Last week I managed to skidaddle off work early on Thursday and jumped on a plane to Sydney to spend a long weekend with my sister to celebrate her birthday. She moved to Sydney earlier in the year and it was the first time I had been to visit her (although not my first visit to Sydney) and I had an excellent time exploring, eating, wandering and then eating some more. A couple of food stops were so delicious they will be getting a post all of their own, but today I wanted to share some of my weekend adventures with you!
I arrived on Thursday evening and our first stop was for some gelato from Messina – it was so delicious it wasn’t the only time we visited over the weekend. I went with one of the specials – a mojito flavoured sorbet which was light and refreshing with just the right amount of zing. So good.
On the Friday my sister had to go to work so I went off exploring on my own, unfortunately slightly hampered by on and off rain. I didn’t let it put me off and headed to the World Press Photography exhibition at the State Library then headed up to Circular Quay to take in the sights. The rain decided to join me at this point but there’s no denying the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge make for a very pretty sight no matter how gloomy the sky may have been.
Much of the rest of Friday was taken up by dodging rain clouds and eating delicious meals, including my sister’s birthday dinner. I did a lot of walking and my poor feet were rather worn out by the time we made it home that night!
On Saturday morning we headed to Glebe and had brunch at Madame Frou Frou which did delicious coffee and even more delicious breakfast.
We both left feeling very full and happy and wandered down the road to explore the Glebe Markets. We happily wandered perused the markets for quite some time and each came away with a little haul of goodies, including those cupcakes in the photo above which were all vegan and the most amazing flavours. Salted caramel & popcorn, rhubarb & guava, tiramisu and watermelon & strawberry – divine!
That night my sister and her housemate’s threw a Winter Wonderland themed party so we spent the afternoon decorating the house before getting into our warmest winter clothes and celebrating through the evening. Considering how chilly it got that night it was certainly nice to be rugged up in beanies and thick socks without looking out of place!
On Sunday morning we headed down to the Rocks for the Aroma Festival – a day of coffee and food which was right up our alley! There were heaps of coffee brewers showcasing their brews, and whilst the lines were long the sun was shining and everyone was in a good mood, so it didn’t matter in the slightest. There were also a huge variety of food stalls, including some food trucks, so we decided to go with a ‘progressive eating’ approach and share a little bit of lots of foods in order to sample as much as possible.
We then spotted an official photographer with an oversized coffee cup who was getting people (admittedly mainly kids!) to pose with the cup for photos and decided we wanted in on the action. Not embarrassing at all!
After that there was just enough time for one last stop at Messina so I could sample their famous salted caramel & white chocolate ice cream (delicious!) before heading to the airport and beginning my journey home.
Suffice to say it was a wonderful weekend and hopefully it won’t be all that long before I can sneak back up for another long weekend of exploring. Thanks for having me Sydney!
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I Spy Plum Pie is Liz, an early 30s kiwi-born, Melbourne raised girl who is passionate about the environment and sustainability, food, exploring and learning new things. Join me on my journey to a happy, sustainable life!
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July 23, 2013 at 11:13 pm (11 years ago)You fitted so much in! And you got around to going to Messina for the second time…that salted caramel…OMG. Did you see the Messina Icecream ball they had to make on Master Chef tonight?
Love your blog, damn, i have a lot to learn!! xox
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
July 24, 2013 at 9:31 am (11 years ago)Luckily my sister lives near the Messina in Darlinghurst so it was easy to pop back a second time – so glad I did! I haven’t been watching Masterchef but might have to try and see that! xx
Emma Galloway
July 24, 2013 at 3:20 pm (11 years ago)Oh I love the Glebe markets! It’s been over 20 years since I’ve been in Sydney though. Rhubarb and guava cupcakes you say? Yummo 🙂
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
July 24, 2013 at 7:27 pm (11 years ago)They were really delicious! Not a flavour combination I would have expected for cupcakes, but it definitely worked. The markets were great!
Ingrid
July 30, 2013 at 8:01 am (11 years ago)Sounds like you had an amazing time in Sydney!!
I love Gelato Messina but try to not go there too often, so many other temptations around too:) xx
Ingrid recently posted…The Pure Fiji at Home Spa Experience
I Spy Plum Pie (admin)
July 30, 2013 at 9:10 am (11 years ago)It was a wonderful weekend! I’m sure I will be back for another visit again soon so I’ll have to get more advice from you of places to go!
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