Weekend walking
Just home from grabbing dinner and catching up with Candice and figured I would sit down and get all caught up on the blog as the week ramps up (plus I did promise that I would get back up to speed in yesterday's post).
Before I launch into my walking-filled weekend, let me hit a few key points from last week...
I don't mention work (either in the office or on my PhD) all that often on the blog as that would make for some pretty boring content, but rest assured I have definitely been staying busy. For the last few months I have been hard at work on a very interesting project that wrapped up on Wednesday.
With the extra hours in the office working toward the project completion out of the way, I have now transitioned to focus on PhD work through the end of the year.
Since Wednesday, I have been hitting the research hard, getting through three books and doing a fair bit of writing. Friday was spent at the State Library of NSW; as it is a reference library rather than a lending library, I have to consult on their material in the reading room. I will be heading back there tomorrow to finish up a few books I didn't get to on Friday.
Additionally, I picked up my Sydney library card, registered for my national library card, sorted out what I could use from the city archives, and lined materials up for a visit to the State Archives on Wednesday. It's felt good to really hit the research hard now that I can dedicate my efforts to that!
Following the library on Friday night, I spent the evening in the Rocks with a friend. It's always a pleasure to be down by the Harbour at night, and the views of the Bridge and Opera House aglow are a treat.
Friday involved quite a bit of walking, treking to and from the State Library and around Circular Quay in the evening. By the time I got home, I had logged 18.5km (11.5mi) during the day. But it was just the beginning for a weekend packed with walking.
Of course, those who know me (and who keep tabs on what I'm doing through the blog) know that I tend to walk a lot. But this past weekend, I walked even more than I normally do. Chalk it up to some fine weather and the need to catch up with friends before I head out on a month of travel (more to come on that).
Saturday morning, I met up with my friend Simon and we headed out east to Vaucluse, just south of Watsons Bay. I have wandered the coastline north of there a few times (most recently with Nate over Labour Day), making it out to the South Headlands back in June, and have wandered the coastline a few kilometres south of there (starting at Bondi and heading all the way down to Coogee), but had never explored the bit in between. The goal of the morning was to fill in the gap between Watsons Bay and North Bondi so that I could claim to have walked the Harbour and Pacific Coast from Glebe all the way to Coogee.
We started at Macquarie Lighthouse, the oldest lighthouse in Australia (constructed in 1818), and headed south along the cliffs. The views were spectacular from the outset, and with far, far less crowds than at Bondi. I don't know why I hadn't made it out there before!
Not only was the view of the Pacific absolutely stunning, but the narrowness of the peninsula that forms South Head, along with the extreme topography, meant that there were some pretty spectacular skyline views across the Harbour as well.
We made it all the way down to the northern reaches of Bondi before turning around and finding a bite to eat in Dover. While I didn't quite get to link Watsons Bay to where I have been in Bondi, I will definitely go back soon as the scenerey was spectacular.
But the coastal walk was far from the only walking in store for me on Saturday.
Once back in the city, I headed up to Circular Quay to meet a friend in town from San Francisco. The city was teeming with activity as thousands of leiderhosen-clad revelers found their way over to Oktoberfest in the Domain (the massive park at the northern edge of the city), while thousands of people dressed as the undead meandered around Hyde Park as part of a Halloween event. Needless to say it was quite a sight.
Once we met up at Circular Quay, we wended our way along the coast, past the Opera House, and through the Domain to the Botanical Gardens, with a nice rest in the shade overlooking the Harbour. I had forgotten how gorgeous that walk was, with sweeping views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, as well as the skyline and the lush greenery of the gardens.
From the coast, we walked up through the Domain, through Hyde Park (with a quick stop at the recently reopened ANZAC Memorial which was recently reopened by Prince Harry, but isn't actually quite done yet), and back down toward Central.
All in, I clocked more than 28km (17.3mi) for the day. And while it was a lot of ground to cover, it made for a fantastic, fantastic Saturday. But, of course, there was still Sunday!
Sunday morning I headed up to the Glebe foreshore to meet my mate Nate. We spent the next few hours traversing the coast west of the CBD, hugging the Harbour and crossing over the ANZAC and Pyrmont Bridges to hit Barangaroo, where we stopped for a late lunch, before returning to the foreshore via Pyrmont Bridge Road. Sunday I clocked 24km (nearly 15mi), lifting my total for the three days to more than 70km (44mi). Not too shabby for some casual weekend wanderings.
Coupled with all the exercise in the last week, I have felt very productive with all my PhD work. Over the next few days I have plenty more lined up to do, with a trip to the State Library on the agenda for Tuesday, and a trip far west, outside the city, to Penrith to visit the State Archives on Wednesday. Thursday will be reserved for a few small tasks, reading, and packing, as I am leaving that night to begin a little international adventure!
While I won't share too much information—a little suspense can be a lot of fun—I will say that I have quite a bit of flying in store in November. A brief look through my itineraries indicates that I have more than 78.5 hours of time on planes coming up, not including layovers, just on-plane time. Good news is that means I have plenty of time to do PhD reading and writing, uninteruppeted!
Anyways, bedtime now, but be on the lookout for a post from the airport on Thursday.
Before I launch into my walking-filled weekend, let me hit a few key points from last week...
I don't mention work (either in the office or on my PhD) all that often on the blog as that would make for some pretty boring content, but rest assured I have definitely been staying busy. For the last few months I have been hard at work on a very interesting project that wrapped up on Wednesday.
 | ||
The view from the client site I have been at the last few months toward the south, with the UTS campus to the right and Central Station at far left. I will miss this view now that I'm done with the project.
|
With the extra hours in the office working toward the project completion out of the way, I have now transitioned to focus on PhD work through the end of the year.
Since Wednesday, I have been hitting the research hard, getting through three books and doing a fair bit of writing. Friday was spent at the State Library of NSW; as it is a reference library rather than a lending library, I have to consult on their material in the reading room. I will be heading back there tomorrow to finish up a few books I didn't get to on Friday.
Additionally, I picked up my Sydney library card, registered for my national library card, sorted out what I could use from the city archives, and lined materials up for a visit to the State Archives on Wednesday. It's felt good to really hit the research hard now that I can dedicate my efforts to that!
Following the library on Friday night, I spent the evening in the Rocks with a friend. It's always a pleasure to be down by the Harbour at night, and the views of the Bridge and Opera House aglow are a treat.
 |
| The lights of Luna Park at Milsons Point, under the Sydney Harbour Bridge. |
Friday involved quite a bit of walking, treking to and from the State Library and around Circular Quay in the evening. By the time I got home, I had logged 18.5km (11.5mi) during the day. But it was just the beginning for a weekend packed with walking.
Of course, those who know me (and who keep tabs on what I'm doing through the blog) know that I tend to walk a lot. But this past weekend, I walked even more than I normally do. Chalk it up to some fine weather and the need to catch up with friends before I head out on a month of travel (more to come on that).
Saturday morning, I met up with my friend Simon and we headed out east to Vaucluse, just south of Watsons Bay. I have wandered the coastline north of there a few times (most recently with Nate over Labour Day), making it out to the South Headlands back in June, and have wandered the coastline a few kilometres south of there (starting at Bondi and heading all the way down to Coogee), but had never explored the bit in between. The goal of the morning was to fill in the gap between Watsons Bay and North Bondi so that I could claim to have walked the Harbour and Pacific Coast from Glebe all the way to Coogee.
We started at Macquarie Lighthouse, the oldest lighthouse in Australia (constructed in 1818), and headed south along the cliffs. The views were spectacular from the outset, and with far, far less crowds than at Bondi. I don't know why I hadn't made it out there before!
 |
| Macquarie Lighthouse. |
 |
| Wave against the cliffs in Vaucluse. |
 |
| The cliffs of Dover... NSW. |
Not only was the view of the Pacific absolutely stunning, but the narrowness of the peninsula that forms South Head, along with the extreme topography, meant that there were some pretty spectacular skyline views across the Harbour as well.
 |
| Looking toward the city from Dover. |
But the coastal walk was far from the only walking in store for me on Saturday.
Once back in the city, I headed up to Circular Quay to meet a friend in town from San Francisco. The city was teeming with activity as thousands of leiderhosen-clad revelers found their way over to Oktoberfest in the Domain (the massive park at the northern edge of the city), while thousands of people dressed as the undead meandered around Hyde Park as part of a Halloween event. Needless to say it was quite a sight.
Once we met up at Circular Quay, we wended our way along the coast, past the Opera House, and through the Domain to the Botanical Gardens, with a nice rest in the shade overlooking the Harbour. I had forgotten how gorgeous that walk was, with sweeping views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, as well as the skyline and the lush greenery of the gardens.
 |
| The Opera House and Bridge from the Domain. |
From the coast, we walked up through the Domain, through Hyde Park (with a quick stop at the recently reopened ANZAC Memorial which was recently reopened by Prince Harry, but isn't actually quite done yet), and back down toward Central.
All in, I clocked more than 28km (17.3mi) for the day. And while it was a lot of ground to cover, it made for a fantastic, fantastic Saturday. But, of course, there was still Sunday!
Sunday morning I headed up to the Glebe foreshore to meet my mate Nate. We spent the next few hours traversing the coast west of the CBD, hugging the Harbour and crossing over the ANZAC and Pyrmont Bridges to hit Barangaroo, where we stopped for a late lunch, before returning to the foreshore via Pyrmont Bridge Road. Sunday I clocked 24km (nearly 15mi), lifting my total for the three days to more than 70km (44mi). Not too shabby for some casual weekend wanderings.
 |
| A rudimentry map of the major walks I took this weekend, though not exhaustive of all the walking. Red was Saturday morning, yellow was Saturday afternoon, and blue was Sunday morning. |
Coupled with all the exercise in the last week, I have felt very productive with all my PhD work. Over the next few days I have plenty more lined up to do, with a trip to the State Library on the agenda for Tuesday, and a trip far west, outside the city, to Penrith to visit the State Archives on Wednesday. Thursday will be reserved for a few small tasks, reading, and packing, as I am leaving that night to begin a little international adventure!
While I won't share too much information—a little suspense can be a lot of fun—I will say that I have quite a bit of flying in store in November. A brief look through my itineraries indicates that I have more than 78.5 hours of time on planes coming up, not including layovers, just on-plane time. Good news is that means I have plenty of time to do PhD reading and writing, uninteruppeted!
Anyways, bedtime now, but be on the lookout for a post from the airport on Thursday.
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