more museums!

Hyde Park Barracks - so sad yet fascinating at the same time imaging what life was like for these convicts!

Above: Portrait of convicts in the courtyard. In front, a model of a flogging frame.


Left: 70 men in this room of hammocks. Double that when they added another level to it!

St James' free lunch time concert - an oasis amongst the chaos of the city :)

As I walked down Macquarie St, The Parliament House was open for visitors, so I traipsed in! Here's my fav room - The Jubilee Room.

Then off to Susannah Place Museum at The Rocks. A block of four terrace houses that was built in 1844. (I wasn't allowed to touch anything or take any photos inside.) Each room is restored to a different era. Many stories of the people who lived there - all the way to 1990!

The lovely 1920s corner shop complete with old-fashioned lollies, gifts and household items

lego!

Went to the lego exhibition in town - just amazing how they built these towers! Each of them taking weeks to build.

  

Centrepoint, Tokyo Skytree, Hong Kong International Commerce Tower, Shanghai Tower

 

   Taipei 101 Tower, Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore, Petronas Twin Towers in Malaysia

The ones in the middle are still in progress for Barangaroo. The white one on the left comes complete with pool & tennis court

 

Infinity Tower (Bris), Q1 (Gold Coast),  Eureka Tower (Melb), Central Park Tower (Perth)

 You can even see the trees & structure inside.  See through light blue outside & deep blue inside. Lego has so many more colours now compared to when I was a kid!

Crazy construction! Some of these towers twist, change shape, stack, curve - all things that lego doesn't do!

A serene place to sit at Sydney Museum

Then off to Customs House. Such a nice change of pace with the hustle & bustle of the city outside:

exhibition

Dropped by Fairfield Museum to check out their migrant hostel exhibition & they had a short presentation with a couple of migrants sharing about their experience in the1950's. I was even able to share some stuff about my family's journey here. Brought back memories of my childhood and reminded me of how blessed I am and the sacrifices my family made for me.

 English classes

 Local grocery shops & doing the laundry

 The tray of cutlery which each family received. Recipes for communal eating. 

And a hall for dances & performances.

fun fun fun

Some fun things I've been able to do!

 Bake gingerbread cookies for the first time

 For my neighbours

Making paper Christmas stars for our stall at Fairfield markets

 Home-made Italian pizza bases leftover from Carols Festival

 A lovely thank you for Fairfield Heights Primary where I help with scripture for year 3-4

Explaining the Christmas story at English class

A free advent calendar I scored from Gumtree - because they spelt the name wrong!

And of course some pandan & taro cake :)

Oh, some adventures at Luna Park for my bday & a visit to the zoo. The last time I was there was year 6!