Family time in Sydney

 

After his retirement, Uncle Steven and his wife, Auntie Polly, visit Australia almost every year to stay with their younger daughter, Gillian, in the Dee Why suburb of Sydney while she and her husband, Michael, are based here for work.

 

Family bonding over dinner in a
Chinese restaurant at Chatswood 

Uncle is particularly comfortable with being in Australia as he had a pleasant experience (many years ago!) while being based in Tasmania for training and work in the field of animal husbandry.

 

They live in USJ, Subang Jaya in Selangor, and while they often visit Johor Bahru for family events, it was timely that my stay in Sydney should coincide with when they were also here.

 

It was through careful coordination among Malcolm, Yeen, Gillian and Michael, to organize the days and times when we could arrange the meet-ups with Auntie and Uncle for food and fun.

 

Shopping at Mona Vale

This was because of the travel distance between our locations, the days when they were available to meet up, when the younger couple could drive them or when Malcolm did not have a golf appointment.

 

This was also because, like Uncle, some friends in his veterinary circle have also retired and moved to live in Sydney. As they were in touch, they often planned to meet up for chitchat over lunch.

 

And because Uncle and Auntie have grown familiar with using public transport like bus and trains, they are able to find their way around various suburbs and even into the city.

 

So, I was delighted to hear that Malcolm had arranged to meet Uncle and Auntie at our cousin’s place in Dee Why, take them out for a drive and have lunch at The Newport, a popular local watering hole in the Northern Beaches, opened since 1880.

 

Auntie Polly trying to climb a tree!

Dee Why is a lively Northern Beaches suburb with a mix of beach culture, natural beauty like the Dee Why Lagoon and a bustling town center.

 

The name Dee Why is believed to have originated from an Aboriginal name or term used by the local Dharug people. While the exact meaning of this name is being debated, some suggest that it relates to the shape of the lagoon or the call of a water bird, first appearing as Dy Beach in 1815 records by surveyor James Meehan.

 

While it was very Asian for visitors to bring some buah tangan to Auntie on a visit to their house, it was equally Asian for Auntie to prepare a snack to serve us on arrival.

 

It felt strange to be served a portion of Chwee Kueh, a Teochew steamed rice flour cake topped with toasted chai poh preserved vegetables – one of Malcolm’s favourite treats – to alas perut or line our stomachs, before we went out for lunch.

 

Signs seen on the beach in Mona Vale

From Dee Why we headed out on a drive through the suburbs in the Northern Beaches to a pub lunch at The Newport.

 

Along the way, we stopped at Mona Vale for a walkabout to see the shops and the nearby beach. On the sandy slope, two large posters were posted with firm warnings.

 

One featured an illustration of a shark with words above and below it, in capital letters that read: BEACH CLOSED – SHARK SIGHTED.

 

A bit of physical exercise after lunch at 
The Newport

The other line read as: BEACH CLOSED AT REQUEST OF DPI DUE TO RECENT SHARK ATTACKS & INCREASED ACTIVITY.

 

We paused to have a chat with two lifeguards stationed there, on the look-out as recent news reports had shared about a boy being attacked by a bull shark.

 

Our drive continued on to The Newport, a sprawling bar and restaurant. It is a popular destination – evident from the number of occupied tables – and the groups of people who preferred to stand around, sipping drinks held in their hands.

Outside Gumshara restaurant

We chose to dine alfresco in the outdoor section, seated at a corner table that overlooked grassy foliage and the lagoon beyond, dotted by yachts and luxury boats.

 

After a leisurely meal of pizza, fish & chips, and calamari washed down with beer and wine, we enjoyed a scenic drive to Barrenjoey Head, the Northern-most tip of Sydney.

 

From our vantage point that overlooked the beach, we could see the historic 1881 Barrenjoey Lighthouse, perched on Sydney’s most Northern point on Barrenjoey Head at Palm Beach.

 

It was a wonderful time of family bonding, shopping, eating and making more memories together. Our eventful day ended in a typical family way: A sit-down dinner with Gillian and Michael in a Chinese restaurant in Chatswood.

 

Bowls of ramen noodles to share at Gumshara

We made plans to meet again, to go to the city and head into Chinatown. No, it was not for anything Chinese as our mission was to savour the taste of a distinctly different ramen at Gumshara, Malcolm’s favourite ramen restaurant in all of Sydney.

 

He has raved about it for some time now so Auntie Polly reminded him that it was time we all had a taste experience of this much-talked about ramen place.

 

At peak dining hours, there was often a queue lined up to enter this restaurant but thankfully, we arrived just ahead of lunchtime and even had time to capture a photo of ourselves at the entrance.

 

Heading into Sydney's
Chinatown area

The chef at this Japanese restaurant was probably used to being observed when he was in action so he put up quite a show for me when I watched him from a distance.

 

We had a slurping good time, tasting the rich broth that was brewed into a gravy-like consistency. Aware that some diners may prefer to dilute their bowls of broth, the restaurant provides additional bowls of less concentrated broth for diners who wished to do so.

 

As Uncle and Auntie are familiar with catching the bus or train to various suburbs, we also arranged to meet them at an appointed time for outings together. However, it was always a comedy of errors trying to locate them upon arrival.

 

Auntie will tell Yeen and I that they were in front of the Starbucks or some other familiar brand name close to the train station, but very often there were several outlets of the same name in the vicinity. So with the help of (several!) mobile-phone calls, we would finally meet each other. Whew!

 

Coffee and chocolate eclairs at Hornsby mall

One recent such meet-up took us to the Hornsby suburb. Auntie recalled that she had been there before on a visit to Sydney long ago with her mother, sister and brother-in-law.

 

A smooth train ride brought us to Hornsby where we visited the sprawling malls separated by a concourse that was decorated by a central trickling fountain. It was good to see a water feature in the rising temperatures that could reach up to 40+ degrees outside.

 

In addition to the family dinner hosted at Malcolm and Yeen’s home, I am sure we will be meeting up again for more family time together in Sydney.

 

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