JaneyAnne

Clovelly is a beachside suburb of Sydney, situated 8 kilometres south east of the GPO in the Eastern Suburbs and the local government area of the City of Randwick. It is bounded on the north by Bronte, on the east by the Pacific Ocean, Randwick to the west and Coogee to the south. It has a population just over 4,300, 21% of whom are under 18 and 13% are over 60.

The area was settled in the 1830s and named after the village of Clovelly in Devon, England.

The suburb has a village atmosphere with a small shopping centre. The beach is quiet and suitable for most. The baths have been heritage listed. The Clovelly Surf Life Saving Club was founded in 1906 making is one of the first SLSCs in the world. The beach is a popular SCUBA diving site and many people enjoy snorkelling in the area. Near the beach is a nice park with play facilities for children.

Houses are not cheap averaging about $1,600,000. There are two primary schools in the suburb, one government and one Catholic. Older children need to travel to neighbouring suburbs for school.

It is serviced by regular buses to the city and larger commercial suburbs such as Bondi Junction.

Clovelly is a nice quiet beachside suburb.

Bronte is a beachside suburb of Sydney, 8 kilometres east of the CBD, in the local government area of Waverley Council and part of the Eastern Suburbs. Its population is just over 6,000 with 25% under 18 and 14 % over 60.

Bronte has been settled since the 1830’s. There are quite a few historic buildings in the area with many varied architectural styles. The Bronte Surf Life Saving Club was founded in 1903 and is the oldest SLSC in the world. Every year there is a long distance swimming race between Bondi Beach and Bronte.

Its commercial district is unique. The only business premises are restaurants – there is no other type of shop. The residents have to travel just to buy their bread and milk! Houses in the area come with quite a hefty price tag.

Bronte’s most recent claim to fame is that in the 2008 Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Suburbs Guide it was voted the best out of 641! It therefore really must have something!

There is one public primary school in the suburb. Older children need to travel to neighbouring suburbs to go to school – not that anything is really very far from Bronte.

Bronte is for those who love the beach and the lifestyle that goes with it.

The suburb of Bondi is in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney and is located 7 kilometres east of the CBD in the local government area of Waverley Council. It is bounded by Bondi Beach to the East, Tamarama, Bronte and Waverley to the South, Bondi Junction to the west and North Bondi to the north. It has a population of about 9,200, 14½% of whom are under 18 and 27% of whom are over 60.

It is mainly a residential suburb with mostly high and medium density housing. There is a shopping strip along Bondi Road but the neighbouring commercial suburb of Bondi Junction would be the place where most residents do their shopping.

The schools in the suburb are the Bondi Public for primary school kids and a Montessori School for preschool and primary children. Older children would need to travel to neighbouring suburbs for school.

Being quite an old area there are many historic buildings in different architectural styles – Victorian terraces, Federation buildings, etc.

Bondi is home to the Waverley Rugby Union Club which has a team competing in the New South Wales Suburban Rugby Union Competition.

Bondi is a nice suburb nestled between the busier centres of Bondi Beach and Bondi Junction.

Bondi Junction is located in the eastern suburbs of Sydney 6 kilometres east of the CBD. It is in the local government area of Waverley Council with a population of just over 8, 000, 14% of whom are under 18, and 20% of whom are over 60.

It is a large commercial and shopping centre, being the fifth largest in Sydney. It is part of the Eastern Suburbs Railway Line and has a large bus interchange – making access very easy. The Westfield Bondi Junction centre, completed in 2004, is enormous with exclusive shops and a large restaurant area.

Housing in the area is mainly high density, especially around the business district. There are residential apartments built above shopping complexes and the bus interchange. Away from the business area there are single dwellings – many of which are in the older style.

The only school for children in the area is the independent private school, Reddam House, which caters for children from years 10 to 12. It does have another campus for younger children in nearby Woollahra. Primary school children and other high school children need to travel to go to school to neighbouring suburbs.

Bondi Junction – a happening place to live where you can work and play!

The suburb of Randwick is in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, 6 kilometres south east of the CBD. It is the administrative centre for the local government area of the City of Randwick. It has a large population of over 26,500, 16% of whom are under 18 and 16% of whom are over 60.

It is probably best known for the Royal Randwick Racecourse, Australia’s first horseracing venue, opening in the 1830’s. It is a very fashionable place to be seen especially during the Spring Racing Carnival.

Randwick has a good shopping centre with many restaurants and a cinema complex. There are lots of pubs and tourists are well catered for with differing levels of accommodation. It is not hard to find something to do in Randwick.

It also has quite a lot of historic buildings that are on the Register of the National Estate. It is home to some of the main hospitals of Sydney – the Prince of Wales Hospital, the Royal Hospital for Women, Prince Henry Hospital and the Sydney Children’s Hospital.

Buses provide efficient public transport. Kids are well catered for with numerous public and private schools.

If you can’t find what you are after in Randwick it doesn’t exist!

Beautiful Bellevue Hill is an affluent residential suburb of Sydney, 5 kilometres east of the CBD in Woollahra Council. It has a population of about 9,200 of whom 22% are under 18 and 17% are over 60.

Many of the streets are tree lined and there is quite a large bushland area in Cooper Park. Dwellings are not cheap – you will not find many for sale under $2,000,000.

There is a large Jewish population in Bellevue Hill – nearly 25% of residents.

Bellevue Hill is home to two very prestigious boys’ private schools. They are Scots College, a Presbyterian school established in 1893 and the Cranbrook School, an Anglican school founded in 1918. There is also the Bellevue Hill Primary School of which my mother has very fond memories, having attended as a pupil.

There is a small shopping centre in the suburb but most people do their shopping in nearby Bondi Junction or Double Bay.

Bus transport is efficient and regular. It is just a short ride into the city or to surrounding shopping centres.

Should I have the opportunity and the money, Bellevue Hill would be my choice as the place in the eastern suburbs to live.

Probably one of the best known eastern suburbs of Sydney is the harbour side suburb of Double Bay which is situated 4 kilometres east of the CBD. It has a population of nearly 5,000 people of whom 15% are under 18 and 24% are over 60.

If you’re thinking of buying a property in this area make sure you can meet the hefty price tag that will go with it. It is, despite the cost of houses and units, a nice area of Sydney to live in.

It boasts the most fashionable and expensive shopping in Sydney – “Double Bay – Double Pay” is an often heard saying. It is fun to window shop there even if you can’t afford to buy. I know my grandmother, who lived in Bellevue Hill, loved to wander the shopping centres of Double Bay looking in the windows.

Public transport facilities are good. There are always buses to the city and out to Bondi and further. There is also a ferry wharf for those who like to travel to the city on the water.

There is one primary school in the suburb. Older children need to travel to neighbouring suburbs for high school.

For those who like an elegant lifestyle, and can afford it, this is the place to be!

Darlinghurst is an inner city eastern suburb of Sydney adjacent to the CBD and Hyde Park. It is quite densely populated with about 10,700 residents, the majority of whom are aged between 18 and 60.

Where does one start when talking about Darlinghurst? It is the home of Oxford Street and Taylor Square – a very fashionable area of Sydney with many pubs, cafes, restaurants and nightclubs and of course the annual Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade.

It has many historic buildings including the Darlinghurst Gaol (which now houses the National Art School), and the Darlinghurst Court House which is still in use today.

The world renowned St Vincent’s Hospital has been servicing the community for over 150 years.

It is home to two of the oldest private schools in Sydney. There is the Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School (SCEGGS) opened in 1895 and Sydney Grammar School, established in 1857, one of the most expensive boys’ private schools in Australia. For primary school children there is the Darlinghurst Primary School established in 1884.

Commuting is easy – buses are always going to the city. The city is within walking distance.

Darlinghurst – a place for yuppies who love the hustle and bustle!

Rose Bay, a prestigious waterside suburb of Sydney, is just 7 kilometres east of the CBD. It has a population of about 8,700 of whom 20% are under18 and 20% are over 60.

It is a great place to live if you can afford it. It is close to the city, offers lots of sporting activities and wonderful views.

Home units and villa units outnumber individual houses and the average price of a dwelling in Rose Bay is $2,000,000.

Kids are well catered for. There is the Rose Bay Primary School established in 1891, the Rose Bay Secondary College established in 2004 after the amalgamation of three local high schools, Kambala – a private Anglican school for girls, Kincoppal-Rose Bay School of the Sacred Heart – a private Catholic girls school, and the prep school for Cranbrook.

Sporting interests are looked after well. Apart from water activities which abound, there are two golf clubs. Firstly there is the Royal Sydney Golf Club – a championship course of 27 holes for members only. This is a world renowned course. This Club not only offers golf but also lawn bowls, croquet, tennis and squash. There is also the Woollahra Golf Club of 9 holes which is open to the public.

Rose Bay is a great place to visit and have fun and would be an ideal place to live if you could afford it!

Vaucluse, one of Sydney’s most affluent and prestigious suburbs, is located 8 kilometres from the CBD. It is in the Eastern Suburbs and is part of the Waverley Council. It has a population of nearly 9,000, one quarter of whom are under 18.

Vaucluse has a wealth of history with many heritage listed buildings. The most famous of these would have to be Vaucluse House. How many school children remember an excursion to see Vaucluse House? – I certainly do!

The suburb is situated on South Head peninsula with Sydney Harbour to the west, the Pacific Ocean to the east, Watsons Bay to the North and Rose Bay and Dover Heights to the south. No wonder it has such magnificent views.

It is constantly in the top five most expensive suburbs of Australia and is regularly No. 1. A house in the suburb sold in 2007 for the astronomical price of $29,000,000.

There are numerous parks and reserves on the foreshores of the harbour. These include The Hermitage Reserve and Parsley Bay Reserve. Many Sydneysiders visit this area on weekends and enjoy the fabulous views of the harbour while taking the Hermitage Foreshore Walk.

Vaucluse is part of Sydney’s colonial history as an area of affluence and has remained so!

Watson’s Bay, in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, is 11 kilometres north east of the CBD within the local government area of Woollahra. It has quite a small population of only 766 people (2006 census) with the majority being between the ages of 18 to 60.

It is a very prestigious harbour side suburb with house prices in the millions. It stands at the entrance to Sydney Harbour on South Head and its only adjacent suburb is Vaucluse to the south.

It has two beaches, Camp Cove and Lady Bay – a legal nude beach. It is home to the famous (or infamous) Gap – the scene of many tragic suicides and many gallant rescues.

It is a very popular place for tourists and Sydneysiders alike to visit on the weekends. There are lots of heritage buildings to see and places to eat. Possibly the most famous of these would be Doyle’s Seafood Restaurant first opened by the Doyle family in 1885 and now five generations later still going strong. It is recommended that a booking is made, especially on weekends; otherwise you will not get in. I remember as a special treat being taken to Doyle’s as a child – I thought it was fantastic sitting outdoors eating watching the happenings on the harbour.

Watsons Bay – definitely worth a visit but if you want to live there be sure to have a hefty bank balance!

Annangrove is a Sydney suburb, 42 kilometres north west of the CBD, located in the Hills Shire and part of the Hills District. It has a population of just over 1,000 people, 26% of whom are under 18 and 18% of whom are over 60.

It is a semi rural centre with most people living in houses on small acreages. The average price of houses in the area is $1,000,000.

Amaroo Park Raceway, which closed in 1998, was a feature of the suburb. This racetrack, opened in 1967 was the scene of such races as the Castrol 6 hour motorcycle race, Australian Touring Car Championships, Formula Ford and Formula 5000 to name just a few. My brothers enjoyed many a day at the car races at Amaroo Park! The area is now a housing estate.

There is a bus service in the area but most inhabitants rely on private cars. Primary school and preschool children are accommodated in the area but older children need to travel to go to high school.

Plant nurseries abound. For such a small suburb population wise it is remarkable that there are 8 nurseries!

A recent addition to the area is the Annangrove Aquatic & Leisure Centre featuring swimming and gym facilities.

Annangrove is definitely a suburb for those who like a rural atmosphere and the peace and quiet that goes with this.

North Rocks is a suburb in the Hills District of Sydney 26 kilometres north west of the CBD. It is located in the local government area of the Hills Shire.

The name came from an enormous sandstone outcrop which was known as North Rocks. This outcropping dominated the area so its name was given to the locality.

Today, North Rocks is a middle class suburb with a population just over 7,000 of whom 23% are under 18 and 20% are over 60. 36% of residents have a university degree or higher education diploma.

The area is well serviced by shops, there being a Westfield on North Rocks Road with a Franklins Supermarket, a Kmart and various specialty shops.

There is a government primary school, high school and a Catholic school. North Rocks is also the site for the Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children.

The M2 Motorway runs through North Rocks making access to the city by road quite convenient – a trip of about 40 minutes. Buses service the area efficiently with frequent services to nearby railway stations, Castle Hill and the city.

North Rocks is a pleasant suburb with all the facilities to make for a happy lifestyle.

Winston Hills is a suburb of Sydney 28 kilometres west of the CBD in the local government area of the City of Parramatta but still considered to be in the Hills District of Sydney. It has a population of just under 9,000 people of whom 24% are under 18 and 20% are over 60.

The suburb was named during World War II after Sir Winston Churchill and its development has mainly been since the 1960’s. There is not very much natural bushland left – it has all been built on. You would not get much change out of $500,000 for a three bedroom house in this area.

There is a large shopping centre with over 70 shops, including Big W, Woolies and Coles. The Winston, a hotel in the suburb, was awarded “Hotel of the Year” and “Best Casual Dining Hotel of the Year” in 2008 by the AHA.

Winston Hills boasts one of the largest soccer/football clubs in Sydney. This is known as “The Bears”. There are three primary schools in the suburb – two government and one Catholic.

Winston Hills is a nice middle class suburb with all the facilities needed or very close by in neighbouring suburbs.

West Pennant Hills is a suburb of Sydney situated in the Hills District, 25 kilometres north west of the CBD. Surrounding suburbs are Beecroft to the east, Carlingford to the south, Baulkham Hills to the west and Castle Hill and Cherrybrook to the north.

It is a largely residential suburb with a commercial area to be found at Thompsons Corner which has been inhabited since 1796. The area was called West Pennant Hills because of the hills north of Parramatta and a pennant or flag was raised at Thompsons Corner anytime the Governor of the time passed on his way back to Parramatta.

It has a population of over 16,000, 25% of whom are under 18. There is a high percentage of university and higher education graduates – over 40%. Nearly every household owns at least one car. It is close to the M2 Motorway making travel to the city by car reasonably painless. There is no railway station in West Pennant Hills but buses will take commuters to Pennant Hills Railway Station.

A famous tourist attraction is to be found in West Pennant Hills – Koala Park – which has been open since the 1920’s. I have fond memories of seeing and patting my first koala in this famous sanctuary when I was quite a small child.

Pennant Hills is actually in the Hornsby Shire but is considered to be part of the Hills District of Sydney. I have also heard it referred to as “Peanut Hills”! It is 25 kilometres north west of the CBD.

It was only settled by Europeans permanently in the 1840’s and really took off when the railway line reached the area in the 1880’s. Its main growth has been since the 1950’s when the car became commonplace.

With a population of nearly 7,000, Pennant Hills is one of the major commercial centres of the Hornsby Shire. There is quite a large shopping centre around Pennant Hills Railway Station and along Pennant Hills Road. The area is very well serviced by restaurants and hotels. Pennant Hills Road is one of the major thoroughfares of Sydney leading to the city and out the other way to Parramatta.

Pennant Hills has the first Danish Church built in Australia – Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary visited there in 2005.

Over one-third of the population are professional workers or managers. There is a very low unemployment rate in this suburb. There is also a high rate of university graduates living in Pennant Hills.

Pennant Hills would be a very convenient place to live with all its facilities and transport services. It is also the gateway to the Hills District.

Kenthurst, named after the English county, is a semi rural suburb in the north west of Sydney, 39 kilometres from the CBD. It is within the Hills District and part of the local government area of the Hills Shire. It is bounded by Glenorie to the north, Dural to the East, Glenhaven to the south and Annangrove to the west.

It has a population of just over 5000, a quarter of whom are under 18. Most of the blocks of land are 5 acres – just the right size for keeping a horse.

There is a small shopping centre with a supermarket, post office, real estate agent and some other shops. For school age children, there is a government primary school, a Catholic primary and secondary school, and the Hills Grammar School – an independent private school.

There are some high profile residents. They are Bec and Lleyton Hewitt, Don Burke, Greg Page of the Wiggles and Ray Hadley the radio talk show host. With all their other houses I would not think that Bec and Lleyton would spend much time there!

Kenthurst is a very quiet, peaceful part of Sydney to live in – a nice place to come home to after a busy day at work.

Carlingford is a suburb of Sydney located 22 kilometres north west of the CBD. It is part of the Hills District and is bounded by Epping on the east, Telopea on the south, North Rocks to the west and West Pennant Hills to the north. It has a population of over 18,000, 25% of whom are under 18..

Originally, called Mobbs Hill the area was settled in the mid-1800’s as an agricultural area, mainly with orange orchards.

There are two large shopping centres – Carlingford Court and Carlingford Village. Due to the high number of Asian residents in the suburb there are many Asian restaurants.

Very few people use public transport as the area is not really serviced very well. There is a railway station but in the morning during peak hour there is only one direct service to the city – so most people commute to the city in private cars.

On Pennant Hills Road there is a memorial to the HMS K13 – a British submarine sunk in 1917. My children used to have a competition as to who would see this first on our many trips from Sydney back home to Canberra!

Carlingford is the headquarters of the Sydney Australia Temple and for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Carlingford is a nice middle class suburb.

Rouse Hill is a suburb of Sydney 42 kilometres north west of the CBD. It is within the Hills Shire and City of Blacktown local government areas and in the Hills District. It has a population of just under 6,500, 36% of whom are under 18 and 6% of whom are over 60.

Historically, the area is associated with a convict uprising resulting in the deaths of many of the rebels either by the military or by execution after the event. There is a memorial to those who fell at this time in the Castlebrook Lawn Cemetery and Crematorium in Rouse Hill.

There is a large new shopping centre – the Rouse Hill Town Centre. Here residents and visitors alike will find all the facilities they need – supermarkets, department stores, eateries, specialty stores, cinemas, medical facilities. This complex is at the centre of a new residential area.

Public transport is not great in the area. Many households have two or more cars. There is a rapid bus transit service to Parramatta Railway Station.

The children are well catered for as far as schools go. There are two public primary schools, a public high school, a private primary and secondary school and a Catholic primary school is scheduled for opening in 2010.

Rouse Hill – a suburb that has everything close at hand.

33 kilometres east of Sydney’s CBD in the Hills Shire and part of the Hills District is the suburb of Bella Vista. It has a population of about 6,300 with nearly 30% of these being under 18.

Historically the most famous resident of the area was Elizabeth Macarthur who sold part of her holdings to the Pearce family who named their property Bella Vista – most likely because it had beautiful views. The family did not sell the property till 1950.The farmhouse and buildings have since been bought by the Baulkham Hills Shire Council who intends to restore them and open them to the public.

The area, up until the 1990’s was mainly small farms. Now there are more residential areas and a thriving business area. It is quickly becoming the main business area for the Hills District. The largest business area is the internationally renowned Norwest Business Park which has retail, commercial, industrial and hotel developments. The Hillsong Church is also located in Norwest.

It is situated close to the end of the M2 Motorway making travel to the city reasonably easy, even if commuters need to get up very early! Buses are the only public transport available.

Bella Vista – a go-ahead commercial centre!