So, I ended up with a day to myself.
I'm not a patch on Ferris Bueller; I have a track record of whiling away free days doing nothing much, then going into a funk for being such a useless git and wasting my liberty.
So, what to do today? As my Lovely Wife suggested, something that wouldn't leave me depressed.
The first order of business was a given: Local cafe, big breakfast. Scrambled eggs, Italian sausage, bacon (ours is more like Canadian than American: thick, but less hammy), sauteed mushrooms, hot tomatoes, toast. No baked beans this time, which is good; they only get everything else all soggy.
So, big breakfast and a double macchiato. I'm full and wired. Wonderful. Now what?
Golf? Nah. Shopping? LORD, no. Sit in the car and do crosswords? Ye... NO.
I could feel it happening: a day wasting away. Time to move -- Time to Do Something.
So. Feeling decidedly chunky and unfit, I decided to get out the bike. It was a beautiful day -- hot, sunny, slight breeze. A day to do things with. Something out of character.
But -- where? Then I thought: the one place where I feel more alive, more hopeful, more inspired every time I go: The Domain. It's a massive park (it's Sydney's equivalent of Central Park), and it contains the Royal Botanical Gardens, the Art Gallery of NSW... and the 'Boy' Charlton Pool.
So, I did. Rode from our house in the Inner West (Five Dock, if you must know) to 'Boy' Charlton Pool, in the city, near the Botanical Gardens. It's kind of ridiculous in a Best Of Sydney way. Here it is:
Yes -- that's the Opera House in the background. This place is in an amazing location, and it looks out over another bay.
Afterward, I stopped at the kiosk opposite the Art Gallery of NSW. Couldn't think of a coffee -- I ached everywhere -- but I bought a lemon squash and went looking for a place to sit and drink it.
Then, I found it -- the perfect spot. Just down from the AGNSW: a statue. I love statues. My favorite place in Paris is a sculpture garden (I think it's the courtyard of the Palais de Justice) .
So, here's the statue where I sat, sipped and pondered -- it's Robert Burns.
I love -- LOVE -- a city with statues of poets.
I pedalled home, feeling a little more accomplished, a little inspired, and very well vacationed.
10 comments:
Dundee has a statue of Rabbie Burns outide the museum. Queen Victoria too - although she didn't write poetry, as far as I'm aware.
There's another one of Sir Walter Scott.
Oh, and in Edinburgh there's a statue of Greyfriar's Bobby - ever heard of him? I'll put a photo in my blog so you can see. Only the capital of Scotland could have a statue of a dog! (But the story's just sooooocute)!
That's me! Me exactly, what you said about frittering your days away and then being depressed about how you wasted your day -- that's exactly me too, except I don't think I ever expressed it so well.
Your day sounds well-spent indeed. And it's great that you had the good sense to appreciate it. When I am by myself and doing something idyllic, I change it to idiotic by spending the whole time thinking about how much someone else -- my husband, my kids, whoever -- would enjoy it if they were here.
My favorite place in Paris is a sculpture garden too: the Musee Rodin.
What a beautiful day.
And statues of poets? You lucky man. I would demand more pics but no I wouldn't receive them.
I'll wait for another retelling.
Be well, be happy, be adored S&L.
Nichola, I always sniff and snivel when I think of Greyfriar's Bobby! Such a sweet and sad tale.
Rob, that's truly a gorgeous spot. You've never frittered away your time when you get to take in something so beautiful :)
What a lovely day.
And don't feel so bad about frittering away time every once in a while. Look at it this way: you are accomplishing something when you fritter. You're recharging your batteries. =oD
What's an orange squash?
The photos are lovely.
waaaaaaaaaaaaaah! I really want to go back to Sydney so badly. There was so much I didn't get to see since I was there on business. If I do manage it, you'll give me a tour, right? All the best places? *sob*
Hey, you have a blog here too! I didn't know that (^o-)/
It's never a wasted day when you get to spend time outside. I'd live outside if I could. lol
How's the beard going? :D
Australia is truly lovely. And the whole frittering the days away thing... perhaps that's why we get along so well!
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