Episode 8

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Published on:

18th Feb 2021

To Observatory Hill Sydney's Forgotten Gem

If you are visiting Sydney, and only have a day or two and you’re wondering what the best thing would be to do. Then I don’t think there’s much doubt that you should go up to Observatory hill.

It’s a little bit out of the way so it has the benefit that it’s not too crowded, but it gives you some marvelous views of Sydney Harbour, particularly to the west. There’s also a delightful park that surrounds it. On top of all that there’s the Observatory itself, which is particularly interesting.


What a visit to this spot does is it really tells you a lot about getting an overall sense of Sydney.


You get an idea of the geography of Sydney , the topography, the development of the European settlements, the history of the place, and the scientific endeavors that went on in the observatory.


It is simply a gem.



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About the Podcast

Urban Ambling
Gerard Mercator was born in Flanders ( now part of Belgium ) in 1512.
It is unlikely that he ever travelled more than 100 kms from where he was born.
Despite this, he devised a projection which resulted in maps of the then known world.
The book of maps he produced was named ‘An Atlas ‘. He gave us the word. His map projection was still in use 400 years later!
We spend so much time travelling to other places that we forget there is much to see and learn in our own surroundings. There is interest and comfort in the ordinary things in our lives.
I hope these podcasts will encourage you to engage in a bit of serendipitous , and happy, ambling in your area.
Mercator.