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Photo: Orestes654 (talk) 09:09, 14 April 2011 (UTC), CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Includes a large exhibition space with changing artistic, historical and cultural exhibits. The Mitchell Reading Room is a historical large open book-lined room, and worth a look inside. The reference library is a modern addition, and really only of interest for research. The library collection includes a copy of every volume published in New South Wales, and many rare texts. There is a cafe on the ground floor near the entrance to the reference library and the bookshop.
The State Library of New South Wales, part of which is known as the Mitchell Library, is a large heritage-listed special collections, reference and research library open to the public and is one of the oldest libraries in Australia. Established in 1869 its collections date back to the Australian Subscription Library established in the colony of New South Wales in 1826. The library is located on the corner of Macquarie Street and Shakespeare Place, in the Sydney central business district adjacent to the Domain and the Royal Botanic Gardens, in the City of Sydney. The library is a member of the National and State Libraries Australia (NSLA) consortium.
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Flinders' Cat
A bronze statue of Trim, the cat who accompanied Matthew Flinders on his voyages to circumnavigate and map the coastline of Australia from 1801 to 1803.
Hosted by the Reserve Bank of Australia in its city headquarters, this museum displays Australian bank notes and currency from the earliest issues to the present day. Interesting but basic. Drop in for 15 min or so if you are passing by Martin Place.
Built on the site of the first Government House, erected in 1788 by Governor Arthur Phillip and demolished in 1846. The remains of the building were excavated after rediscovery in 1983 and the original foundations can now be viewed through glass floor panels in the museum. Fascinating changing exhibitions of art and photography, films and state-of-the-art technology spin stories of colonial life, Aboriginal culture, environment, trade, authority / law and everyday dramas and dreams in early Sydney. The Museum of Sydney Cafe, by the museum entrance is not really part of the museum, and is much more a restaurant than a cheap and casual cafe.
A walk around the Royal Botanic Garden with an Aboriginal guide who will tell you about native plants that have been used by Aboriginal Australians for generations, as food, medicine, and tools. You can sample a few on the way, including fruits and herbs. Book in advance.
In colonial times this land was the Governor’s buffer of privacy between his residence and the penal colony. Roads and paths were constructed through the Domain by 1831 to allow public access. Since that time it has remained a place for the people to breath and relax. The Domain surrounds the Royal Botanic Gardens. In times past has been a site of often quite colourful public oratory and site of public rallies and demonstrations. Home to the popular Opera in the Domain, Jazz in the Domain, and Symphony in the Domain events in summer, as well as the Tropfest short film festival. If attending any of these events, arrive in the early afternoon to secure a picnic spot as upwards of 100,000 people attend.
One of Sydney's greatest assets, from in front of the State Art Gallery, out to Mrs Macquaries chair, across to Farm Cove and onto the Sydney Opera House. The Gardens back onto the historic Sydney Hospital and Parliament House. This is the oldest scientific institution in the country and home to an outstanding collection of plants from Australia and overseas. The Domain surrounds the Royal Botanic Gardens. The walk along the harbour's edge (Farm Cove) from the Opera House (Queen Elizabeth II gate) to Mrs Macquarie's Chair (Yurong Gate) is for many the epitome of a Sydney experience. The Gardens have an example of the Wollemi Pine, raised from a seed collected from a handful of trees discovered in the wilderness and unchanged since the dinosaurs. A tropical pyramid holds examples of tropical vegetation in a controlled humidity atmosphere. See the rose garden, herb garden and succulent section. The collection has many varieties of Australian plants and grasses. During the summer months there are often open air night time film screenings inside the Botanic Gardens, entry charges normally apply to those screenings.