It's not very often we leave the beaches (so if you're looking for sea air today, I'm sorry to disappoint), something that is both surprising and disappointing in our Seachange to Sydney. 

You see, one of the criteria for our move, apart from living by the sea, was to live somewhere kinda commutable to a city. 

I suppose Mr BC and I, having found ourselves happily adding a little extra bundle of joy into our lives 9 months to the day we were married at a young 24, have not had much chance to do the whole living-in-the-city-with-no-responsibilities-thing.  Not that I'm complaining, I guess you gathered already, I like to foof around at home in cottages…but more, now, when we do go for a daytrip, I savour every absolute morsel of what it offers. 

So the great thing about being on holidays and having guests from England is forcing oneself to go over two bridges to leave the beaches, leave one's insular little comfort zone and go out and about and see just how other people are living.

Though this trip wasn't really to the city, more to a gentrified suburb on the other side of Sydney, riding through the real Sydney city, nose pressed to the glass.

I love to look at houses, tiles, gardens, fences, pavements and shops, the older and quirkier the better and I've dragged the Beach Cottage Kiddos to many a house and said something along the lines of wow just take a look at that!  To be met with kind but blank expressions of wonder.   

So I thought I'd bring you with me today to see these breath-taking old houses, cos I thought you might, for one, be very interested to see the other side of Australia, that I think many who have not been here (including myself before) would be surprised to see and secondly because I thought you would understand how I stood and stared, continually snapped, drank in the details & wished I could stop in for some Afternoon Tea. 

If you were with me, dear bloggy friends and perhaps I said to you without turning my head "Woop de doo, just look at that detail up there, I wonder where the influence for these old iron clad villas comes from?"  You might nod in agreement and possibly come up with suggestions…not that I really want you to say anything, you know, just the nod…

We ambled around these streets for ages, the day was grey and gloomy, I can only imagine how fabulous the these would be bathed in glorious, unadulterated Australian sun.

 As we meandered, all of a sudden we came across the Donna Hay shop.  

Oh!  What a co-incidence! 

 How strange that just a few days ago, I got her new book Season's for Christmas!

Unfortunately it wasn't open, but was picture perfect on the outside, very Donna Hay. 

Even the pavement outside played it's part in Donna Hay style.

Next a stop for coffee outside here

…and the on for some mooching with my mum and Miss BC and High Tea With Mrs Woo…  

Now tell me.  Do you like to mooch?  

'Cos there was some discussion of Beach Cottage mooching yesterday.

My mum, Miss BC and I like to mooch.  

We have pretty much no intention of spending any money, particularly not when there are four males around who may blow our little back-of-the-wardrobe secrets.

But that certainly is not the objective of the expedition.  The objective is to move around slowly, weaving in and out of unique shops with old doorfronts, ooh and ahhing, pointing and sighing, picking up things and stroking. 

I know you get that?

Mr BC & the other 3 males in the party evidently do not.  Because unbelievably after just 40 minutes of mooching there were mutterings of boredom, parking meters and suchlike.  Goodness.  

So we packed them off to one of the most wonderful old secondhand bookshop-cum-cafe over three rambling, rickety old floors, I think I've ever seen. 

Soon, they were settled with provisions.

and ensconced in a game of chess…

And we carried on mooching…

Spying some lovely old buildings… 

ramshackle houses falling down a hill…

and what, I ask you, is better for tired old Daytrippers with heavy legs than a stop on the way home for a swift half?

That's all for now, from Australia folks.

 I am about to get my pj's on here at the Beach Cottage. 

Mr BC supposedly has dinner 'under control', the kids are playing Lego and Wii and the visitors are drinking beer in the cool on the deck…

See ya… 

p.s. you can find another trip to Sydney on the ferry here

other Seachange life stuff here

and lots more photos of this Daytrip 

from the Cutting Room floor here