Finishing at the Top
As I had mentioned earlier, my last day at work consisted of a meeting which was promised to last for quite a while. After sorting out a few last things I headed down to Town Hall (the old, historic building) to the meeting of the 'Design Advisory Panel' (DAP), who, as their name indicates, advise the Council on design matters. Made up of some architecture big names in Sydney, and a few other important people, they meet every so often to go through projects that are in for DAs. Tony, Cindy, and I wended our way through the building, passing Centennial Hall (where the International Student Welcome was held) and popped in to listen for a second as someone played the organ, the largest is the world when instaled in 1890.
We entered into a medium sized room with tall ceilings and massive windows to find the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, sitting at the head of the table of DAP. I didn't realize that she was going to be there. We took our place on the side of the room (we were more flies on the wall) and watched over the next few hours as different things were presented and discussed. The discussion included a project I had been working on, and in the presentation some of my drawings were used, so that was pretty cool.
The meeting ran way over time, and at around 2:00 we rushed out to head to lunch. Cindy, Nick, Margaret, and I ran down George Street to Market City to meet everyone else from the office who was waiting for us. We all enjoyed a great lunch of Yum Cha, and, after eating a lot, left content and full to wander back downtown to the office.
On the walk back, Tony took us (Cindy, Margaret, and Surb walked back with us) through Chinatown, passing down Kimber Lane, one of the laneways which the City has transformed through art installations.
After Kimber Lane, we cut across Goulburn Street from Little Hay Street to visit the Sydney Trades Hall. Built between 1888 and 1895, the Trades Hall was recently renovated and is a great example of a Heritage Item being updated and expanded while still respected.
Back at the office, around 4:00, our Unit gathered together for a bit of a goodbye. We chatted a bit and Tony presented me with a note and gift from the team. The gift, which turned out to be a a book, Bridging Sydney, was wrapped in architectural drafts from a submitted DA. Mom, Dad, and Jason always laugh because I wrap gifts in the heaps of paper I end up with after plotting architecture things - it turns out I am not the only one who does that!
After a bit more work, and some chatting with people around the office, I headed out to meet Candice, Kylie, and Amanda for a cocktail at Grandma's, a bar by Town Hall that I had gone to with my coworkers back in May. We got colourful drinks in the dark basement bar, decorated in 1950s-grandma style, chatting and killing time before our 7:00 dinner reservation at Centrepoint.
From Grandma's, we headed down Pitt Street Mall to Centrepoint, the tallest building in Sydney, for our dinner at 360 atop the tower. After a quick lift ride up about 240 metres, we were seated at a table overlooking Sydney. The view was not stagnant, however, as during our time at dinner we got a full view of the city as the restaurant rotated. With the unfathomoably beautiful view of Sydney lit up at night, we expected the food to only be so-so. This was not the case, and over an hour and a half we enjoyed the meals and the scenery. As a starter I had tuna tataki, yellow fin tuna, asparagus, baby coriander, fried courgette, and lime dressing; for my main I had the Angus beef fillet with celeria remoulade and confit potatoes in red wine jus. Between the views, the company, and the food, I can think of no better ending to my time in Australia.
Now there is just a bit of repacking to ensure things fit, and then a bit of sleep before heading to the airport tomorrow morning at 7:00.
We entered into a medium sized room with tall ceilings and massive windows to find the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, sitting at the head of the table of DAP. I didn't realize that she was going to be there. We took our place on the side of the room (we were more flies on the wall) and watched over the next few hours as different things were presented and discussed. The discussion included a project I had been working on, and in the presentation some of my drawings were used, so that was pretty cool.
The meeting ran way over time, and at around 2:00 we rushed out to head to lunch. Cindy, Nick, Margaret, and I ran down George Street to Market City to meet everyone else from the office who was waiting for us. We all enjoyed a great lunch of Yum Cha, and, after eating a lot, left content and full to wander back downtown to the office.
On the walk back, Tony took us (Cindy, Margaret, and Surb walked back with us) through Chinatown, passing down Kimber Lane, one of the laneways which the City has transformed through art installations.
 |
| Walking down Kimber Lane in Chinatown. |
The original wooden elevator and stairs of the Trades Hall.
Signs in the original stairwell.
New meets old in the atrium.
Small office wings sliced off during the renovation to create the atrium.
Back at the office, around 4:00, our Unit gathered together for a bit of a goodbye. We chatted a bit and Tony presented me with a note and gift from the team. The gift, which turned out to be a a book, Bridging Sydney, was wrapped in architectural drafts from a submitted DA. Mom, Dad, and Jason always laugh because I wrap gifts in the heaps of paper I end up with after plotting architecture things - it turns out I am not the only one who does that!
Unwrapping Bridging Sydney from a set of architecture drawings.
After a bit more work, and some chatting with people around the office, I headed out to meet Candice, Kylie, and Amanda for a cocktail at Grandma's, a bar by Town Hall that I had gone to with my coworkers back in May. We got colourful drinks in the dark basement bar, decorated in 1950s-grandma style, chatting and killing time before our 7:00 dinner reservation at Centrepoint.
Drinks at Grandma's.
From Grandma's, we headed down Pitt Street Mall to Centrepoint, the tallest building in Sydney, for our dinner at 360 atop the tower. After a quick lift ride up about 240 metres, we were seated at a table overlooking Sydney. The view was not stagnant, however, as during our time at dinner we got a full view of the city as the restaurant rotated. With the unfathomoably beautiful view of Sydney lit up at night, we expected the food to only be so-so. This was not the case, and over an hour and a half we enjoyed the meals and the scenery. As a starter I had tuna tataki, yellow fin tuna, asparagus, baby coriander, fried courgette, and lime dressing; for my main I had the Angus beef fillet with celeria remoulade and confit potatoes in red wine jus. Between the views, the company, and the food, I can think of no better ending to my time in Australia.
Now there is just a bit of repacking to ensure things fit, and then a bit of sleep before heading to the airport tomorrow morning at 7:00.
Comments
Post a Comment