Just a big thank you ...

[ZeroID (Brent)]

To Michael at Bintel in Glebe.
Dropped in there on Tuesday to buy a few bits ($300+ later !! ) and he was most helpful and informative. I drooled over some of the nice stuff he has in there, that big red mount in the window ....
Finally walked away with a new right angle Diag, an illuminated 12.5 mm EP and a GPUSB kit to guide everything. 8 x 50 Finder to come in the mail in a few weeks ( no stock at present ). He let me wander round and enjoy a bit of window shopping manstyle..

Many thanks and a big recommendation to them all there.

[ZeroID (Brent)]

... and the rest of the trip was pretty awesome too btw.

Found some good wines up in the Hunter Valley, met some good people, ate some good food, saw some good views and places.
Managed to hit all three of the Hiltons Bars in Sydney and a couple outside. We both spent up on clothes and enjoyed ourselves. Nice when somebody else is paying a large portion of the travel and accommodation bill

Biggest downer ..... not getting a GPS in the car to find my way through Sydney's weird motorway system. Cost me $17:00 in tolls to cross the city and head north !!

Anyone heard of Koolang Observatory up by Bucketty ? Drove past on the scenic route back t Sydney.

Yup, good long weekend away.

[mithrandir (Andrew)]

It's very hard to get out of Bintel with the credit card intact.

Originally Posted by ZeroID

Biggest downer ..... not getting a GPS in the car to find my way through Sydney's weird motorway system. Cost me $17:00 in tolls to cross the city and head north !!

home-> m2 -> lane cove tunnel -> harbour bridge -> city -> (bridge free nothbound) -> lane cove tunnel -> m2 -> home. Roughly $5+$4+$3+$4+$5=$21 every day I have to go into the city.

Anyone heard of Koolang Observatory up by Bucketty ? Drove past on the scenic route back t Sydney.

Heard of, never been there. http://www.koolang.com.au/

Andrew

[Suzy]

Sounds like you had a fabulous time!

Was it your first visit to Sydney Brent?

I'd love to take a peek inside Bintel as everything I buy from them is done over the phone.
And oh yes, the people at Bintel are very helpful, hats off to them for their wonderful customer service.

[jenchris (Jennifer)]

This is the view through my illuminated EP

[gary]

Hi Brent,

Great to hear you had a good time.

It is hard to find a nicer guy than Michael so great to hear you got to meet him.

The road system in Sydney is best described as navigationally unforgiving and
is still signposted in such a way that local knowledge is still often required.
From the moment a visitor to the city leaves the airport they have to be
prepared, for example, to make split second decisions as to what lane to be in
at certain times, often with minimal sign-posted notice and the traffic volumes
then make it impossible to change lanes in time.

The SatNav option in the rental car is highly advisable, but even then the number
of tunnels in the city road network and the GPS canyoning effect within the CBD
itself still results in one having to fly visually by the seat-of-the-pants a lot of the
time when going downtown.

Andrew's anecdote about his daily toll fees are unfortunately commonplace for
Sydney motorists.

Great to hear you came back via my favourite northern route to/from the
Hunter Valley. The Koolang Observatory is open to the public. Our preferred
observing location this close to the city is with friends who only live a couple
of km away from there. The neighboring Yengo National Park, Mangrove Mountain
Dam and other adjoining National Parks is a large area with minimal light pollution
though the Sydney light glow is still visible to the south. But for an hour's drive
from the city, it is hard to beat.

[Jen]

good on ya Brent glad you enjoyed your trip

[ZeroID (Brent)]

Hi All,

Suzy > No, been there quite often in the past, not so often lately. Was supposed to meet up with a work colleague on the Tuesday but she had personal schedules that conflicted so had plenty of time to walk to Glebe (30 mins ) and time to browse.

Gary > we were a little dissappointed with the scenic route. Nowhere to stop and enjoy the view and almost nowhere to get a coffee or take a break. There were some spots up by Koolang where a lookout with views over the valleys and hills would have been amazing but there was never a break in the Eucalypts.
I do wish I'd had a travel scope with me up in Cessnock although I confess I was otherwise engaged most of the time.
Navigationally unforgiving would be an understatement IMHO. For a tourist it is a nightmare.
But we did enjoy our 5 days, I think I am still recovering.
Next weekend is our turn to host our wine group night (4 couples) so got a few interesting bottles to test on them.

Check DIY for an update on the Serrurier Project ..