Fishy First Impressions

You wanna know about Sydney, eh? Going literally to the other side of the world seems pretty exotic, doesn’t it? Only that it’s not… Odd but true. Don’t expect any cultural shock on my side anytime soon!                        

The culture is pretty much English and the climate as well as the plants around remind me of the U.S. Tropically humid, warm and sunny. Why, oh why is it not actually like that all the time though? It’s supposed to be the hottest month of the year and I desperately need a tan, especially before going to London! I’m not as seethrough-white as my boyfriend but not exactly Ozzie colour either. Oy, sun, get out and do your job!                   

There isn’t exactly any city centre because the city spreads out into suburbs and smaller areas and there’s not much sightseeing to be done because Sydney is only 200 years old. Which is nothing. This city hasn’t even hit puberty yet, it’s still a fresh-faced newborn baby! „Can Mummy and Daddy City please pick up little Sydney at the metropolis nursery, she needs a new nappie! … And some Formular so she’ll grow strong and big!“ Hence there are no old parts of town or buildings etc. to look at like you’d find in Europe. I didn’t expect that at all and had never even thought about it because it’s one of those places most people want to go to, right?

At least there’s the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge which are both nice to look at and I was fascinated by the Central Business District nearby and all its skyscrapers because I’m not used to them. They have some tall and shiney buldings and all the business men look like little ants when they squeeze onto the trains to go to work. I never want to be one of those ants. Another reason to become a chef! ;) 

When I went to the Botanical Gardens the other day, all the green made for a stark contrast before the über-urban backdrop of the CBD. Pretty cool. Especially the bats there hanging relaxedly off the trees. Vampires. I like them. Not just since Twilight! I used to nap in suitcases in a classmate’s attic in primary school pretending to be a vampire and I liked meat a bit too much. Rare meat. Hahaha. I don’t glitter and twinkle in daylight though, darn. That would make for a class party effect! ;) I’m rambling…

Water. Bays. Beaches. Coastal Walks. I love the ocean. J Sydney is obviously on the coast and so there’s a lot of water around and many a beach to be found. I’ve only been to 2 yet although I would have loved to spend way more time tanning in the sun but the weather hasn’t been hot and sunny enough lately… Ehum! Bronte Beach was quite intimate while famous and bigger Bondi Beach represents young, hip surfing culture and is probably more touristy. Somehow I preferred Bondi because it was more entertaining and it also offers a few streets with nice little shops and its very own athmosphere. There’s also a gorgeous coastal walk you can do from one beach to the next and which I loved and will have to do again and further.

It’s in Bondi that I went for fish'n'chips. Now you have to know that I LOVE fish’n chips… yum, yum, double-yum! :) The best fish’n chips there is is definitely the one you get in McDonagh’s in Galway, Ireland, so I’m pretty spoilt. Yep, I’m a die-hard fan!   

I do love me some fresh, crispy batter but in this case I went for grilled king fish, which of course is not your usual, traditional fish’n chips. Maybe I could have gone for typically Ozzie Barramundi but I thought there might be better places to eat it some other time and when my friend had it another day I didn’t think it was all that special… Unfortunately they slightly over-cooked my fish, which was a shame and it wasn’t seasoned at all but the chips were okay. Generally speaking it was an okay meal but not more. I did season it with salt, pepper and lemon which they actually do give you but the chips desperatley cried for some sauce or my beloved malt vinegar. I settled for BBQ sauce and enjoyed the greasiness of them. ;)

When my friend had the aforementioned Barramundi I went for a deep-fried crab claw. I doubt it was actually crab claw meat though because when I bit into it I could tell it was some sort of white, fishy meat formed into a ball with a skinny piece of claw sticking out. They seem to deep-fry everything at that place - I found the deep-fried oysters especially intriguing…

One thing I definitely still have to try there is the battered, deep-fried Mars bar! Ewwww? No, genius! Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of it! Some guy in Scotland came up with it and it’s world-famous or rather infamous. I can imagine the crispy batter and then when you bite into it you get to the ooey-gooey melted chocolatey caramel centre. Sure, it’s a heart attack on a plate but totally worth it! Right? Riiiight! The only thing I’m not sure about is that they take the Mars bar out of the fridge, already battered and don’t open a fresh bar, drop it in the batter and then into the hot oil like they would in Scotland… I will let you know all about it when I try it. Drool. ;P