relaxing in rocks square (or, how i fell in love with a house in ruins)
After our morning tour of the Sydney Opera House, the hubs and I decided to stay close to the harbor. The weather was absolutely gorgeous on our first day in Australia, and after the chill of New Zealand’s South Island, we were craving more sun and waterfront views.
As we wandered, we eventually found ourselves in The Rocks, which, as it turns out, was one of the best ways to spend our mid-morning.
To be honest, it’s clearly a super touristy area. It was reminiscent of New York’s South Street Seaport, and some of the stores and restaurants were the cheesiest. Still, in a city that feels so new, it was a nice little reminder that there’s history to be found, too.
And, because I am an official Lazy Traveler, we naturally did wander off the main street, almost immediately. This is how we stumbled upon one of the coolest public city spaces I’ve ever found.
At first glance, I wasn’t really sure what we had just walked past. It was just the frame of a house, with a few café tables piled to the side? We backtracked, and when I peeked over the edge, I pretty much never wanted to leave.
Located in the ruins of what was formerly the harbourmaster’s mansion, the space has been filled with wooden pieces emulating old fashioned furniture that might have once filled the home. The rooms are small, but there are so many that anyone can easily find a place to relax, sit with a cup of coffee, and get away from the more crowded areas nearby.
Seeing as we had found this respite right around lunchtime, we realized it’s value as soon as we stumbled back onto a main street and saw how swamped the area had become thanks to the recent docking of a nearby cruise ship (and if you didn’t already know, cruise shippers make me exceptionally stabby).
We unfortunately didn’t make it back over to Rocks Square again during our brief stint in Sydney, but based on our brief meeting, this place has perched itself neatly at the top of my favorite little places hidden in the city.
xo!
the romantic
Lazy Travelers
The Lazy Travelers are two transatlantic best friends who have mastered the art of exploring a new city. Though Ashley is based in London and Carolyn is in Philadelphia, we'll use any excuse to reunite around the world. We’re professional bar hoppers, pub crawlers, and food testers, and you’ll never see us zipping around, checking things off a list of “must-sees.”
16 Comments
Laura
That is so cool! How have I never noticed this space before? Must get there ASAP. Thanks for the tip!
Lazy Travelers
it was such a great/random find! definitely check it out 🙂
Lazy Travelers recently posted..relaxing in rocks square (or, how i fell in love with a house in ruins)
nicole
I love the red door that leads to openness. That’s awesome.
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Lazy Travelers
so cool, right?? loved the red too, especially since everything nearby was pretty neutral.
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Erin at The World Wanderer
What a cool little spot! Love everything about it. I love stumbling upon treasures like this while traveling. 🙂
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Lazy Travelers
full agree! that’s why we’re the lazy wanderers, le duuuh.
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Anita Mac
Love the random finds. Touristy or not, I still love wandering around The Rocks….it is a pretty cool place!
Anita Mac recently posted..From Paris With Love
Lazy Travelers
agreed, it is really adorable–i just am always leery of guiding people toward neighborhoods that can get extremely crowded, because those are the places that overwhelm me the most. at the right time of day, though, the rocks is great!
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Pola (@jettingaround)
That red door and what’s behind it looks SO COOL. What a great idea for a public space.
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Lazy Travelers
right?? the red is perfect, i honestly think otherwise i may have just walked right past!
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Jenn
What a gorgeous find! I’m completely on board your hate of tourist areas. My husband and I recently got back from New Orleans and we took the obligatory walk down Bourbon Street, and I was almost immediately begging to leave for the next street over, basically empty comparatively.
Lazy Travelers
uggh yeah, we’ve heard that about bourbon street. i just get overwhelmed by so many people in tight spaces, but the rocks was really nice in the morning.
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Lola
oddly enough…it kinda reminds me of the ruin pubs in Budapest but with less graffiti 😉 so fun!!
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Lazy Travelers
yes, totally same feel! but yes graffiti and less booze (unfortunately)
Lazy Travelers recently posted..no travel required: #frifotos
Raul (@ilivetotravel)
Wow, how did I miss that? Or was it not here 4 years ago? Now, my excuse to return is completely solidified!!
Lazy Travelers
i’m not sure how old the space is, actually! definitely worth a peek when you return 🙂
Lazy Travelers recently posted..no travel required: #frifotos