Sunday & Monday – November 11 & 12, 2018
Our Land Tour of Australia ended in Sydney on Sunday, Nov. 11th after a bus tour of the city and surrounding suburbs. On the tour, we were driven to the other side of the Harbour Bridge to see a panoramic view of Sydney. Group participants below:
We drove through the beautiful affluent suburbs of Sydney out to Bondi Beach on the Pacific Ocean. This is the famous surfing beach in Australia. Unfortunately, there was no wind and the waves were flat, but that didn’t stop the hopeful surfers who sat on their boards waiting for the perfect wave.
The specially trained “Surf Rescue Team” didn’t have much business either:
The Rocks was the area of the first European settlement in 1788. It has developed into a prime tourist attraction with cobbled streets, shops, boutiques, and architecturally interesting buildings from the 19th century.
There’s a fun market every Saturday and Sunday in the historic “Rocks” neighborhood near Circular Quay. We explored the market which is located near the Harbour Bridge:
The Rocks looks across Sydney Cove to the famous Opera House. Ferries constantly crisscross the harbor taking Sydneysiders to work and back home. An “Opal” card is like our NYC Metro Card. Passengers “fill it up” with money and use it on all the ferries, trains, trams, and light-rail in and around Sydney. A typical fare is about six dollars for a half-hour ferry ride across the harbor.
This is a photo of the Australian white ibis. They approach people who are eating outdoors and try to snatch their food. The ibis acts like the pigeons and seagulls, but they are much bigger more formidable.
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is one of the main symbols of the city, connecting Dawes Point with the Kirribilli neighborhood. It replaced a ferry when it was opened in 1932. The bridge is only less than 4,000 feet long and is open to pedestrians, bicyclists, and climbers across the top.
Jeff and I walked around Circular Quay to the other iconic symbol of Sydney: the Opera House. It took 14 years to complete construction in 1973 and was very controversial. Today, it is recognized all over the world and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Under the soaring “sails” there are four performance spaces which host 2,500 performances and events per year. We signed up for an early morning Guided Backstage Tour and were also able to get tickets for a Sunday Matinee of the Australian Chamber Orchestra playing Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and The Fifth Symphony.
We explored and took many photos. Up close, the “sails” look more like interconnected clam shells. They’re actually several buildings under separate white tile roofs.
Our lunch in the Opera snack bar was served under a heavy mesh dome to protect it from soaring seagulls. The birds watched us intently with their beady eyes during our lunch.
Below is a view looking back toward Circular Quay and the Central Business District (CBD) of Sydney from the Opera House.
Sydneysiders gather to eat, drink, and enjoy the weather along the harbor at all hours of the day and night.