City Walk to Salsa Class

Every Monday evening I take an express bus to the central business district (CBD) to take a 7:30 pm salsa class at Latin Motion Dance Academy's city location, the Shark Hotel (Australians call pubs hotels).    

The CBD is Sydney's downtown area and is referred to as "the City."  The bus ride from my house to the City can take anywhere from 20-25 minutes. Then I walk the remaining 15-20 minutes to the class.   

City/Central Business District from George Street

On the way, I pass some very impressive and historic landmarks like the plaza at Martin Place, a pedestrian-only mall where people gather for civic and cultural events.  

It's a large outdoor area with a granite courtyard surrounded by beautiful old buildings and new constructions.  At one time, a street ran through the area but was paved to create an expansive walk way.  There are plenty of places to sit and stand along the corridor, which is heavily used by tourists and Sydneysiders for recreation.

Parade at Martin Place

Martin Place is home to Sydney's big banks, corporations and legal offices and is known as the City's business and financial center.  It's a prestigious place to work and was once thought of as the Wall Street of Australia.

The interiors of some of the historic buildings along the plaza were remodeled to incorporate high-end boutique shops, restaurants, bars, hotels, health clubs, etc. Technology companies are also drawn to this heritage location because of its status and accessibility to public transportation.  

The Wynyard bus stop, a major bus interchange, is a block away from Martin Place and the entrance to the Martin Place underground railway station is located on the plaza.  

Pictured below is Sydney's original post office and clock tower.  It was constructed in the Victorian Italian Renaissance style of architecture like many of the notable buildings at Martin Place.

Post Office #1

Film producers looking for great shooting locations come to the City because of its vibrancy and aesthetic appeal.  

The Matrix trilogy was shot at several Sydney CBD locations.  The most notable scene from the first movie, described below, was filmed specifically at the Martin Place fountain.

Martin Place Fountain at Martin Place and Pitt Street

In the picture from the scene below, Trinity ask Morpheus if he was listening to her or looking at the lady in the red dress. 

The Matrix

The fountain was also a shooting location for the movie, Superman Returns.  In the picture below, Superman stops a car that is about to hit a crowd of pedestrians by stopping it, picking it up and setting it back down in front of the fountain.

Superman Returns

Sadly however, not far from the fountain, inside the Lindt Chocolate Cafe, the Sydney Seige occurred on December of 2014.  A lone terrorist with a sawed off shotgun took 8 employees and 10 customers hostage.  After a 16-hour standoff, the gunman and two of the hostesses were killed.  

Lindt Cafe at Martin Place

Plans for a permanent memorial to honor the lives lost, the brave hostages and the emergency servicemen are underway.  Hundreds of floral cubes will be inlaid into the pavement to represent the flower bouquets that were left at the site. 

Seige memorial design

Just past Martin Place, on the corner of King and George Streets, is the first Apple store that opened in Sydney in June of 2008.  The elaborate construction has three levels and sits on 21,900 square feet of prime commercial real estate.

The retail store spreads over 3 levels that are each 445 square meters (4700 square feet) and features 6,180 square feet of glass front panels.  The glass design trend has earned the Apple Corporation many architectural awards.

It is the 3rd largest Apple store in the world, trailing behind Dubai and London.

Sydney's Apple store

After passing the Apple store the traffic picks up and I navigate the crowd so that I am not late for class.  For the most part, the street traffic is always moving, with the exception of those who stop to hear street performers or buskers (folks who perform on the streets for money).

Pedestrian traffic

Busker on George Street

Other than having the nerve to perform publicly, folks who busk must also have a permit to do so from Sydney's City Council.  They are restricted from using animals in their performances and they cannot charge a fee.  They can, however, pass the hat and sell CDs or DVDs of any original works.  

Busker on Druitt Street

A common area to find buskers is in the front of the elaborate Queen Victoria Building (QVB), which I also pass.  It was built in 1898 as a monument to the Queen and takes up an entire city block.  The Neo-Romanesque architecture suggests nobility. 

QVB on George Street with construction in the background for the new light rail

Closeup of the front of the QVB on George & Druitt

The QVB has four floors of shops, boutiques, restaurants and cafes.  It's a fantastic place to stop for morning tea or to find unique gifts, specialty apparel, delicious handcrafted sweets, teas and espressos.

QVB's second level

Zumba Patisserie Cafe inside the QVB

Zumba Patisserie Cafe inside the QVB

When I am early for class I will hang out at the QVB to window-shop and sightsee. The merchandise is expensive but it doesn't cost anything to look.  

QVB from the 3rd floor

There are plenty of dominant features inside the building, like the center dome, stained glass windows and 19th century staircase.  But for me, I am most impressed with the two majestic mechanical clocks that hang from the ceiling.

The Royal Clock, shown in the picture above, has embedded scenes of English royalty and the Great Australian Clock, below, displays images and scenes from Australian history that include Aborigines.  

Both clocks keep the time and chime or animate on the hour.

The Great Australian Clock

Close up of scene that includes Aborigines

In the front of the QVB is a statue of Queen Victoria that was originally installed in Ireland in 1908 as a memorial to her as an Irish Queen, rather than the British Sovereign.  She is seated in a low chair rather than a high throne. 

 

When Ireland became a republic in 1922, they no longer wanted the statue. Sydney's Lord Mayor heard it was no longer welcome and met with the Irish Ambassador to Australia to request it. Years later the statue was moved to Sydney and today represents a shared history between the two countries.  

Queen Victory Statue outside of the QVB

From the QVB there is another 5-10 minute walk to class depending upon the pedestrian traffic, which the city monitors closely using video cameras and some manual counters.  The information that is collected helps planners clear up congested areas.    

George and Druitt Streets

Across the street from the QVB is the beautiful sandstone Victorian style Town Hall - built between 1858 and 1889.  It houses the Sydney City Council Chamber and offices for the Lord Mayor and elected council members.  

Inside are civic records, international gifts, portraits, memorabilia and the largest pipe organ in the world. 

Town Hall Building on George Street

Attached to Town Hall is St. Andrews Cathedral of the Anglican Diocese, the oldest cathedral in Australia. 

The architecture of the church is Gothic Revival and is supposed to resemble mid-nineteenth century England.  

When the cathedral bells peal (ring) on Sunday mornings, it's a beautiful sound and echoes throughout the area.

Main entrance on George Street

Across the cathedral courtyard is the cathedral school which opened its doors in 1885.  Boys and girls from kindergarten through 12th grade attend.  The students are very active with the cathedral choir and participate in Sunday services as well as at special events.

The cathedral has a full schedule with three services on Sunday and throughout the week, healing services, Bible studies and prayer meetings.  

I attended the 10 am Sunday service a couple of times.  The congregation at that hour was enormous and very diverse.  Being old school, I enjoyed the richness of the traditional worship service, but was a bit thrown back by the all boys and men choir.  

I hadn't seen that in a while.  However, the singing was amazing.  

Side of the building off George Street

George Street entrance

There are several entrances into the sanctuary, however, the one I pass while walking to class is humble, given the grandeur of some of the other entrances. 

 

Inside the church the architecture is Perpendicular Gothic with an impressive set of stained glass windows throughout.  The space is long and narrow but the high ceilings make it feel quite spacious.  

St. Andrews Cathedral

The cathedral's gigantic pipe organ sits on an elevated platform and is played at all services, special events and concerts.  Check it out in the picture below!  Impressive!

Pipe Organ

After passing the cathedral I walk another two blocks to my destination on Liverpool Street moving quickly through the crowds and buskers.

Random pedestrian traffic

Intersection at George and Liverpool Streets - note: construction for the new light rail in progress

In front of the Museum Train Station on Liverpool Street

Then I head straight to the Shark Hotel just past David's Kitchen.

Liverpool and Pitt Streets - CBD

The Shark Hotel welcome picture below is there in case you thought I was going to a hotel and not to Latin Motion for salsa lessons.  😅  

Directional sign to the dance studio

Salsa! Salsa! Salsa!  

Studio at the Shark

The class is very diverse as is the population of folks I pass every Monday in the City.  

The class has an international student population.  As a result, I've danced with guys from South America, Italy, India, Iran, China, Japan, Sir Lanka, England, Portugal, Spain, Puerto Rico and of course Australia.  

The ages of my fellow dance students range from 18 to . . . who knows.

 Diego, Sistah, Farida and David

The entire trip from home to class can take up to 40 minutes, depending on the street and pedestrian traffic.  

After class, it's usually dark which is okay because the City is well policed.  I reverse the trip and head back to my bus stop.  As you can see in the picture below, I pass a LOT of authentic Asian restaurants.

Strip of shops on Pitt Street near Liverpool

The City is much larger than what I've shown here and there are significantly more attractions, but this post is just about what I see on my walk from the bus to the class, and it's a lot!

The Matrix Fountain . . . 

Elaborate old and new retail buildings that take up city blocks . . . 

Buskers and Asian restaurants . . . 

An international salsa class . . .

I am not in Kansas!