the (sydney) quiz…

Angela Savage* posted a (melbourne) quiz on her blog over the weekend- sort of a homage to the quiz that appeared in the glossy mag that used to appear monthly in The Age. A (sydney) version used to appear in the Sydney Morning Herald.

I’ve posted my favourite Melbourne things before (just click on Melbourne in the category section), but although I’ve lived here for over 20 years, I’ve taken a long time to get to know Sydney. Anyways, it got me thinking- how would I answer these questions for my city?

Here goes…

Best thing about Sydney?
 The harbour on a sparkling blue day in early Spring. Oh, and the Manly Ferry- I can’t separate the two.

Worst thing?
 The traffic. Seriously. Public transport runs a close second…and the tolls on the M2 carpark…actually, best not to get me started on this one.

Best coffee?
 Youeni Foodstore in Castle Hill. Where I live, good coffee is a tad difficult to come by and Youeni is a beacon of light. Great coffee, amazing bread, and a vibe that would be at home in Fitzroy. And my favourite place to write.

Best night out recently? 
I rarely go into the city at night these days- too old and too over the parking (such a grouch). Best day out recently would be a toss up between lunch at Jamie’s Italian with my family for my husband’s birthday last weekend or lunch at Burnt Orange in Mosman with the girls- followed by a walk down to the old forts and a view of both heads of the harbour.

Who do you barrack for?
 St Kilda. Oooops, this is a Sydney post. I did used to referee rugby league- does that count? Pushed for an NRL team, it’s a toss up between Canberra Raiders and Melbourne Storm- sort of says it all, really. As a kid I was mad for Canterbury Bulldogs- I had a flag and everything… but that was before Coffs Harbour.

Where did you go to school?
 This is such a big question for both Melbourne and Sydney. I’m a govvie school girl- I did year 12 at Carlingford High, years 9-11 at Springwood (in the Blue Mountains), and Years 7-9 at Bombala down near the Victorian border.

Where do you live?
 in the Hills district- smack in the middle of right wing, yummy mummy country. Don’t judge me.

Who would you most like to sit next to on a tram train? 
As long as they’re wearing their deodorant, I don’t care. Although the trains don’t come out here…yet.

Labor or Liberal?
 The Greens- although my husband and neighbours repeatedly tell me it’s a wasted vote in our seat.

Neil Mitchell or Jon Faine Alan Jones or Kyle & Jackie O? 
Richard Glover. For the morning commute, I rely on my own music.

Portsea or Lorne Bondi or Manly? 
You can’t get a car park at either. For the beach, coffee and people watching, I’d go with Bondi, but Manly for the ferry.

Drop-punt or torpedo? 
Ummm.

What is Melbourne’s Sydney’s most underrated suburb?
 If the question relates to real estate values, I have no idea- which is such so not a Sydney thing to say. Where do I love? Anywhere during jacaranda season. I’m walking a lot at the moment (training for Routeburn) and finding parks, reserves and pieces of nature I had no idea were there. And the most under rated thing to do in Sydney? In my humble opinion it’s a toss up between Cockatoo Island and the Bondi to Coogee Walk.

Melbourne Sydney in three words? 
World’s best harbour.

What about you? How would you answer the (insert our town here) quiz?

*Angela Savage is the author of a series of crime novels set in Thailand and starring Jayne Keeney, a thirty something Aussie PI. The books take you behind the Thailand most tourists see, and into something raw and real. If you’re after a great read by an Aussie author, pick one up. Behind the Night Bazaar is the first in the series…