We arrived in Sydney Wednesday evening. After checking in to our serviced apartment we hit the streets to wander downtown and find somewhere to eat dinner. Eventually we ended up dining at a local pub with cheap food provided you purchase a drink. Tired from travel we returned and called it an early night.
Thursday morning we made our way back downtown to Darling Harbour to find the visitors’ center and make tour arrangements for the following days. Afterwards we took the bus to the famous Bondi Beach (known world-wide for surfing and shark attacks). The beach was gorgeous but the water was much cooler than the water in Cairns. We sat at a café along the beach and had coffee and then shopped a bit. Unfortunately we did not spot any great whites; however, we did see a few surfers. During our return bus trip from Bondi, Mike overheard Texan accents behind us and started chatting with a couple and their children from the Dallas area. We learned that they were visiting from China, where he curently works for Nokia, and had just recently sold their house in Texas. We gave them updates on the economy back home and they traded us some good Sydney travel advice and tips before they pointed us in the direction of the ferry where we bid them farewell. We jumped off the bus at Circular Quay and hopped the ferry over to Manly, a town across the harbour. Our arrival at Manly was just past sunset as we rushed to view their impressive surf beach. Manly’s waves were actually larger than the waves at Bondi, but much harder to see at twilight. After strolling along the beach we searched for a spot on the drag to have dinner. We came upon a Brazilian BBQ restaurant named Brazuca and decided to give it a try. The food and service were awesome and Mike let them know that it was our best meal yet in Australia (service in Australia was not as good as New Zealand, but maybe we were just spoiled). Following dinner we had a romantic ferry ride back to Sydney where could view the lit up harbour bridge and opera house. During the ride lazy gulls were gliding alongside the ferry on the breeze.
Friday, against advice, we spent the first half of the day visiting the Sydney Aquarium and Wildlife World. While at the wildlife world Mike made friends with a parrot who gave him a friendly nip. We enjoyed walking through their bird sanctuary where the birds fly about freely, and the butterfly sanctuary where the butterlifes were landing on people’s heads. Mike even patted a huge water python that attempted to crawl up his arm. We were a bit disappointed with the aquarium because we tried three different times to view the platypus but every time we checked the exhibit they were in hiding. We did however get to see two Australian Dugongs, which is akin to our American manatee, several sharks, and a huge stingray. We felt a tinge of sorrow for the great sea turles and other barrier reef fish while viewing that exhibit. Seeing them in their natural habitat is much more spectacular than viewing them on display in an aquarium. Next we wandered up to see The Rocks, an historic area where the first settlers built their homes upon the rocks. Also, it is an area with many historic pubs and some good shopping opportunities.
Later that evening we had dinner at Nick’s seafood restaurant in Darling Harbor based upon a recommendation from the fellow Texans. I had snapper while Mike tried kangaroo. He ate about half of his kangaroo steak before he quit and decided that the kangaroos seemed much more intelligent than cows and he just didn’t want to eat them. He said they were much more fun to pet and to watch than to eat. After dinner we made our way to the grand Sydney Opera House to hear the Sydney symphony perform works by Beethoven, Hayden and Bartok. Hearing a performance inside of the opera house was an awe inspiring experience. The section we were in was smaller inside than Mike expected, but the Opera house actually has many different areas and we were only in one small section. The architecture and design allows for amazing acoustics and there didn't appear to be a bad seat in the house.
Early Saturday morning we took a tour to view the spectacular Blue Mountains. Actually foothills, not mountains, they are called the Blue Mountains because of the blue haze given off by the abundant eucalyptus trees. On our way we stopped off in Blacktown at the Featherdale Wildlife Park which was the best wildlife experience yet. While at Featherdale they allow many of the animals to wander about freely and they are all friendly because many of them are rescued animals and accustomed to people. We had curious wallabies follow us through the park and were able to hand feed wallabies, kangaroos, and emus. Pudgy wombats gladly rolled on the ground and enjoyed a good back scratch, bicycling their legs similar to dogs if you scratched them just right. We were forewarned to not put our hands near their mouths because they might give a friendly nip and don’t know the strength of their own mouths, but nothing like that occurred. Mike even had a snake draped over his neck for a photo, but I declined the opportunity. We were unable to actually cuddle koalas because it is now illegal in New South Wales, but we both were able to get up next to koalas perched in trees and scratch them on their backs. Following the wildlife park we continued our journey to the Blue Mountains, but first we stopped at a local reserve to have morning tea and learn to properly throw boomerangs. Once we were up at the Blue Mountains we stopped and took a hike to a beautiful cliff overlooking the Jamieson Valley, their equivalent of the Grand Canyon; however, the valley was filled with trees and wildlife unlike the barren Grand Canyon. The sandstone cliffs were amazing to view and we caught our first glimpse of the three rock formation known as the Three Sisters. Next we continued our journey to a park called Scenic World where we rode a cable car over a cliff, walked a loop through an ancient rainforest, saw the remains of an old coal mine, and then rode the steepest railway in the southern hemisphere back up to meet our group. Along our trek home we drove through the 2000 Olympic site including the aquatic center which they turned into public swimming pools. We rode the rivercat ferry back to the city to avoid traffic on the road. Once we arrived back at Circular Quay we hopped a ferry back over to Manly again. This time we wanted to see the beach before sunset. Upon arrival at Manly we hurriedly walked to the beach and pulled off our shoes. We had to walk carefully through the sand because high tide had brought in many blue jellies along with washing up hundreds of small dead puffer fish (we think maybe the birds hunt them there). Surfers continued to attempt to catch the perfect wave as we watched sunset over the beach. Later we washed the sand off our feet and then ate dinner at a restaurant along the boardwalk.
Sunday we had limited time before our flight but still had more spots in Sydney that we wanted to see before we left. Our final excursion we took the train to Circular Quay and then walked along the botanical gardens from the Opera House to Mrs. Macquaries Point to get the perfect shot with both the Opera House and the Harbor Bridge in the background. We only had time to see the outskirts of the gardens, but they were spectacular. We watched native birds walk through the park waiting for crumbs from visitors and were amazed to see wild golden-crested cockatoos flying throughout the trees squawking at each other. The park had towering fig trees and huge palm trees everywhere. After reaching the point and taking a few lucky pics, we caught a cab to the airport to begin our long journey home.
Thursday morning we made our way back downtown to Darling Harbour to find the visitors’ center and make tour arrangements for the following days. Afterwards we took the bus to the famous Bondi Beach (known world-wide for surfing and shark attacks). The beach was gorgeous but the water was much cooler than the water in Cairns. We sat at a café along the beach and had coffee and then shopped a bit. Unfortunately we did not spot any great whites; however, we did see a few surfers. During our return bus trip from Bondi, Mike overheard Texan accents behind us and started chatting with a couple and their children from the Dallas area. We learned that they were visiting from China, where he curently works for Nokia, and had just recently sold their house in Texas. We gave them updates on the economy back home and they traded us some good Sydney travel advice and tips before they pointed us in the direction of the ferry where we bid them farewell. We jumped off the bus at Circular Quay and hopped the ferry over to Manly, a town across the harbour. Our arrival at Manly was just past sunset as we rushed to view their impressive surf beach. Manly’s waves were actually larger than the waves at Bondi, but much harder to see at twilight. After strolling along the beach we searched for a spot on the drag to have dinner. We came upon a Brazilian BBQ restaurant named Brazuca and decided to give it a try. The food and service were awesome and Mike let them know that it was our best meal yet in Australia (service in Australia was not as good as New Zealand, but maybe we were just spoiled). Following dinner we had a romantic ferry ride back to Sydney where could view the lit up harbour bridge and opera house. During the ride lazy gulls were gliding alongside the ferry on the breeze.
Friday, against advice, we spent the first half of the day visiting the Sydney Aquarium and Wildlife World. While at the wildlife world Mike made friends with a parrot who gave him a friendly nip. We enjoyed walking through their bird sanctuary where the birds fly about freely, and the butterfly sanctuary where the butterlifes were landing on people’s heads. Mike even patted a huge water python that attempted to crawl up his arm. We were a bit disappointed with the aquarium because we tried three different times to view the platypus but every time we checked the exhibit they were in hiding. We did however get to see two Australian Dugongs, which is akin to our American manatee, several sharks, and a huge stingray. We felt a tinge of sorrow for the great sea turles and other barrier reef fish while viewing that exhibit. Seeing them in their natural habitat is much more spectacular than viewing them on display in an aquarium. Next we wandered up to see The Rocks, an historic area where the first settlers built their homes upon the rocks. Also, it is an area with many historic pubs and some good shopping opportunities.
Later that evening we had dinner at Nick’s seafood restaurant in Darling Harbor based upon a recommendation from the fellow Texans. I had snapper while Mike tried kangaroo. He ate about half of his kangaroo steak before he quit and decided that the kangaroos seemed much more intelligent than cows and he just didn’t want to eat them. He said they were much more fun to pet and to watch than to eat. After dinner we made our way to the grand Sydney Opera House to hear the Sydney symphony perform works by Beethoven, Hayden and Bartok. Hearing a performance inside of the opera house was an awe inspiring experience. The section we were in was smaller inside than Mike expected, but the Opera house actually has many different areas and we were only in one small section. The architecture and design allows for amazing acoustics and there didn't appear to be a bad seat in the house.
Early Saturday morning we took a tour to view the spectacular Blue Mountains. Actually foothills, not mountains, they are called the Blue Mountains because of the blue haze given off by the abundant eucalyptus trees. On our way we stopped off in Blacktown at the Featherdale Wildlife Park which was the best wildlife experience yet. While at Featherdale they allow many of the animals to wander about freely and they are all friendly because many of them are rescued animals and accustomed to people. We had curious wallabies follow us through the park and were able to hand feed wallabies, kangaroos, and emus. Pudgy wombats gladly rolled on the ground and enjoyed a good back scratch, bicycling their legs similar to dogs if you scratched them just right. We were forewarned to not put our hands near their mouths because they might give a friendly nip and don’t know the strength of their own mouths, but nothing like that occurred. Mike even had a snake draped over his neck for a photo, but I declined the opportunity. We were unable to actually cuddle koalas because it is now illegal in New South Wales, but we both were able to get up next to koalas perched in trees and scratch them on their backs. Following the wildlife park we continued our journey to the Blue Mountains, but first we stopped at a local reserve to have morning tea and learn to properly throw boomerangs. Once we were up at the Blue Mountains we stopped and took a hike to a beautiful cliff overlooking the Jamieson Valley, their equivalent of the Grand Canyon; however, the valley was filled with trees and wildlife unlike the barren Grand Canyon. The sandstone cliffs were amazing to view and we caught our first glimpse of the three rock formation known as the Three Sisters. Next we continued our journey to a park called Scenic World where we rode a cable car over a cliff, walked a loop through an ancient rainforest, saw the remains of an old coal mine, and then rode the steepest railway in the southern hemisphere back up to meet our group. Along our trek home we drove through the 2000 Olympic site including the aquatic center which they turned into public swimming pools. We rode the rivercat ferry back to the city to avoid traffic on the road. Once we arrived back at Circular Quay we hopped a ferry back over to Manly again. This time we wanted to see the beach before sunset. Upon arrival at Manly we hurriedly walked to the beach and pulled off our shoes. We had to walk carefully through the sand because high tide had brought in many blue jellies along with washing up hundreds of small dead puffer fish (we think maybe the birds hunt them there). Surfers continued to attempt to catch the perfect wave as we watched sunset over the beach. Later we washed the sand off our feet and then ate dinner at a restaurant along the boardwalk.
Sunday we had limited time before our flight but still had more spots in Sydney that we wanted to see before we left. Our final excursion we took the train to Circular Quay and then walked along the botanical gardens from the Opera House to Mrs. Macquaries Point to get the perfect shot with both the Opera House and the Harbor Bridge in the background. We only had time to see the outskirts of the gardens, but they were spectacular. We watched native birds walk through the park waiting for crumbs from visitors and were amazed to see wild golden-crested cockatoos flying throughout the trees squawking at each other. The park had towering fig trees and huge palm trees everywhere. After reaching the point and taking a few lucky pics, we caught a cab to the airport to begin our long journey home.
1 comment:
Your pictures make me want to be there soooo bad! It looks like you had a fantastic time judging by the huge smiles you both have in every single picture! Sorry it had to come to an end and you're headed home. But I'll be looking forward to hearing about it!
Heidi
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