MCA website

Worth a visit? Definitely!

Fireworks! Sydney 2012

Happy New Year!

Here are some pics of the fireworks over Sydney Harbour.

I was feeling a bit too settled in front of the television when midnight rolled around (does that make me sound old or what?), so these photos were taken from my upstairs window. Please excuse the telegraph pole and wires, though at least you can see the top of the arch of the Harbour Bridge!

Christmas scenes in Sydney

Here are some images of the 2011 Christmas decorations around Sydney town, taken a few days ago.

This is a modernist 'tree' at Westfield Sydney. It goes with the recently revealed storefronts of the Prada and Gucci temples of consumer heaven:

The windows at David Jones department store are filled with slightly creepy puppets that represent Christmas carols. The mechanised sheep are very cute, from Silent Night:

The Strand Arcade tree is a massive red edifice with lots of sparkly lights strung around the balustrades of the arcade. It looks pretty good against the Victorian shopfronts:

The 3-storey crystal-bedecked tree at the Queen Victoria Building is spectacular, as always. Look how great it is reaching up to the central dome:

Hope you're preparing a wishlist for Santa, and hope he delivers: 

David Jones Flower Show 2011 - Floriography

 This Saturday was spent wandering through a department store.
Nothing new in that, but the David Jones flower show is on and it is a riot of colour. This is the 26th anniversary of the show and the theme is 'Floriography, the language of flowers'.  There are over 30,000 flowers and just as many camera-wielding 'shoppers' enjoying the spectacle. Definitely worth a visit.

The David Jones flower show is on at the DJs Elizabeth St, Sydney store, from 1-11 September 2011.

The purple ball of blooms is an allium, from Holland.

There are also 3000 cymbidium orchids and 4800 phaeleonopsis orchids (the lovely white ones in the first pic) on display.

The Waratah is the state flower of New South Wales.

scenes from Sydney city on Saturday

There's nothing better than popping into the city on a Saturday for a spot of shopping and yum cha.

The Victorian architecture in Sydney shines even on a cloudy day, and the city streets are an interesting mix of modern sleekness and more traditional sandstone and ornateness. 

Queen Victoria Building

Sydney Town Hall

Castlereagh Street