Sydney the Frog - The Final Cut
We welcomed our third day of this adventure allowing ourselves a little bit of a sleep in. Waking to a chilly morning with predicted afternoon rains, we wondering what next to cut out of Sydney the Frog and determined pretty easily that a morning at the movies would be a great way to start the weekend. So now being astute Sydney tourists, we dressed and of course, caught the light rail back up to Town Hall.
We both have evocative memories of venturing into town as teenagers and going to the Hoyts Cinema complex for a special day out. Today was proving a flashback and we giddily walked the rejuvenated George Street looking for an aptly suitable breakfast venue while debating which Hollywood masterpiece we would devote the next 2 hours to.
We had the choice of only two movies, Top Gun Maverick or Jurassic Park World Dominion. Given both were 30 year old remakes staring aging dinosaurs, it didnt really matter which we chose. As luck would have it, Top Gun was sold out, so the other dinosaur movie became our choice. Thanks to Dominic Perrottet and our little digital wallet of QR codes, we managed to wrangle 2 x Gold Class seats together with popcorn, drinks, pulled beef sliders and choc tops all without spending a dime. Having never experienced the sheer decadence and the 1% lifestyle of Gold Class before, Fatpap kicked back, scoffed his popcorn before the opening credits and wondered what the philistines were doing out in the real world. The movie proved to be visually striking and provided the required escapism, and if we are being honest, it only really lacked a plot, good scripting, and perhaps a director - we couldn’t really tell?
Emerging to a now darkened sky with threatening rain clouds, we did the only logical thing and window shopped our way back to the Quay. Visiting every mall and multi-levelled mega store in the city, we perused everything and bought nothing save a ridiculously discounted travel coat for Fatpap.
Part of a newly released line of urban adventure wear for the robust gentleman, FATMANDU produce quality attire for the portly fellow in eye catching colours and astounding thermal properties.
Our last stop was a visit to Angel Place where Lyndall got to see the infamous instagrammable suspended birdcages for the first time. Created by Michael Thomas Hill and installed in 2012, Forgotten Songs is a visual and audible artwork representative of the 50 species of birds dislodged from the area due to European settlement and urbanisation. The sounds of these forgotten birds sing from the cages, even changing at dusk to reflect the nocturnal birds long moved on.
We returned to our apartment to briefly relayer and grab our camera equipment before venturing out into the now light drizzle and another 500,000 people with the same idea.
Having just dawdled our way through Thursday’s Vivid spectacular, we took a more structured approach tonight and actually studied the map, highlighted those installations of interest, and planned our route methodically.
This year Vivid featured its longest continuous light walk stretching 8km linking the Sydney Opera House to Central Station. Having already done the “northern half”, we strategically headed to Central Station to work our way back to the Opera House. Being now fully in love with Sydneys public transport system, we caught a train from Wynyard to Central in the view of arriving on the stroke of 6:00pm. We were actually 5 minutes early but already the crowds had amassed.
VIVID REFLECTIONS - set in the western forecourt of Central Station, was an interactive projection using motion capture technology to turn visitors movements into animated action, then beaming them onto the landmark clock tower. The sharpness of colour and ever changing images were a juxtaposition against the 101 year old sandstone making this installation one of our favourites.
Next on the route was the highly publicised CONVERGENCE set in the unused Goods Line tunnel. The space largely unknown to even the most well-travelled Sydneysider was transformed by a spectacular convergence of lights, lasers and smoke effects all within the 100 metre long cavity. Less impressive was the 200 metre long double line of patrons waiting patiently at 6:20pm to spend their promised 3 minutes spellbound. We’re too old for that shit and happily moved on.
The Lightwalk made its way behind the UTS campus where the Frank Gehry designed School of Business had its windows illuminated with colour-changing cove lights causing Gehry’s unmistakable ‘paper bag’ aesthetic to look as enticing as a bag of mixed lollies.
Turning into Hay Street, then the newly developed northern end of Darling Harbour was evidently where half of Sydney and maybe a little of Victoria had all come for the night. The precinct looked like News Years Eve and the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics spent the night together to spawn a new race of humans solely devout to bright shiny objects. There were people everywhere ! But that also made the night exciting. Along the path northward were a dozen installations shrouded among the restaurants, bars, cafes and parks all the way to Pyrmont Bridge. The place was buzzing, and had it not been for the constant drizzle, we suspect could have been a lot busier being the last night of the festival.
On the dark, still waters of Darling Harbour, SYDNEY INFINITY drew the biggest crowds with the largest ‘liquid and light show’ ever seen in Australia. Hundreds of multi-textured jets fanned water into shifting shapes and expressive fountains set to an accompanying soundtrack and thousands of powerful LEDs. Whilst spectacular, it was no Fountains of Bellagio or Singapore’s Spectra (see following blog), but it performed admirably within the cradle of the western CBD.
It was now time to reveal our secret weapon devised when down this way on Friday. We’d a master stroke of genius and rechecked the timetable before heading to Pyrmont Bay terminal to make our way back to Circular Quay by FERRY ! How shrewd we felt. How spectacularly clever we knew this plan to be. After 3 days dissecting this frog, we knew the city like no other.
The floating pontoon teemed with evidently equally canny passengers, and we only just made it onto the ferry as it pulled out into the night. Having not taken a ferry at night, nor in the rain, and nor during Vivid, the journey was a special adventure. We bustled our way to the stern of the vessel and by the time we’d reached Barangaroo, had fortified our position in anticipation of the hundreds more equally savvy Vividers copying our idea.
The trans-harbour passage to Milsons Point provided spectacular views of the city under light, but the return crossing beneath the bridge we think was the highlight of the night. As touristy as it sounds, and as cliche as it is, Sydney and its harbour is one of the greatest cities in the world, and as lifelong inhabitants, something we take for granted. Vivid’s initiative was to bring people back to the city, and despite the crowds and cost, invites everyone to make an excuse to get amongst it and experience what Sydney has to offer.
Alighting at Circular Quay it soon became evident where the other half of Sydney’s population was. All traffic and public transport north of Town Hall had been paused during the weekend Vivid time slots. We questioned that initially, but having seen the hoards first hand, clearly this was a crowd management decision. People zig zagged across the foreshore spilling into Alfred St, Pitt St, and onto Martin Place. We on the other hand made our way out to Bennelong Point with perhaps the notion of a quiet tipple at the Opera Bar. Fat chance ! But we did get the shot we were looking for, but more so, stood on that promenade looking back at the city in its entirety with wonder.
There were a few more installations to visit at the rocks, but coming down to the last 15 minutes of illumination for 2022, we called it quits. Instead, we finished with a quick visit to one of Fatpap’s favourite little known places in Sydney. Beneath the floor of the Customs House foyer lies a scale model of Sydney. Having been there many times, it’s always fun to check on its “progress” as the city itself is constantly changing and the model reflects that growth. We traced our 3 day journey on the model, and would calculate the following morning to have walked over 45 km in exploring Sydney as we had.
Strangely embedded into the historic marbled entrance to Customs House are a series of swastikas. As an ancient symbol of divinity and spirituality in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain Dharma religions, most of us recognise it for something else. Prior to WWII, the decorative motif featured in many Australian classical revival interiors and were added to Customs House as part of a neoclassical upgrade in 1916. If only bureaucracy stalled that decision by 4 years? Wisely, renovators in 1996 ruled out the call to remove these symbols acknowledging their place in the narrative of the building.
We meandered home before midnight, and as we do, adjourned to the balcony for a wee bit of imbibing. The very light rain persisted, and the scores of cars continued across the iconic Harbour Bridge. In the end it was only clubbers, paramedics and us awake as we reviewed our photographs, relived our small journey, and drank till 4:30am. WTF ? Fatpap is no stranger to that hour, but normally as the start of the day and not its end.
The following morning we had every intention off ripping the spleen from Sydney the Frog by catching a ferry to Manly for brunch. Needless to say that ship had long sailed, so we instead packed our bags and returned to Darling Harbour for a very late breakfast. Here we employed the last of our Dine & Discover vouchers to enjoy Eggs Benedict and mango & coconut smoothies in the chilly wind whistling through the man made ravine of Tumbalong Boulevard.
And so ended one of the best weekends we have had in a long time. Had it not been for Vivid, had it not been for Dine & Discover, perhaps we may not have done it? But we did and we loved it. We rode tram, train and ferry. We saw our favourite band, a spectacular exhibition and an ordinary Hollywood lacklustre. We ate, we drank, we shopped.
But more importantly we saw our beautiful city of Sydney and learnt more of her secrets over our 4 day escapade. If you’re a local, or if you’re not, we strongly recommend a few days in town to relax and explore, and see why so many foreigners flock to our harbour city. BECAUSE IT’S MAGNIFICENT !
Thanks for reading to the end, we sure hope you liked this one. Another change of pace for us all as we are always trying something different.
See ya for Splendour in the Grass in only a few short weeks !
Peter & Lyndall
Vivid Festival, Sydney June 2022