Look carefully for the original parts of the building such as the fabulous circular stairs that go up into the dome and the original tiles in the ladies restroom (I don't know about the gents!). This is a world class restoration of a wonderful building. At its financial peak at the time of the Olympics (what wasn't?), some of the shops have less expensive merchandise on offer. Too bad I only have four slots for photos!

Even if you are not shopping for anything, it is fun to take a look around inside and out. The plaza outside features a statue of Queen Victoria and the Royal Wishing Well.

Inside, there is a replicated display of Queen Victoria's crown jewels, with a fetching statue of the youthful monarch at the time of her coronation. The Great Australian Clock, north of the central interior dome, is categorized as the "world's largest hanging animated turret clock" (what a category). This gaudy timepiece depicts scenes from Australian history.

One of the more peculiar features inside is the Royal Clock (Gallery 2, South End). At the top of each hour, a slew of mechanical action figures act out scenes in England's history. The most memorable is the hourly re-enactment of the execution of King Charles I in 1649. Yes, the head of the poor king is rolled off the chopping block every business hour. I found this to be unintentionally hilarious.

The building has two wings that are four levels each spreading beyond a central domed entry. Look up at the beautiful stained glass dome that is surrounded by carved wood ornamentation. Directly in front of you is a wood staircase that connects the floors resting on the mosaic tiled entry. There are also escalators to your right or left.

To your right (if entering from George St.) you will see the most amazing clock suspended from the glass ceiling in that wing. It was designed by the Queens clock maker to resemble a small Balmoral castle, but it is far greater than just that! The clock has all kinds of moving things! Around the top are important periods of past Australian history. Look here to see Capt. Cook and the beginnings of settlement in Sydney. A native man travels within the minute around each panel causing them to light up as fabulous centerpieces. Around the bottom there is a moving record of the days, months, and years with an old masted sailing ship in rotation.

The shops here are very specialized places interspersed by little cafes. I liked, but did not price, the designer Liz Davenports Clothing shop. There are several Australian Opal companies, but I can't figure out why the prices are so high? Perhaps it is sticker shock, because they did have people making purchases in them. Lovely items....nice to look at and admire! In a Cashmere shop I looked for an item that guide Samepenny mentioned to me months ago. I petted the soft sweater for her and admired it's beautiful color. There is a lovely bridal shop if any of you girls are in the market for a wedding.

One of the floors had a full sized, intricately carved jade Chinese bridal cart. It looked like museum material to me! That sure was a lot of jade! Two figures inside of the glass container were dressed in antique Chinese wedding attire in silk.

If you want to go on a walking tour, there are several ones offered from the information desk on the lower level. I read that one even allows you to climb outside the dome where there are some full sized statues made out of Italian marble.