Out and about in Sydney

No matter how many times I visit Sydney (there are too many to count), I never get bored. My latest trip to town involves some furry friends, an amazing meal and a fabulous bike ride. Here’s what happened…

What’s new in the zoo?

The first stop for the day is the Wild Life Zoo in Darling Harbour.

From cute and cuddly to creepy and dangerous, the zoo is home to hundreds of native animals – it’s the perfect place to see Australia’s unique wildlife.

We make our way through a maze of habitats, past the butterfly tropics, devils den and finish up at Kakadu Gorge where I’m confronted with Rex, the super impressive 5m saltwater croc, aka Monster. He swims over to me, giving me a great photo opp. Smile for the camera Rex!

Wild Life Zoo – Rex the croc

The highlight is the koala encounters on the rooftop where you can get lucky and pat a koala. Fortunately for the koalas, the animals come first so unfortunately for us no cuddles are allowed. However we do get some photos with the koala’s to take home with us.

Sleepy head!

Oh to live the life of a koala and sleep 20 hours a day, he looks surprisingly comfy perched in the tree. I almost feel like poking him gently to wake him up but decide not to be mean…

ZZzzzzzz

Speaking of photos, if you love a happy snap then this is the right place. On entry to the zoo you can get your photo taken striking a variety of poses with some interesting faux backgrounds. The photo albums with all the funny faces you’ve pulled can be bought on the way out.

Ladies who lunch – Hilton’s Glass Brasserie

There’s nothing (much) better than a long leisurely mid-week lunch and Glass Brasserie at the Hilton offers the perfect setting to get our drink and eat on.

Glass Brasserie Hilton – restuarant

The menu is masterminded by celebrity chef Luke Mangan and my mouth waters as I contemplate my choices – it’s a hard decision as it all sounds pretty good to me!

We start with some tapas – crisp zucchini flower with goat’s cheese, corn preserved lemon and salsa verde, seared scallop with lemon curd, leek, bacon and horseradish and some Kingfish sashimi. Need I say yum?!

Glass Brasserie Hilton – the first course

After umming and ahhing about what main to choose, I decide on the Snapper fillet with tempura prawns, Thai salad with spicy broth. This dish is an interesting mix of ingredients and textures.

Glass Brasserie Hilton – main course

My health conscious companion has the simply prepared Salmon with grilled asparagus and tomato chutney. She also has one of the signature dishes – the pan fried potato gnocchi with corn, asparagus, zucchini, parmesan and lemon thyme (pictured). Delicious.

OMGYUM

We go all out and order some sides: fries with truffle cheese, mixed veggies and the most amazing truffle mash I’ve ever had. Not exactly healthy – but oh so good for the soul and worth every calorie.

All dishes are fresh and use high quality ingredients, just what I expect from a restaurant of this caliber.

I am glad to burn off some of those calories after lunch…

On your bike! Guided Sydney highlights tour

Next up! A Bonza bike ‘Sydney Highlights’ tour.

Riding through the fresh air and warm sun is invigorating after our long and filling lunch.

The pace is leisurely and we make frequent stops along the way so our guide can give us a brief overview of key areas of the city. Pat (our guide) is very knowledgeable and can answer any of the questions we throw at him.

Bonza bike tour

We cycle through some of Sydney’s most iconic and beautiful locations, enjoying the water views and famed sights along the harbour. We peddle through the Rocks precinct, the Botanical Gardens, China Town and Hyde Park.

Bonza bike tour – Hyde Park

Despite Sydney’s roads being renowned as ‘slightly’ chaotic, I feel completely safe riding throughout the tour.

The Sydney Highlights Tour is a great way to explore the city, especially if you’ve got limited time. Plus it’s great to have a guide for all those tidbits of information I would never have known about otherwise.

Have you been to Sydney lately? What did you get up to?

• Flights to Sydney
• Sydney accommodation
• Book a bike tour
• Visit the Wild Life Zoo
• Have lunch at the Hilton
• All Sydney activities