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Road trip: Sydney and New South Wales

Melbourne Travel Blog | Travelogue | Travel Journal

Melbourne and Sydney once competed for the title of Australia's capital. What exactly does a Melburnian think of rival city Sydney? From giant sheep to the Sydney Opera house, from the dry plains of capital country to the lush coastal hills, from deep harbours to the infamous Blue Mountains; New South Wales has it all.

The journey begins...

So, what didn't you know about Sydney?


1. The 'sails' of the Sydney Opera House are covered in bathroom tiles.

2. There is no such thing as a pot in New South Wales, only a schooner. (Which is neither here nor there.)

3. The top arch of the Harbour Bridge rises and falls about 180mm purely because of changes in temperature.

4. The suburb of Newtown hosts an annual Gothic festival for families.


What else didn't you know?


Comments about this particular blog (no matter how short!) are much appreciated!

Chelsea says:
That's awesome, haha
Posted on: Jun 21, 2007
genetravelling says:
1 More: Paul Hogan, aka Crocodile Dundee, started out as a painter on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Its an endless job that involves continuously painting from start to finish and then simply starting again!
Posted on: Jun 21, 2007
portia says:
so sad, I didn't know any of these! I want to go to Australia! you are so lucky.
Posted on: Jun 01, 2007
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Country Link train from Melbourne to town of Rutherglen:

The XPT line that passes my usual stop at Wangaratta actually travels all the way from Melbourne to Sydney and vice versa.

It is good, but as with most long distance trains, not always on time, and how nice the train is depends on whether you get a new train or an old one.

If you are lucky enough to get one of the newer trains, the ride is beautiful. The air-conditioning is fresh, the seats clean, and they have foot rests, tray tables and meals if you want them.

Goodluck if you get an old one. You will invariably get put next to the one stinky man on the train and the seats are less roomy and the cars generally more stuffy. They are dirty, they do have footrests and meals, but perhaps the most irritating thing is that they won't announce why they are stopping, or going at a snails pace if they have to.

I once took an old train, that was late arriving at Southern Cross in Melbourne, and then took an extra hour to get to Wangaratta. In the stretch where the train was moving at a snails pace, nobody told us why we were going so slow. I wasn't very impressed!

In summary, this service is good, as long as you get a newer train!
1,410 km (876 miles) traveled
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