Looks like autumn is really with us, and a fine time to be searching for dumplings Shanghai-style in Ashfield. I vaguely remember going to Shanghai Night years back when I lived in the area, so it was high time that I made a return visit.
The pork and chive dumplings were standard in my opinion. I actually liked the fish dumplings better. The crab and pork buns were so substantial that I had to doggie bag a few. But my favourite was the new year rice noodles, gorgeous with seafood and XO sauce.
Back to the 1840’s actually. Berrima must be one of the best preserved villages in NSW. Lots of sandstone architecture, built by convicts of course. The original gaol is still there, although it’s now apparently a ‘training facility’.
Aside from the lolly shop, we wandered around to the court house and then down to the Holy Trinity Anglican church. There, we were lucky enough to be given a glimpse inside by two local ladies, who enthusiastically told us of its history.
Apparently it’s designed by the same architect as the much larger St Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney, and its stained glass came all the way from some village church in Cornwall. Oil lamps (now converted to electricity) still hang from the ceiling and the original pipe organ is still in place. I sat for awhile, contemplating the starry ceiling in this delightful place.
It’s raining cats and dogs in Sydney today. I know that people from northern Europe (or anywhere else with a high percentage of rainy days) would laugh but it is possibly the first time this year that I’ve had to carry my large umbrella. Such a miserable day gives me a craving for the coffee I had on Sunday – of the Turkish kind – rich, flavoursome, dark, sweet.
Static and Silence 