Sydney Vivid is an annual festival of light, art, and culture that brings bizarre creatures, colourful works of art, and tens of thousands of tourists to the city in winter – a season that would normally be particularly quiet. The art exhibition component of the festival makes imaginative use of open spaces, parks, and building facades to turn the Circular Quay area, from the Opera House, around to the Rocks, into a gigantic open-air art gallery that turns on a spectacular show as soon as the sunsets.

The sails of The Opera House, which is spectacular by itself (all praise Joern Utzon), come alive with massive animated projections that vary from year to year. This year we see the sails luffing in the wind and a young lady lolling about on them. Customs House is particularly amazing when you look at how accurately the project aligns with the columns, ledges, and windows of the building. The animations are amusing and wonderful.

But Sydney Vivid is more than just a colourful art display, it includes the Sydney Film Festival, film workshops, talks, plays, and live bands.

As a method of attracting tourists, it is a raging success. But it is much more than that. It brightens the image and lifts the spirits of a city that has a reputation for having a spectacular coastline, but being culturally dull, compared to its cousin down south.

The festival runs from May 24 to June 15 every year and overlaps with the Sydney Film Festival which runs from June 6 – 17, making early June a great time to visit Sydney if you want to get away for a week or a few days, but avoid the tourist season crowds, heat, and prices. Sydney Vivid 2020 has been canceled due to Corona Pandemic.

Featured image credit: Daniel Boud

If you live in Sydney or are visiting Sydney from overseas, Canberra is a weekend destination that is very close, often overlooked, but surprising. Canberra, the capital city of Australia only 2.5 hours drive from Sydney by motorway, is a pretty, elegant, purpose-built city that contains a wealth of live shows, museums, libraries, interesting tours, and surprising weekend destination nightlife. We went to see the Inca Gold exhibition at the National Gallery but found a city that we could return to again and again any time we wanted to get away from Sydney for a weekend.

As it was, the Inca exhibition was the only thing we had time to see in the National Gallery but would love to return to see the regular art exhibitions there, as well as the many other interesting attractions.

A few other things to do in Canberra include:

– National Museum
– War Museum (Australian War Memorial)
– Canberra Museum and Gallery
– Questacon science museum
– Tour of old parliament house
– New parliament house
– National Portrait Gallery
– Australian Botanic Gardens
– National Film and Sound Archive
– Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve
– National Library
– Black Mountain Tower
– National Dinosaur Museum
– Commonwealth Park
– National Arboretum
– Big Splash Water Park
– Canberra Casino
– Canberra Glassworks
– Mount Stromlo Observatory
– Mount Ainslie Lookout
– Australian Museum of Democracy
– Namadgi National Park
– Deep Space Communications Complex, Tidbinbilla (remember Apollo 11?)
– National Zoo and Aquarium (privately owned)
– National Archives

Weather in Canberra

The weather in Canberra is searingly hot in Summer and below zero in Winter. My preference is to go in Autumn, Winter, and Spring because if it’s cold, you can always just put on a warm coat. If it’s a seriously hot day with hot nights, you won’t want to be outside at all and are better off going to one of the millions of beaches in and around Sydney, Kiama, or the Central Coast. We went on a weekend that was neither warm nor cold, but a bit rainy. A light coat and an umbrella were all we needed.

Canberra is compact and well designed for getting around. Most of the galleries and museums are congregated around Parliament House, which is only 1 kilometer from the city centre, where all the nightlife is. It’s preferable to have a car, but on a nice day, you can hire a bike and cycle around Lake Burley Griffin and visit the various attractions. Most hotels will be only 1 or 2 km from the city centre, so when going out at night you can walk or catch a bus or taxi. Hotels in Canberra are not expensive and are of very high quality.

Adina Serviced Apartments Canberra Dickson

The Adina Serviced Apartments is new and amazingly up-market, stylish, and comfortable. We had a stunning 1-bedroom apartment that was enormous, roomy, and comfortable, with a full-size lounge room, plus dining room with table and seating for 6, a full-sized, well-equipped kitchen, large, attractive, en-suite bathroom. The styling is ultra-modern, with clean lines, lots of white, very attractive and comfortable furniture, and a fabulously comfortable king-size bed. The reception staff was very courteous and helpful. They also will provide a free shuttle service to the city during the day and night.

Unfortunately, we didn’t find out about that until the day after we walked 30 minutes to the city centre. They also have a great rainforest bar under a towering canopy. Nice spot to have a quiet drink in any weather. The only minus I would give the hotel is the lack of breakfast options and lack of coffee. On Saturday morning we slept in and found that the coffee shop was closed at 10:00 am and there was no way to get a cup of coffee until we got into the city centre, by which time I was dying for bacon and eggs and coffee (and eventually found it after walking around the area).

Also, the breakfast options are extremely limited at the hotel, which is just a small breakfast counter where you can buy toasted focaccia or bacon and egg roll. Quite strangely limited and primitive compared to the rest of this wonderful hotel. Apart from the limited breakfast and coffee options, I would highly recommend the Aria Hotel and will definitely stay there again.

What can you do if you are a nightlife lover

Friday night we went to the Monkey Bar near Petrie Plaza for their regular Latin music night. If you are into Latin music and dance, I highly recommend it, but don’t bother getting there before 10:00 pm because you be the only person there besides a couple of bored bar staff. There are many nice restaurants and bars a short walk from the Monkey Bar, so have dinner first. There is even a Guzman y Gomez across the road for a substantial Mexican meal.

You can visit a Bar

Saturday night we checked out an interesting bar called “Cube “, at 33 Petrie Plaza, that is promoted as being a gay bar, but the gays there were very much in a minority. The music is a regular raunchy night club style, and the passing parade of unusual characters is interesting. If you like something funky, off-beat, unusual and totally “out there”, then The Cube nightclub is definitely somewhere to go on a Saturday night. Check out the cage and the cave in the corner.

So, if you are based in Sydney, there is always something to do for a weekend, just a couple of hours drive away in Canberra – especially in cooler weather.

Gujarat boasts the honor of having the longest coastline of the country. With the fact, you can assume the surreal charm of the sandy beaches of Gujarat. The beauty of Gujarat is that, unlike other states, it is equally famous for its modern-age vibrancy as it is for its culture, traditions, history, architecture, and wildlife. When you refer to the term ‘modern-age vibrancy’, no other places of Gujarat can be a better example of it than the sultry beaches of the state. There are unnumbered of beaches in Gujarat. Out of which, here are some you can’t afford to miss out. Have a look at the list.

1. Mandvi Beach

Worldwide known for its beautiful coastline and pristine water, Mandvi beach is the most enticing beach in Gujarat. If you want to go for a long walk talking with your soul, the coastline of Mandvi beach is an ideal place for you. The irresistible fascination of Mandvi beach can give a hard run to the sultry beaches of Goa. It is one of the most popular beaches in Gujarat, so it is obviously heaven for water sports activities. As the beach has a long shoreline and is surrounded by the trees, it is also an amazing picnic spot. Mandvi beach is 370 km from Ahmedabad, so you can easily reach there.

2. Nagoa beach

Attracting the millions of tourists, Nagoa beach is one of the most loved tourist destinations in Diu. The island Diu is dotted with the unnumbered of beaches but Nagoa beach steals all the limelight. The reason being, it is the most pristine as well as the safest beach in Diu. It stretches in a vast area, so reveling yourself in the water sports activities is indeed fun here. As far as your sight can reach, you’ll see only and only sun-kissed sand of the coastline and the verdant trees who act as the safeguard to the beach. It is exactly located in Bucharwada village, so you would need to hire taxis and auto from Diu to get there.

3. Dwarka Beach

In the royal kingdom of Lord Shree Krishna, Dwarka beach has its own charm and charisma. Even being in such a religious city, Dwarka beach entices each and every tourist coming to the city. The beach is located 30 km from Dwarka in a captivating island ‘Beyt’ that’s why it is also called Beyt Dwarka Beach. Apart from the various water sports activities, you can also relish the pleasure of camel riding in Dwarka Beach. Dwarka Beach is the ideal beach in Gujarat if you’re going with your family.

4. Chorwad Beach

Located in the royal town of Chorwad, Chorwad beach stands along with the majesty of the royal palace of the town. This region was once the private holiday retreat of Junagadh’s Nawab but now it has become a major tourist attraction in Gujarat. Situated proximate to Junagadh, Somnath, and Dwarka, it also serves as a gateway to some other tourist attractions of the state. Amid the gentle waves of water, you can go for any sports activity but the beach is primarily known for boat riding. So, go on an hour-long boat ride in Chorwad beach and let your soul listen to your heartstrings.

5. Gopnath Beach

I must say the Maharajas of Gujarat have relished the pleasure of royal stateliness at its best. Possessing your own private beach is indeed a big thing. Located in the Bhavnagar district of Gujarat, Gopnath beach was once a part of the summer resort of Maharaja Krishna Kumar Singhji. Maybe, that’s why even today, Gopnath beach is one of the most pristine beaches in Gujarat. Like other beaches, water sports activities are available here too but bird-watching is the most loved activity in Gopnath beach. Just next to Gopnath beach, there is a temple named ‘Gopnath Mahadev temple’. Don’t forget to visit this temple.

6. Tithal Beach

It’s the beaches like Tithal beach that makes Gujarat an ideal destination for the beach holidays. Lying in Valsad town, Surat, in the long stretch of Arabian Sea, Tithal beach is one of its kind. Unlike other beaches, the coastline of Tithal beach entices the visitors for its black sand. The water is also a bit yellowish but you can indulge yourself in the water sports activities without any worries. It’s the natural color of the water of Tithal beach and there is nothing unhygienic about it.  Due to its ease of accessibility and exceptional charm, the beach is often thronged by the locals as well as the tourists.

7. Somnath Beach

One of the most religious cities of Gujarat is making a spot on the list of must-visit beaches of the state. This is the splendor of Gujarat. Here, spirituality and the vibrancy stand side by side without affecting the glory of each other. It is always brimmed with the visitors still, there is something in Somnath beach that makes the visitors get lost in their own world. Be it the lovebirds or the broken hearts or maybe a depressed person, the soothing tranquility and startling surroundings of Somnath beach turn out to be the soul mate for every visitor.

Conclusion

These are a few must-visit beaches in Gujarat. In the state of majestic forts and palace, these beaches exude a different façade of tourism which can only be explored after reaching there. So, put all worries aside and go for the soothing holiday experience in Gujarat.