Re: Sydney guide - what is worth seeing?
I used to live in Sydney and I believe MSer illuminate is from there so he might have a better idea.
I've always loved Surry Hills, Darlinghurst, Paddington, and Five Ways. There's ofcos the obvious stuff like the Opera House, Opera Bar near there, the Rocks which leads up to the Sydney Harbor Bridge. There're a few beaches and bays, I was just at Watsons Bay recently. The obvious beach is Bondi but I recommend going in the morning before the (younger) crowd hits it. I think Manly Beach is another popular one. Potts Points is also nice and it's near King's Cross which is always a laugh to check out.
Newtown is the hippy side of Sydney. Black Star Pastry there does some good pies and cakes, they have a speciality called the Strawberry Watermelon Cake. There's a really nice brunch space called Brewtown that looks like it was converted from an old garage or warehouse, with retail space upstairs.
I'm not a big fan of the city center where George St and Pitt St are. They're kinda tacky. Hyde Park is at the edge and it's nice to just walk through it and sit down for a bit.
Food-wise, Bills is a classic for brunch. People seem to think it's passe and unhip anymore but I was there recently and the food is just as good (and kinda expensive). Go to their location on Liverpool St, not the Surry Hills one on Crown St. There's also Paramount Coffee which served a nice brioche with sour cream and brown sugar on top. I had pretty good Japanese at Izakaya Fujiyama in Surry Hills, another good brunch at Three Williams in Redfern.
Sydney is great for Thai food. Spice I Am is a stewart, Chat Thai opened when I still lived there and when I went recently, it was still packed and I waited for half hour for a table. There're a few ramen places in Sydney these days but I always went to Menya near Haymarket.
For drinks, there's a newish hipster whisky bar called Baxter Inn in the CBD. I like it but you gotta go early. Crown St in Surry Hills is dotted with pubs like The Dolphin, the Clock Hotel, Trinity Bar, East Village. I was also informed of a bar/event space called Under New Management but I didn't make it there.
Shopping-wise I usually go to places like Incu and ASSIN.
While I was there I discovered a website and paper called Broadsheet, seems to be a guide to the hip stuff in Sydney: [url="http://www.broadsheet.com.au/sydney"]Broadsheet Sydney[/url]
Another older website for Sydney: [url="http://thethousands.com.au/sydney"]Two Thousand - Sydney[/url]
This is my friend's food blog if you want more food recommendations: [url="http://jeroxie.com/addiction/"]A Sydney Food Blog - Jeroxie[/url] (loading very slowly for me).