Sydney Metro Light Rail

It is an absolute pleasure to commute on Sydney's Metro Light Rail. It is my favourite public transport ever (after the Sydney Ferry of course which can't be beaten cruising under the Sydney Harbour Bridge and past the Opera House). The Metro Light Rail (or Tram) is environmentally friendly, quiet and efficient. Trams are spotlessly clean, fitted with flat screen TV's and run between Lilyfield and Central Station, arriving at each stop every 10-15 minutes. Best of all, the $20 a week unlimited ticket is cheaper than any Sydney bus, train or ferry pass. Vive le Light Rail!

Image: Ray's World

Trends: The Pet Economy

The pet-economy phenomena sweeping the US is huge in Australia also. We live only 10 minutes walk from Cafe Bones - an outdoors dog-friendly cafe in the middle of the Hawthorne Canal off-leash dog park on the the border of Leichhardt and Lilyfield in Sydney. The menu includes coffess and cafe food for humans, and biscuits and pupaccino's for dogs! Even our local Lilyfield Organic Farmer's Markets are in on the pet-craze with 2 dog food-only retailers with fabulous products. The Delibones Barkery sells gourmet pet treats in neat packaging, and Baliz Woof Woof sells organic dog wholefood (not dried) and assorted products.

Image: Cafe Bones

Herbies Native Australian Spices

We had to replace all our herbs when we arrived in Sydney as we couldn’t bring any over from the US, so we wandered up the road to Herbies in Rozelle which I was really impressed with. You can also buy all their spices and spice kits online and they ship internationally. I love that they also have native Aussie spices such as:

• bush tomato
  
• lemon myrtle leaf
  
• bushman's pepper pot
• native barbecue
• wattleseed
• native pepperberry
• olida forest berry
• native lemon pepper
  

Hip Products: Alchemy Cordials

Alchemy Cordials have been around for some time - I remember when they were a couple of Brisbane-based guys with a stall at the markets; but now you can buy their delightful syrups on the Alchemy Cordial website, at Coles, David Jones, and a number of gourmet purveyors all over Australia (and now internationally).

This weekend we whipped up Love Martinis - a concoction of vodka, soda water, and Love Cordial (rose and lime flavours). They went down a treat, and the lightly pink-tinted drinks would be fabulous with a sugared rose petal floating on top.

Image: Alchemy Cordials