NAKED CITY: FAMILY FREELOADING IN THE SCHOOL HOLS!
Some time ago we presented a guide to Sydney’s free attractions like crashing an art gallery opening for the free wine and finger food or scoring your gratis copy of the SMH at the Opera House box office. Now with the school holidays looming and the dollar in short supply we have been asked to prepare a similar guide for families looking for that day out with the kids on a budget. Here are just a few penny pinching suggestions …
WILD LIFE SAFARI: A family pass to Sydney Wildlife World or Taronga Park can be rather pricey but at the Sydney Botanic Gardens there are enough resident critters to have even David Attenborough salivating. The kids will love the bats and the white cockatoos but the real fun comes with half a loaf of stale bread and hours of eel feeding at the big duck pond. The voracious eels will just keep coming back for more and there’s real drama when an unsuspecting duck gets in the way and loses a foot in the feeding frenzy.
FREE 3D MOVIES: An afternoon at the movies or IMAX can bankrupt a small family these days but what about a Gold Class seat at your local department store. Most of the big electronic retailers have huge 3D flat screens on display and if you look like you are buying they will gladly put on a feature for the kids to enjoy. Plonk them down for a couple of hours with a bag of boiled lollies from Bi-Lo and you can escape to the nearby pub or coffee shop.
THE BOURKE STREET WILD MOUSE: Luna Park is still just for fun but not always the case when the kids want multiple tickets for the Rotor and Ferris Wheel. Take a trip to Woolloomooloo and grab one of the numerous shopping trolleys that litter the streets of this colorful suburb. Beginning at William Street there’s a great downhill slope on the Bourke Street cycle path and the kids will go crazy as you propel them at speed with not a cyclist in sight to spoil a truly exhilarating ride. Just keep your eyes posted for the occasional backpacker, scouting the dealerships for a cut rate Kombi or you could have a public liability disaster on your hands. Maybe not such a good idea after all!
MACCAS AT MACDONALDTOWN: After hours tramping around the city the kids will soon be demanding a visit to the dreaded Colden Arches but there is a simple solution to shelling out at Maccas. You are off to ‘Macdonaldtown’ and the name itself conjurs a utopian world where multiple Ronald McDonalds roam the streets handing out free happy meals and french fries. The kids’ initial disappointment will soon be compensated when you dish out the Spam sandwiches cunningly disguised in old Maccas boxes and there are hours of fun to be had watching packed peak hour trains whizzing backwards and forwards past Macdonaldtown Station.
THE HOT LIST: Texas Chainsaw Trivia rounds off the year at the Darlo Bar in Darlinghurst on Wed 21 December from 7.30pm with its annual Christmas Special featuring Miss Death’s amazing modern day pop culture nativity scene (which one lucky punter will win). Details at www.mumeson.org
