Travel to Australia

Day 7 Sydney

On College Street is the Catholic cathedral of St Mary, overlooking the northeast corner of Hyde Park. The grand Gothic church opened in 1882, although the stone foundations were laid in 1821. You will get an impressive courtyard, a pedestrian terrace with fountains and swimming pools, with the consolidation of two parks isolated by traffic that will become the Cook and Phillip Park. The remodeling will also connect with green spaces the cathedral with The Domain.

Hyde Park is divided into two sections, the Anzac Memorial in the southern half, and the Sandringham Memorial Gardens and the Archibald Fountain in the northern half, under the watchful eye of St James's Church. From Queens Square, the church of St James marks the entrance to the park (the Anglican church, completed in 1824, is the oldest place of worship in Sydney). It is worth visiting the crypt to see the Children's Chapel, a richly colored mural in the thirties. Behind the St James railway station, the Archibald Fountain commemorates the association of Australia and France during the First World War, and nearby is also a giant chess, where you can compete against local players. Further south, near Park Street, the Sandringham Gardens also honor those who fell in the Australian war, but the most powerful of these monuments is the famous Anzac Memorial, at the southern end of the park, with the tree line of Pool of Remembrance, the 30-meter high cenotaph, discovered in 1934.

Macquire Street maintains the grace granted by having been one of the first places of concentration of public buildings commissioned by the then Governor Macquire and designed by the convicted architect Francis Greenway. The most impressive buildings are the Parliament, the Sydney Hospital (known as the "Rum Hospital"), the Mint Building, the Hyde Park Barracks (built in 1819 are now a museum of the social and architectural history of Sydney, and offers a vision of the life of the convicts during the first years of the colony and the lives of the nineteenth-century immigrants), the St. James Church and the State Library that includes the Mitchell Library built with sandstone, 1906, with an imposing Neoclassical facade that looks to the greenery of the Botanic Gardens. Macquire St. constitutes the east limit of the CBD and borders the Domain and the Royal Botanic Gardens.

The Domain is a landscaped area that was reserved as a public recreation area. Today it is used by those who work in the city to practice sports at lunchtime and also as a place to escape the hustle and bustle of the center. On Sunday afternoons artists entertain the public and it is also the scene of free events that take place during the January Sydney Festivals and during Christmas. The Art Gallery of New South Wales is located in the northeast corner of the Domain and has excellent permanent exhibits of Australian, European, Japanese and tribal art.

The AMP Centrepoint Tower, at the corner of Market and Pitt streets, a golden monolith, which stands 305 m above the ground, is the highest element of the city's skyline, and its observation floor is the highest of all the southern hemisphere, although the height of the tower is beaten by the Sky Tower of Auckland, New Zealand, 23 meters higher. The 360 degree view that is enjoyed on this level is especially attractive to the sunset and, on clear days, you can even see the Blue Mountains, 100 km away. Another way to enjoy panoramic views (without moving) is from the restaurants on the lower two floors.

The City Center extends from north to south from Circular Quay to the Central Station. You can walk quietly through a pedestrian zone in which Martin Place is located, the true center of Sydney. Shopping centers include the former Strand Arcade and the recently restored Queen Victoria Building, which houses more than 200 stores, cafes and restaurants. In the vicinity is the Town Hall, St Andrew´s Cathedral and Railwail Square.