Sophie Pusz lives in Potts Point with her partner, a fellow bookseller. Between them they have the perfect amount of books (hundreds) and teapots (nine). Sophie’s book reviews can be seen online at www.girlbooker.blogspot.com

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Sydney is a difficult place to love. I first moved to Sydney eight years ago, semi-reluctantly. I struggled for a long time to feel at home in what I found to be a very unfriendly cityscape. I remember feeling psychologically attacked by: the noise, the traffic, the stony-faced people, and the hopelessly confusing and unreliable public transport. I had to learn to build a shield against those things, and to discover the single most important secret to unlocking Sydney’s heart: It is not so much a single city as a collection point of rag-tag country towns. Each suburb or area has its own distinct vibe, and the locals are fiercely loyal to their particular patch.

Once you have unlocked this little nugget, everything changes. You suddenly find that you belong somewhere, and you can give up the utterly-impossible-to-attain notion of being from “Sydney”. Instead, you are from “The Inner West” or “The Eastern Suburbs” or “The North Shore”. This brings with it a sense of intimate, meaningful belonging; a sense of ownership. As soon as you realise when you are on home turf, you begin to behave accordingly, and are subsequently treated as one of the tribe. Suddenly everybody is your new best friend!

I learnt to think small in order to love large. My personal Sydney is a patchwork of objects, memories, sounds and smells. Sydney is the smell of melting butter on toasted seeded rye bread, and the metallic tang of the old rattling train carriages with the sticky pleather seats. It is the delightfully dappled shade from huge plane trees in Surry Hills or Potts Point, the trip across the fresh and glinting harbour in a ferry, and the taste of mild Pad Thai, steaming Chinese dumplings and freshly made Syrian dips.

Sydders isn’t perfect: Adelaide has a superlative writers’ festival, Melbourne generally has better coffee, and I hear places like Paris and New York have one or two things going for them that Sydney lacks. Nevertheless, with all her flaws and flourishes, difficult to love as she is, Sydney is my town.

Ilse is a wedding and travel photographer, originally from Belgium and now based in Sydney.
Our shoot took place in The Rocks, where I photographed Ilse with her husband Bram.
Ilse’s beautiful work and distinctive style can be found at Jilske Photography.

Free as a bird.

I always dreamt about living abroad. Not that the grass is greener on the other side – it’s probably greenest in Belgium, where it always rains. But I wanted to see more. Experience different cultures. Expand my horizon.

So one day I leapt. All the way to Sydney, Australia. And I learned a lesson for life.

“Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath of life. What would a man not pay for living?”
- Mahatma Gandhi

And what do we pay for NOT living? For being afraid to be what we are. To be free. There’s nothing easier than to dream. But for every dream we come up with countless excuses to not live it.

It really is as simple as:
Close your eyes.
Spread your arms.
Jump.
Be free.

What’s the worst that could happen? Really. Think about it. And then widen your perspective. Who cares about mistakes or perfection. There are lessons waiting to be learned.

Get to know your dreams. And get to know your fears even better. Exposing yourself to them will make you realize nothing can clip your wings – as long as you have dreams. Just close your eyes…

I lived in Grosvenor Street in Bondi Junction for three years in the mid-70s while I was a student at Sydney College of the Arts. I had two rooms at the back of Number 49, on the top floor. It was the first place I lived on my own and I loved it. What is now Westfield’s huge shopping centre was being constructed up the road when I moved in, and the trains were yet to arrive. Many of the old houses near the shopping centre were boarded up. Now most of the terraces are expensively renovated and many of the laneways are cut off by the railway parking areas.

I grew up in Byron Bay and couldn’t wait to move to Sydney – it’s been a popular destination for my family – my mother and, earlier, her mother worked in the inner city when they were young and my daughter lived in Newtown for a year after school. My father also lived in Sydney for a couple of years just after World War II while at the National Art School. I wish I’d asked him where he lived. The first of my ancestors here arrived as a convict on the First Fleet and the rest turned up as economic refugees, queue jumpers and illegals before those labels started being applied.

I spent another 17 years living back in Byron Bay while my children were growing up and then moved back to Sydney a year ago – now I’m closer to the city. But eight years ago when I was in Sydney on a visit I retraced my steps to the Bondi pub where I’d worked as a student, and this street, which was so much a part of my first years here. Catching a train back to the city I ran into a former lover, a man who had emigrated only a couple of decades before. This is what I wrote then about that day:

Eastern suburbs line

I’d made my pilgrimage to Bondi
but I couldn’t find the public bar
it was new and quiet
My Saturdays were full of drunks and fights
back then, but that was gone
and so I drank a solitary toast to moving on

I knew the bus route though
and back in Bondi Junction
wandered in the early dark
down to number 49
all brightly lit and no one there
A thousand times I’d made that journey home

But if I’d climbed the renovated stairs
back to my past
I’d hold that nineteen year old girl
the way I hold my daughter
and tell her what I know at last
but would she want to hear?

Or perhaps I’d slide back through the years
and from my two back rooms (share bath)
count coins for next day’s food and fares
while Lori and her son below cooked tea
And later, very late
Ken would stagger to his door across the stairs

And so the ghosts were with me on the train
and it was no surprise that you were too
But Sydney’s blood is in my bones
two hundred years before you came
and whatever I remember
nothing, nothing stays the same

Joanne is one half of the creative project Sparkapolooza, and one whole of the blog Jodeska. These photos were the result of trekking through both mud and a broken window to explore the amazing Glebe Tram Sheds.

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Sydney is a funny place.

For one, it seems many people in Sydney, aren’t actually “from” Sydney. When you do come across someone who was born in Sydney, it’s always a tad disappointing.

Me? I was born in Newcastle. That’s another funny place too, but perhaps not one to write home about (although it did make one of the top places in the world to live in).

Standing on George Street one Saturday night, on what must be the busiest street in Sydney, which must be the busiest city in Australia, I thought to myself “is this it?”. At the time I thought it was. Fast forward a couple of years later, a move to a Vietnam for work, and another move home and it dawned on me. Sydney is bloody awesome.

As a result, taa daa! My undefinitive guide to things about Sydney you don’t realise until you leave:

• There’s lots to do – really, I’m never at a loss for places to go or things to see. Sometimes there’s even too much. A gazillion arts and film festivals, bands on every night, a new restaurant every week and what feels like 101 free public spaces and events. Anyone who complains there isn’t enough to do isn’t looking hard enough.
• There IS a lot of space. Personal space, public space, you name it. Many years ago while I was working in Darling Harbour this was something many tourists commented on. You don’t quite appreciate the stillness of walking down an empty street until you’re surrounded by at least 100 other people every moment of the day.
• Sydney is its own little bubble. Big enough to pretend we’re the coolest city in the world, yet small enough to see that random person yet again. It’s kinda nice don’t you think?
• We’re completely spoilt- we have the best of every culture and food there is. Sometimes even better then the home country. Oh, then there’s welfare and medicare…

Samantha is Director of Blue Label Life. Playing cupid on a daily basis, her mission is to help people connect and find true love.

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What Curl Curl beach means to me…

Curl Curl is a special part of the world to me – it’s so natural, a beautiful escape from the rush of the city.

I spend hours on end watching the surf crashing on the sand, surfers catching waves and families play. I love to swim in the fresh sea, kayak with my husband and spend summer nights at the surf club with good food and wine. I love playing with my dogs in this special paradise before I start each working day, and if I’m lucky watching pod’s dolphins in the surf break.

When I need quiet time and some inspiration I love to sit on the rocks. It feels as though I’m on the edge of the world. When I look out to the horizon I gain strength, clarity, it’s such a great meditation.

It is at my most peaceful moment, when I am most tranquil that I play cupid best. I can’t tell you how many times the penny has dropped and the perfect couple come to me all while sitting in silence listening to the ocean and embracing my surroundings.  Having balance and inner peace allows me to help others and be a good matchmaker.

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Can I share a not-so-secret with you? I LOVE Sydney!

Its beautiful beaches! Its exquisite, multi-cultural cuisine! Its fantastically friendly residents and of course, its stunning HARBOUR!

I moved to Australia from New Zealand 11 years ago and although New Zealand has its own unique and exquisite charm, ever since, Sydney has always felt like my home, and The Northern Beaches is undoubtedly my favourite area of this glorious city.

Sure, it’s only approximately a 45-minute drive away from the main CBD, but life seems to move at a charmingly slower pace on The Northern Beaches. Is it because we’re nestled amid the ocean? Who knows! People here definitely have a reputation for being infinitely more down-to-earth though, and with a quick glimpse at our surroundings, I guess it’s not impossible to understand why – it’s GORGEOUS here! What could anyone have to complain about?

The Inner West of Sydney is where Maree lives, and Piccolo’s in Rozelle is her second home. The café is her ‘port in a storm’, as it is for many others whom have found partners, new friends and a supportive network.  John and his team of wonderful crazies create a fun environment for anyone who walks into the place. John and Alberto, his talented barista deliver consistently the best coffee in the whole world; come and see for yourself www.piccolosespressobar.com .

The Balmain/Rozelle peninsula is called ‘the island’ by locals and they will tell you; ‘there is no need to go anywhere else in Sydney as we have it all right here’.  And why would you when this community fosters such a friendly belonging which once experienced you never ever want to leave.

Maree is a jack of all trades; a born organiser, managing projects such as dropping a banner to cover the entire coca cola sign in Kings Cross for the City to Surf, to building Boeing’s Corporate Chalet at Melbourne’s Airshow and this year managing the International Quorum Motion Picture Producers annual 2011 conference in Sydney.

In 2010 Maree wrote a play that was shortlisted for the largest 10 minute play festival in the world, Short and Sweet www.shortandsweet.org. Her play ‘What goes around twice’ won the people’s choice award in a heat at Newtown Theatre in January 2011. Now Maree’s love for playwriting has created a playwriting monster and she has immersed herself into the Theatre culture.

Sally Thompson is the owner of Blushing Blooms floral studio in Sydney’s Glenhaven. Sally’s blog is a rich collection of floral designs, wedding inspiration and amazing and beautiful work from her own team and florist-friends from around the world.

We met at Sydney Flower Market, in the suburb of Flemington, for our early morning shoot.

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The frenetic excitement of the markets makes me feel alive.

It’s here, more than anywhere that I feel like a Sydney-sider. That I belong somewhere, that I’m part of a real community. Being swept into this crazy, eccentric tribe makes me feel connected and intertwined with something so much bigger than me. Something richly diverse; something organic, friendly, richly inspiring, dirty yet beautiful.

I always knew I was not destined for a desk. As a creative type I wanted to work with my hands, to be with people and to immerse myself in a wash of colour and design. From the moment I began floristry I was hooked. I fell in love, hopelessly head-over-heels, devoted. Smitten. And today, with the launch of my own business I have commenced this love affair once again. More passionately and intensely than ever before.

The markets have an infectious energy, a spirit that makes you walk a little faster, your heart race a little quicker and your appreciation for nature and all her beauty unfurl once again. Even on the coldest days when the morning is still dark and the air is so cold it slaps your cheeks red I experience the giddying thrill of this chaotic, busy place.

I love old men with gnarled hands and leathered skin selling blooms they have long and gently tendered, I celebrate the shocking sea of colour and nature’s texture and I happily drown in the hustling and bustling pace of the market.

Week after week, season in and out – always the same, but every day different. As I walk, my arms ache laden vastly with blooms, the rich perfume of a million flowers bites deep in my nose. Scent-numbingly intoxicating. Over my bounty I smile at my peers.

This place that closes before most of Sydney has risen. This is my home.

[click image to be taken to gallery]

Sacha is a life coach who coaches business owners, senior executives and working professionals throughout Australia to create success, balance and fulfilment in their lives. She is author of the forthcoming book ‘De-stress Your Success: Get More of What You Want with Less Time, Stress and Effort’, is a blogger for Yahoo!7 Lifestyle, and mentors other coaches through the Life Coaching Academy of Australia.

She can be found online at:

www.activ8change.com.au
www.de-stressyoursuccess.com

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Life is….

I believe, life is meant to be lived to the full, on purpose, and in gratitude.

What do you believe life is about?

Through my business, I’m fortunate enough to work with many people from all walks of life. I’ve noticed that the key underlying need for us all, no matter what we think we are trying to achieve, is simple: to be happy. The missing ingredient, however, seems to be that most of us are looking for something first in order to “get there” and finally realise happiness and bliss.

For me, it took years of trying to be a “successful business owner”—the person I thought I had to be in order to have what I thought I wanted, and hence be happy. I never felt confident enough, outgoing enough or savvy enough to make my dreams come true. Ironically, what I discovered in the process was that by letting go of trying to be this I actually developed a natural sense of solid self-acceptance and self-love, which in turn fuelled my self-confidence.

No more trying, just being. And a deep sense of happiness and contentment unveiled itself!

How did I make this transition? I stopped trying to define myself as something I had to live up to, I let go of telling myself some rule about what it took to be successful, I refused to look at others to see what they were doing to make sure I was keeping up and I focused intently on gaining greater presence in my life. I let my action be driven by my natural motivation, flow, intuition and strengths, rather than pushing all the time at the world trying to make things happen a certain way.

Finding this place of truth for me has resulted in a renewed ability to open my heart to others, to feel at ease in my life and to take action without fear toward my goals. In my business I’m better able to serve others and help them be happy and successful, whatever that means to them.

Does any of this resonate with you?

My mission in life is to help others to achieve that elusive work life balance, while also being successful at a career they love—to be more effective in what they do because they no longer need to please, do not need to do everything themselves and are free to step into who they really are. To teach them stress management skills that enable them to be more present in their lives, less worried and to live a healthy existence.

How are you living your life?

Without having met you, there is one thing I know… that you were put on this planet to excel, to grow, to prosper. Flow with the wind and be all you can. That way when you look back on your life you will see the beautiful difference you have made to this planet. The world will be better for you having lived and breathed.

You are unique, special, different. Not one soul roaming this planet can touch another the way you do. Take it from me—you can make a difference. Not by making some outlandish wild result never created before. Simply by being you and using those qualities that embody who you are and make others shine brighter within themselves in your presence.

It is time to step forth and claim your dues. This planet rewards action, choice and freedom of purpose. Know it to be true and engage with it fully. Devour this life, envelope your existence and reap the rewards!

But first you must surrender. For it is in surrendering your old warn out ways that you free yourself to reap success beyond anything you’ve experienced before. Success that is effortless. Success that is free.

Just a thought…

Enjoy the journey,

Sacha Crouch

Author and Coach

www.de-stressyoursuccess.com

www.activ8change.com.au