The Ava Gardner ‘quote’ was made up by Melbourne journo Neil Jillett.
It was 31C (88F) here today, and we only had one suspected gangland slaying.
Seriously, stay in and around Sydney if that’s the time you have. See the Blue Mountains, they’re stunning. The Harbour is all is cracked up to be. I like driving to both Newcastle and the 'Gong. Food is pricey, but okayish.
Don’t imagine you’ll see “the outback” - it’s a fair way from Sydney.
If your okay with going on holiday and not doing stuff every second of the day, then a stroll around the CBD is highly relaxing IMHO. Some of the architecture there is amazing. Heaps of film crews use Sydney as a backdrop so if your a movie nut, you could try and find where they filmed many of the movies. The matrix is particular is very Sydney.
Bring a picnic lunch and just sit in Hyde park and soak up the tranquility.
Everything else seems to have been mentioned here. Definately go to the Opera House to see a show if your so inclined, I think the Lion King will still be on by the time your here and its been getting great reviews.
I’ve always suspected that the alleged quote had been concocted by someone else. Still, i like its sentiment. 
I must say that although i was raised in Sydney and think it’s a great city, i’ve never really understood people who seriously heap scorn on Melbourne. I love the place, and i’d be quite happy to end up there.
I greatly appreciate all your help.
I certainly don’t need to do planned stuff for most of the time and am looking forward to just hanging out and drinking, not just the touristy stuff. I’m liking the pub crawl idea, but will try to check out many of your suggestions.
I have a number of Aussie friends who enjoy the occasional drink. I’m pretty sure they have a couple of extra livers.
I’ve seen the wguides. The one for Toronto isn’t bad.
I’d rather see the Mountains and Uluru then zoos and aquaria. I wouldn’t try to realistically see the outback or New Zealand in a week trip, but my schedule makes it tough to take longer vacations. I’ve had good luck spending those weeks travelling to different cities and checking out the surrounding areas.
Not that anyone has been losing sleep, but here are some random thoughts about Down Under.
I stayed at two hostels – a mediocre one in Wooloomooloo and a better one on Bondi Beach. The weather around Sydney was extremely nice for my entire stay, and it never rained – an unusual autumn April.
I liked the Sydney Opera House (seeing talented Canuck Michael Buble and less talented misanthropic comedian Daniel Kitson), sushi restaurants, clubs playing house music on Oxford Street, Bondi Beach, the very hot women at Bondi Beach, bushwalking at the Blue Mountains, cruising around the harbour, Manly, coastal walking to Coogee, the good jazz scene, the beef pies, the friendly people, the gorgeous Botanical Gardens.
I was less taken with Kings Cross, Australian beer (VB, Toohey’s, Hahn, etc. are all very mediocre; in fairness, so is almost all Canadian beer), Doyles’ (Watson’s Bay is great, the seafood in Bondi is cheaper and better), the high cost of drinks and a good breakfast, Tim Tams (unless taken as a shooter with hot tea), the conformity of Billabong-Mambo-Rip Curl, the persnicketiness of club gate bouncers. I didn’t do Bridgeclimb after learning you could get the same view for $8 – much less an experience, but also much less time consuming.
One week in Australia was clearly not enough; I’ll probably return for a working vacation there as a GP for 6-12 months in a few years.
If anyone is going to Sydney as a tourist I’d be happy to give you some good advice.
Thanks for your update? I trust the above quotation means you enjoyed yourself? It’s hard to recommend activities if you’re not sure what a person would enjoy doing, but it seems like overall you enjoyed yourself.
I found this thread again because I’m going to Sydney tomorrow for the weekend. I haven’t been since '01, so I’m looking forward to it.
Well, yeah, King’s Cross is probably the nastiest place in Australia. Try being there New Years Eve - not a pleasant experiance.
But you don’t like Australian OR Canadian beer?!? What do you like???
And Timtams??
Whoah…you don’t like TIM TAMS???
You’ll never get back into this country you know. Your visa will have a big BANNED stamp on it for not liking Tim Tams. We’re very fussy about who we let in here, and anybody who disparages Tim Tams is definitely on the Terrorist List.
So, what about Vegemite then?
I think you will find the ethnic makeup of Bondi makes it a vastly superior place