Trip to Parramatta

One of the larger caravan and touring shows is held in Sydney with some 100 exhibitors of caravans, motor homes and camper trailers plus the same number of companies offering accessories for camping, cooking bits and pieces or “must haves” for the caravan and car. Then there were all th places to visit and their piles of information!!! Information overload soon took over and on the return flight my luggage was heavier than before.

As I have been planning for a while to look at the various options available and now with sufficient funds for such an investment it was time to make the final decision.

This time Darwin was left at a respectable time 8.00 in the morning and by 1pm we were flying over the Sydney Harbour and the Opera House landing a few minutes later at Kingsford Smith . Now it is connected by railway so it was an easy matter to walk down to the station and catch a train through to Parramatta, changing trains at Central Station.

Parramatta now has redeveloped itself and with a large station and clean city area it is a lot different from what it was some 40 years ago. Parramatta started off as a country retreat for the early governors and as the main food growing area with the first farm being established here in 1788 when the First Fleet arrived and fertile land was found here. Now it is a mid suburb of Sydney.

The weather here was variable the whole time, overcast sometimes then showery but at least it didn’t rain when ever I was in the open so after catching the free local bus which runs around the main areas of the city and checking in at the hotel, it was time for a walk around the area.

View from hotel looking down Church Street	Parramatta River and the Riverside theatre complex

The hotel is in Church Street by the Lennox Bridge which was built in 1839 replacing an earlier bridge built in 1802. Convicts built the bridge as well as the Wharf on the Parramatta River which gave the local Rugby team their name Eels from the abundance of eels which used to live in the river, provide good drinking water and was the main method of transport for many years. Opposite the hotel is the Prince Alfred Park which was home to the first goal and also the Female Factory (a home and work place for female convicts). Further downstream are the remains of the Female Orphan School. Now this area is surrounded by the St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Kings School and the Riverside Theatres.

Church Street shops from the bridge	Looking downstream from the Church Street bridge

Church Street was also home to a wide selection of restaurants reflecting the population mix of the area, Lebanese, Italian, Greek, Chinese, Indian, Vietnamese and Australian so deciding where to eat was a problem!! No photos were taken of the food but it all was good!! Many of the eating places had outdoor eating areas under cover but it was too cold there for me!

The next few days were spent at the Rosehill Racecourse which was one of the few places large enough to host a show of this size. Catching the bus there was not a problem and the Sikh driver was courteous enough to get out of the bus at the stop I was to get off at and show me the way. Previously to that he had been scolded (in fun) by another Indian as he could not speak his mother tongue. So the Chinese are not the only race with this problem!!

Each day I took a slightly different path to the Racecourse just to see the houses. While they were all established, most seemed to have been built 1900 to 1920 with later additions dotted throughout; their gardens in most cases were very basic or non existent even though the area could not be classified as being shabby or run down. There were a couple of larger houses well looked after with pleasant surroundings but that’s all.

In one street, there is Elizabeth Farm which was the home of Elizabeth and John Macarthur, pioneers of the Australian wool industry. The house is set in an 1830s style garden and the farm is the oldest European building in Australia. It is open to the public and gives an intimate experience of 19^th Century domestic life.

The Elizabeth Farm	Hambledon cottage

Nearby is the Hambledon Cottage which was built for the Governess for John Macarthur’s children.

At the show the first area consisted of caravans of all sizes and setups but while they are more comfortable and easily setup if necessary, they are a lot bigger and more expensive to tow and to store. There were some innovative designs as some had foldouts where the ends fold down and a double bed appears. Most were outside my price bracket and type of travelling I plan to do. Next on the list were the motor homes which ranged from the converted vans which can sleep 2 up to the 35 foot luxury homes which require a truck licence to drive and a lot of caravan parks cannot accommodate them due to their size. Their price also reflects their size and fitout being more than an average house. One model even had a garage built in to the back where a small car can be slid in and then used at your next stop instead of driving around in a truck. There were also models between the small vans and the large trucks. They were also out of my price bracket.

In this area were also the 5^th wheelers. These are like the horse floats in design in that the rear portion is not connected by a tow bar but rests on the tray of the towing vehicle.

General view over some of the caravans	A medium size mobile home – still only sleeps 2

So I went to the other end of the grounds and there on display were the roof top campers where the bed is on top of the roof and it drops down behind the rear door for a small living area. Handy when you are in areas where there are crocodiles, as you are not sleeping on the ground. A lot cheaper but only suited for 2 people and not for long trips. Then it was up to the camper trailers of which there were a wide range on offer. They are more compact, easier to tow and ranged from the basic of basically a tent on top of a trailer to models which had solar panels for charging your batteries, water purification systems, additional rooms and large kitchens. All had canvas sides and roof, and folded out from a trailer, in some the roof of the trailer flipped over to become the floor, others had a soft canvas floor. Their main disadvantage was that some models could take a while to set up as they had an annex where you would do the cooking and the bed was on top of the trailer and so was fairly high off the ground and a ladder was needed to get into it. A problem I could see for an elderly lady in the middle of the night. Prices varied a lot due to the quality and extras. After a couple of days of seeing the different one I settled on a Cub Supamatic of which some photos will be posted once it is picked up.

A roof top camper	Camper trailers

Sleeping area inside a camper trailer	Another camper trailer folded up

Other attractions were also the multitude of accessories that are available for camping then there were all the tourist brochures from the different areas touting their wares so after a while I was carrying around a heavy load of information. In the meeting rooms there were also seminars on all day on different topics but I just didn’t have time to get around and listen to them.

Smaller off road caravans	Tents on display

On the last day I did a walk around the city area and over to Parramatta Park and the old Government House and the ornate gate house. Originally there was a redoubt (fortified camp) here until more substantial buildings were erected. The road to the house was originally as a grand avenue from the landing place on the river to Government House which was in marked contrast to the roads then in Sydney Cove.

Across from the park is the Woolpack Hotel, which is one of the earliest hotels though it has shifted location over the years.

Headmaster's residence Catholic college	Catholic Cathedral
Church of England Cathedral	Exercise time in the square

By the railway station is the Church of England Cathedral after which Church Street was named but now this part forms a mall. The area was used by a large group practising their ti chi exercises in the morning sun. The main shopping centre was in a multi-storeyed complex across from the railway station and surrounding it were another bevy of restaurants. Then it was train back to the airport and back home.

 

Old Government House	Side view of Government House