Nakashima, The Rocks & Vivid Sydney 2010 - Macquarie Visions

After a few weeks of non-stop rain in Sydney, finally the rain has stopped ! Quickly took up this opportunity to gather the others for a night of Vivid Sydney photo hunting :)
Of course we need to make sure we have enough fuel to survive the freezing night and as we found out later, very long walk -___-;

A friend suggested we go to Nakashima since it has been a while since we dined here, probably more than 6 months ago for me.

Wall Decal ; Complimentary 1st Drinks

They offer complimentary 1st drink offer if you arrive between 6:00 - 7:00pm, so free drinks for us tonite, yay !

Wafuu Karaage

Or the so called deep fried chicken with vinegar sauce as listed on the menu :) It's not as nice as I remember it, the chicken pieces were quite dry and quite chewy. Used to be quite plump and juicy, I was sooo looking forward to it :(
Should have gone for their Teriyaki Fish or Teriyaki Octopus that never fails.

Teriyaki Beef

The others who ordered this dish was disappointed as well tonight. They used to use thick slices of beef, but now they use thinly sliced beef , like those usually used for shabu - shabu.

Teriyaki Chicken

Thankfully one dish still tasted the same, the Teriyaki Chicken apparently tasted as good as it should be.
At least some of us left satisfied tonite....

We started our Vivid Sydney - Macquarie Visions photo tour from St.Mary's Cathedral and the last stop was Opera House.
Since the light projections runs along Macquarie Street and parking is not easy, we parked our car at St.Mary's and walk all the way to Opera House, and then back again to the cathedral (that is way too much walking for me LOL).
How long were we out there in the freezing winter night ?
We start our journey at around 8pm and we got back to our cars at 12.45am  0_o
I don't know about the others, but I have successfully caught a cold the next day and my legs are sore !
But it is all worth it ^_^

Here are some pictures that was taken during the night, still missing some projections, so have to return before the festival ends on 20th June !

St.Mary's Cathedral 

Hyde Park Barracks Museum

Palace Garden Cafe & Hot Chocolate - bliss on a freezing night...ahhh.....=^_^=

Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Sydney Opera House

Vivid Sydney 2010 & Guylian Belgian Chocolate Cafe, Circular Quay

It's time for another Vivid Sydney festival !! Yippee \^o^/

We have some overseas colleagues visiting this week for some meetings so it's good timing that Vivid Sydney starts today.
Initial plan was to go with just a colleague from Japan but then the others caught wind of our small night tour LOL
So off I go playing tour guide for our visitors ^_^

We arrived at the Opera House right at the moment the light was switched on !
It was packed with people so we had a quick bite at Guylian cafe first to avoid the crowd.

We had some savoury meals first, but didn't whip out my camera since I'm not sure what will my colleagues think of me taking photos of their food...ehehhee....

But when the desserts arrived....well...that's a different story LOL
Big camera - OUT !!

Opera Evolve

Another lesson learned, do not always assume the website will have the most current menu -___-
I cannot remember exactly what is Opera Evolve (and this is only a few hours ago...getting old...arrgh!).
I think it was coffee sponge, coffee buttercream and raspberry sauce in the pipette.
You squeeze the sauce into the cake, so you end up with a raspberry centred opera. It is an evolved opera indeed....more interactive !
Obviously I chose this cake because there is a pipette stabbed into the cake....ehehehhee..

100% Pure Pleasure

It's Belgian chocolate & Guylian praline enriched with coffee sponge and pannacotta.
I didn't get to try this, but from previous visits, I remembered it being quite good.

My colleagues ordered milk hot chocolate, dark hot chocolate and iced chocolate for the drinks.
So by the end they were on chocolate coma LOL
We had these 2 desserts between the 4 of us and we couldn't finish it.

By the time we finished dinner, most of the crowd have left, so no need to squeeze around to take some photos :)

Please excuse the blurry photos, that is as stable as my hands can be on a cold night *_^
Definitely have to go around to see all the light projections again, armed with a tripod.

The Sydney Opera House - as it is usually

Sydney Opera House - 1st Projection Pattern

Sydney Opera House - 2nd Projection Pattern

Then it gets too cold so it's time to go home...

We saw all the light projections and the arc as we drive along Macquarie Street, and then a quick stop by the St.Mary's Cathedral.

St.Mary's Cathedral Light Projection

The projection here is very pretty , just took a quick snap since I have parked illegally on the street :P
I shall be back !!

But not before picking up the free mini torch and Vivid Sydney 2010 guides ^_^
The mini torch is dual powered - by battery or man powered.

Vivid Sydney Mini Torch - Battery Mode

Vivid Sydney Mini Torch - Man Powered 

How do you work it ? Just like you would a stress ball, squeeze release squeeze release.
Will probably end up with a cramped hand by the end of the night...ehehehehe....