The Best Spot I’ve Ever Had a Matzo Sandwich

The best spot I ever had a sandwich was a remote ledge on the Barrenjoey Head in Palm Beach. But this overlook in Manly was pretty spectacular as well. Here’s to the last day of Passover and the return of bread, rice and legumes to our residential college kitchen!


Sydney finally saw some sun this weekend after two solid weeks of rain. My friend Sarah and I took advantage of this by taking a ferry to Manly, which is probably Sydney’s most famous beach after Bondi.

We only stopped briefly at the beach because we were headed on a coastal walk around the peninsula. The walk took us to Shelly Beach before leading us uphill to said fantastic sandwich spot.

Then it was more of a bushwalk until we reached North Head Scenic Dr.


This point of Sydney Harbour National Park near the North Fort Artillery Museum has an incredible view of the whole city. But where haven’t I gone with a good view? Sydney just has too many. Sarah and I kept turning to each other, smiling and saying, “We live here.”


And after beautiful days like this one, it gets harder to consider living anywhere else.

Into the Bush

My next Easter Break adventure involved bushwalking in Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park, a 45-minute to an hour train ride north. After my daytrip to Palm Beach and Avalon, I felt ok exploring on my own and was looking forward to the 9km hike I’d plotted out. I know my aim is to “get lost,” but I also need to live to blog about it, so a planned route and map seemed in order.

Once I got there, I was very glad to be prepared as I was because the hike definitely took me out of my comfort zone. Ku-Ring-Gai covers almost 37,000 acres, and at least in the section where I started in Berowra, there weren’t any clearly marked trails with happy arrows or park ranger booths to keep you on the right track. For the first half-hour, I wasn’t even positive I was on the path I intended to be on. Looking back, I probably should have gone with a buddy, but I read too much Kerouac this summer and going alone seemed like a good idea.


Once I reached the creek at the bottom of the trail, I felt surer of where I was going. All I had to do was follow the creek for the next two hours.




Well, even that was easier said than done. The bush was very overgrown and the path became hard to follow at points. Huge spider webs loomed overhead and it always felt like one of these guys was on my arm.


I also ran into this four-foot-long goanna, which scared me out of my pants because I nearly stepped on it without looking.


At this point my shoulders were beginning to ache because of my backpack. Sure, I could have packed lighter, but how much would I regret it if I had left behind that beach towel that could’ve served as a blanket or been fashioned into a tent in the event I got lost in the bush and needed to spend the night before a rescue party found me? Exactly. So I flipped the backpack around to my front because I figure that’s where women are meant to bear loads about that size. Why fight evolution? It helped so I wore it that way except when I saw boats on the creek and felt self-conscious. Hey, who’s that weird girl pregnant with a backpack? And did she just pull out a sandwich?

Like I said, the trail was overgrown with fern and brush. Plus, there were several fallen trees and steep rocks to cross over. I later realized this might have to do with the fact that the Berowra Trail I took was temporarily closed to the public. When I reached the intersection with the Mt. Kuring-Gai Trail, I saw the trail I had come from had been fenced off. Who knew?

After I got to the second trail, I felt much more at ease because I knew I was going the right way and was ahead of schedule. (I attribute this to the fact that my “flight” response is much keener than my “fight” and I booked it through the tall brush and cobwebs.) The Mt. Kuring-Gai Trail was steeper but had wider, more worn paths so I thought less about potential creepy-crawlies around my ankles.


I finally made it up to the top where I found another great scenic sandwich spot. Then I walked down out of the park, through a residential area to the train stop one ahead of where I got off and was home in time for dinner.

Another day, ‘well Done.

A Long Day of Exploring Part II

After a few hours hiking in Palm Beach, I wanted to jump in the water, but decided to wait until Part II of my excursion so I wouldn’t be sandy and saltwatery on the bus. (Sweaty was ok for some reason.) So when I got to Avalon, which is about 5 or 6 km from Palm Beach, it was time for a dip. I swam a few laps in the rock pool to cool off before my next hike.


A 10-15 minute walk from the beach is the Angophora Reserve, named for angophora trees, which are related to eucalyptus. The reserve comprises about 45 acres of vegetation and walking trails. Actually, I learned about it after looking at the city bus map and wondering what that section of green was. After some googling, I found out Avalon is one of the only suburbs in Sydney where koalas are still found naturally so I knew I had to go. Unfortunately I saw more signs warning of koalas than actual critters, but I figured it’d be a long shot I’d actually see one in the wild.


Even without koalas, the walk was incredible. It felt like a rainforest — dark and humid with palms and fern growing below trees filled with cackling kookaburra and squalling cockatoo.



But when I set out on the trail in the late afternoon, I forgot to make any efforts to find out where the hike would go and how long I’d be on it. I ended up in a residential area and decided to take to the streets instead of wandering the isolated nature path. It was about the time the thunder started to roll that I admitted I didn’t know where I was or where I was going. When the drizzle began, I realized I was on the opposite side of the valley I needed to be.


I kept walking, declining a ride offer from two guys in a truck and finding a stray dog who followed me to the convenience store I eventually found to confirm my way back to the bus stop. It turned into a 35-minute walk in light rain, but I made it. And hey, the whole premise of this blog was for me to get a little lost, so the day was a success. (I then came home, passed out by 9ish and slept for 12 hours.)

A Long Day of Exploring Part I

That’s right, this was such an experience it requires Roman numerals.


I decided to use my weeklong holiday to travel out of the city center and get to know different aspects of Sydney. With most of my friends in New Zealand or other states in Australia, they would have to be solo adventures, but I didn’t mind. It’s nice having full control over your experience.

My first trip was an hour-and-a-half bus ride north to Palm Beach. The beach is on the hammer-shaped Barrenjoey Peninsula, which means there is shore three minutes apart to the east and west.


I started at the south end of the beach, but decided I wanted to get to the lighthouse. It’s that speck atop the headland.


I trekked through the sand and up, up, up the mountain, but eventually reached it.


From there, I explored the trails down the sides of the peninsula with incredible views of Broken Bay and the Tasman Sea. This was probably the greatest spot I’ve ever eaten a sandwich.


Palm Beach one of the wealthiest suburbs of Sydney and a prime spot for a second beach home. It’s also the location where they shoot the long-running Aussie soap opera “Home and Away.” Of course, I happened to find them doing just that on my roundabout route back to the bus stop. Based on my research, I’m guessing that actress is Indiana Evans, if anyone is interested.


But my day wasn’t over. I was off to Avalon for another hike, which will have to be saved for another post.