Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

 

This week we are looking at Sydney, which is the capital of New South Wales and one of Australia's largest cities, is best known for its harbourfront Sydney Opera House, with a distinctive sail-like design. Massive Darling Harbour and the smaller Circular Quay port are hubs of waterside life, with the arched Harbour Bridge and esteemed Royal Botanic Garden nearby. Sydney Tower’s outdoor platform, the Skywalk, offers 360-degree views of the city and suburbs.

The estimated population of the Sydney metropolitan area in 2025 is around 5.248 million. 

Greater Sydney covers 12,368.7 sq km and is made up of 34 local councils. Over 650 suburbs make up the Greater Sydney region.

Sydney was founded 237yrs ago when in 1788, the First Fleet of convicts, led by Arthur Phillip, founded Sydney as a British penal colony, making it the first European settlement in Australia.

Sydney is also where Kirribilli House is, this is the secondary official residence of the prime minister of Australia. Located in the Northern Sydney suburb of Kirribilli, New South Wales, the cottage and its associated grounds are located at the far eastern end of Kirribilli Avenue. 

It commands impressive views across to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Circular Quay and the Sydney Opera House and has been visited over the years by many important international dignitaries. Kirribilli House is open to the public on one day a year, courtesy of The Australiana Fund.

This year it will be open to the public for an open day on Saturday, June 3rd, 2025, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, along with Admiralty House, allowing visitors to explore the grounds and gardens.

There will be tours of both houses, and then lunch on the lawns. You can bring a packed lunch, or there will be food available to purchase. Entry is $15. 

Sydney has relatively low crime rates compared to many other major cities globally. Violent crime is uncommon, and the city is known for its safe streets.

Sydney’s public transportation system, including buses, trains, and ferries, is generally safe and mostly reliable all the services are well-monitored and have security measures in place. We also have transit officers that can tell people to leave stations and trains, demand full name and residential address when they suspect, on reasonable grounds that a person has committed a railway offence, Issue infringement notices ('on-the-spot' fines) for railway offences.