Sydney meme

Questions extracted from Speakeasy #10 (edited/collated by Lee Tran Lam).

Answers by yours truly.

If you got to choose which landmarks Sydney would be famous for, what would they be?
The QVB, North Sydney Olympic Pool and the Martin Luther King wall in Newtown. They are fairly well-known landmarks but Sydney isn't famous for them, per se.

Where is the best place you've taken a photograph in Sydney?
Chinese Gardens. You cannot take a bad photo there, even if there are people in the shot.

What is something visitors always want to see in Sydney, much to your surprise?
Bondi Beach. I'd never been until I was about 22, got really excited about finally seeing this great Sydney, nay Australian icon, and was disappointed that it was just a small beach with a lot of posers on it.

The local street you remember most?
Highs Road, West Pennant Hills. I used to live off Highs, and my parents still do. Have been for very long walks along it with and without my dogs, have had friends live nearby, and rode my bike on a road for the first time on Highs.

Do you have a favourite snippet of Sydney history?
My old high school in Baulkham Hills was built on an orange orchard, which is why an orange forms part of the school crest. The school motto is 'Persevere' but if you misinterpret the crest it seems to say 'preserve oranges'.

Something you've never 'gotten' about Sydney?
Some of the things I see people wear (or not wear) down George Street on a Saturday night. Why Bondi Beach is so popular. The bus system.

What are a few of your favourite Sydney things?
Riding the train across the Harbour Bridge. Swimming at North Sydney Olympic Pool. Hiking up to Observatory Hill on a good night and just sitting there for a couple of hours.

What makes you stay in Sydney?
My comfort zone now extends for about 30km north, west and south (don't really do the east...). Job security - it's hard to find a decent job in the media when you land in a new place because you don't know anyone and the industry is all about who you know. Somebody has to pay the train fare.

Everyone recognises the icons of Sydney, but what's a great piece of architecture that people might not know about?
The interior of the State Theatre is amazing, so it's a pity they don't let you take photos.

I wouldn't say it's a great piece of architecture, but the Don Bank Museum in North Sydney is an interesting place I wish I were allowed to explore further.

If Sydney was a character, it would be...
Rakish, charming, outlandishly dressed and rich.

If Sydney was a literary genre it would be...
One of those pseudo hybrid photo history books.

The strangest thing you've discovered about Sydney?
The Baha'i Temple in Ingleside. Why a Baha'i Temple? Why Ingleside?

A building or place you keep returning to?
Waverton Station, out of necessity. Taronga Zoo - I sponsor the condors.

Something about Sydney you're always having to explain to visitors?
The narrow lanes on the Harbour Bridge and why you only pay toll one way. What happens when there's trackwork ('buses replace trains' etc).

Favourite Sydney places to:
Hear: The Vanguard (Newtown). Even though the floor is expensive and the mezzanine is crowded.
Eat: Ichi Ban Boshi (Galeries Victoria), Cafe Ish (Surry Hills), Safi (North Sydney).
Drink: Edinburgh Castle Pub (City), Electric Bean (North Sydney), The Oaks (Neutral Bay).
Goods: Aero Plus (Chatswood), The Tea Centre (City), Kinokuniya (City).
Look: Wharf Theatre (Walsh Bay), Hayden Orpheum (Cremorne).
Stray: Luna Park to Waverton via Lavender Bay.

Sum up Sydney in a:
Sound: toot of the trains
Texture: cool grass
Building: The QVB - ornate, but used as a shopping centre
Phrase: "The train to Hornsby via the North Shore line has been delayed by approximately six minutes."
Taste: dark chocolate. I can't believe how many chocolate cafes there are here.
Photograph: the Harbour Bridge unfinished - iconic but always under construction.