High Class Elite Independent Sydney Model Escort
SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE
Completed in 1932, the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge was an economic feat, given the depressed times, as well as an engineering triumph. Prior to this, the only links between the city centre on the south side of the harbour and the residential north side were by ferry or a circuitous 20km (12.5 mile) road route with five bridge crossings. Known as the "Coathanger", the single-span arch bridge was manufactured in sections and took eight years to build, including the railway line. Loans for the total cost of approximately 6.25 million Australian pounds were paid off in 1988. Intrepid visitors can make the vertiginous climb to its summit, with spectacular views as reward.
THE 1932 OPENING
The ceremony was disrupted with zealous royalist Francis de Groot rode forward and cut the ribbon, in honour, be claimed, of King and Empire.
BUILDING THE BRIDGE
Planted in solid sandstone, the foundations are 12m (39ft) deep. Te arch was built in halves with steel cable restraints initially supporting each side. Once the two halves met, work began on the deck.
THE ARCH
Spans 503m (1,650ft) and supports the weight of the bridge deck.
ANCHORING TUNNELS
Are 36m (118ft) long and dug into rock at each end.
SUPPORT CABLES
Were slackened over a 12-day period, enabling the two halves to join.
THE VERTICAL HANGERS
Support the slanting crossbeams which, in turn, carry the deck.
THE BRIDGE DESIGN
The steel arch of the bridge supports the deck, with hinges at either end bearing the bridge's full weight and spreading the load to the foundations. The hinges allow the structure to move as the steel expands and contracts in response to wind and extreme temperatures.
THE DECK
59m (194ft) above sea level, was built from the centre.
BRIDGE WORKERS
The bridge was built by 1,400 workers, 16 of whom were killed in accidents during construction.
BRIDGE CLIMB
Thousands of people have enjoyed the spectacular bridge-top views after a 3.5 hour guided tour up ladders, cat-walks and finally the upper arch of the bridge.
OVER 150,000 VEHICLES
Cross the bridge each day, about 15 times as many as in 1932.
MAINTENANCE
Painting the bridge has become a metaphor for an endless task. Approximately 30,000 litres (6,593 gallons) of paint are required for each coat, enough to cover an area equivalent to 60 soccer pitches.
PAYING THE TOLL
The initial toll of sixpence helped pay off the construction loan. The toll is now used for maintenance and to pay for the 1992 Sydney Harbour Tunnel.
FATHER OF THE BRIDGE
Chief engineer Dr John Bradfield shakes the hand of the driver of the first train to cross the bridge. Over a 20-year period. Bradfield supervised all aspects of the bridge's design and construction. At the opening ceremony, the highway linking the harbour's south side and northern suburbs was named in his honour.
WRITERS' WALK
This series of plaques is set in the pavement at regular intervals between East and West Circular Quay. It gives the visitor the chance to ponder the observations of famous Australian writers, both past and present, on their home country, as well as the musings of some noted literary visitors.
Each plaque is dedicated to a particular writer, with a quotation and a brief biographical note. Australian writers include novelists Miles Franklin and Peter Carey, poets Oldgeroo Noonuccal and Judith Wright, humorists Barry Humphries and Clive James, and the influential feminist writer Germaine Greer. Among visiting writers are Charles Darwin, Joseph Conrad and Mark Twain.
JUSTICE AND POLICE MUSEUM, Corner of Albert and Phillip Streets.
The museum's buildings were originally the Water Police Court, designed by Edmund Blacket in 1856; Water Police Station, designed by Alexander Dawson in 1858; and Police Court designed by James Barnet in 1885. Here the rough-and-tumble underworld of quayside crime, from the petty to the violent, was dealt swift and, at times, harsh justice. The museum exhibits bear vivid testimony to that turbulent period, as they document and re-create legal and criminal history. Late-Victorian legal proceedings can be easily imagined in the fully restored courtroom.
Menacing implements from knuckledusters to bludgeons are displayed as the macabre relics of violent and notorious crimes. Other aspects of policing and justice are high-lighted in regularly changing exhibitions. The bushranger exhibit, prison artifacts, and forensic display powerfully evoke the realities of the justice system in Australia.
Open: 10am - 5pm Saturday - Sunday (daily in January)
Closed: Good Friday, December 25.
Tel: 92 - 52 - 11 - 44.
CUSTOMS HOUSE, 31 Alfred Street.
Colonial architect James Barnet designed this 1885 sandstone Classical Revival building on the site of an earlier Customs House. It recalls the days when trading ships loaded and unloaded their goods at the quay. Features include columns in polished granite, a sculpted coat of arms and a clock face, added in 1897, bearing a pair of tridents and dolphins
Customs House reopened in 2005 after major refurbishment. Facilities include a City Library with a reading room and exhibition space, and an open lounge area with an international newspaper and magazine salon, Internet access and bar. On the roof, Cafe Sydney offers great views.
Open: 8am - 7pm Monday - Friday, 10am - 4pm Saturday, noon - 4pm Sunday.
Closed: Good Friday, December 25.
Tel: 92 - 42 - 85 - 95.
MACQUARIE PLACE
In 1810, governor Lachlan Macquarie created this park on what was once part of the vegetable garden of the first Government House. The sandstone obelisk, designed by convict architect Francis Greenway, was erected in 1818 to mark the starting point for all roads in the colony. The gas lamps recall the fact that this was also the site of Sydney's first street lamp, installed in 1826.
Also in this little triangle of history are the remains of the bow anchor and cannon from HMS Sirius, flagship of the First Fleet. There is also a statue of Thomas Mort, a 19th-century industrialist whose vast business interests embraced gold, coal and copper mining, dairy and cotton farming, wool auctioning and ship repair. These days his statue is a marshaling place for the city's somewhat kamikaze bicycle couriers.
MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
Sydney's substantial collection of contemporary art has grown steadily, but largely out of public view, since 1943. This was the year John Power died, leaving his art collection and a financial bequest to the University of Sydney.
In 1991 the permanent collection, including works by Hockney, Warhol, Lichtenstein and Christo, was transferred to this 1950's Art Deco-style former Maritime Services Board Building. The museum also hosts temporary exhibitions of works by both Australian and International artists.
At the front of the building the MCA Cafe spills out onto a terrace with superb views across to the Sydney Opera House. The MCA Store sells distinctive gifts by Australian designers.
Open: 10am - 5pm daily.
Closed: December 25.
Tel: 92 - 45 - 24 - 00.
NATIONAL TRUST CENTRE, Observatory Hill, Watson Road.
The buildings that form the headquarters of the conservation organization, the National Trust of Australia, date from 1815, when Macquarie chose the site on Observatory Hill for a military hospital.
Today they house a cafe, a National Trust shop and the SH Ervin Gallery, containing work s by prominent 19th and 20th-century Australian artists such as Thea Proctor, Margaret Preston and Conrad Martens.
Open: 9am - 5pm Tuesday - Friday, Gallery: 11am - 5pm Tuesday - Sunday.
Closed: public holidays.
Tel: 92 - 58 - 01 - 23.
ST PHILIPS CHURCH, 3 York Street (enter from Jamison Street).
Despite its elevated site, this Victorian Gothic Church seems overshadowed in its modern setting. Yet, when it was first built, the tall square tower with its decorative pinnacles was a local landmark.
Begun in 1848, St Philip's is by Edmund Blacket, dubbed "The Christopher Wren of Australia" for the 58 churches he designed. In 1851, work was disrupted when its stone-masons left for the gold fields, but was completed by 1856.
A peal of bells was donated in 1858, with another added in 1888 to mark Sydney's centenary. These bells still announce the services each Sunday.
Open: 9am - 5pm Tuesday - Friday.
Closed: January 26.
Tel: 92 - 47 - 10 - 71.
A FLAGPOLE ON THE MUDFLATS
It is easy to miss the modest flagpole in Loftus Street near Customs House. It flies a flag, the Union Jack, on the spot where Australia's first ceremonial flag-raising took place. On January 26, 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip came ashore to hoist the flag and declare the foundation of the colony. A toast to the King was drunk and a musket volley fired. On the same day, the rest of the First Fleet arrived from Botany Bay to join Phillip and his men. (On this date each year, the country marks Australia Day with a national holiday). In 1788, the flagpole was on the edge of mudflats on Sydney Cove. Today, because of the large amount of land reclaimed to build Circular Quay, it is some distance from the water's edge.
sydney escorts, sydney escort, australian escorts, aussie escorts, model, australia
Gallery: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
|
