Friday – November 23, 2018
Jeff and I rode public transportation and walked all over the city of Sydney during our two weeks here. We obtained Opal cards and put some money on them to have access to all the buses, trains, ferries, and light-rail trams all over the city. The cost of transportation depended on the distance. Most ferry rides were about six Australian dollars. The trains and trams were just a couple of Aussie dollars. Great public transportation system!
The main commercial street down the center of Sydney is George Street. Most of the street was closed to traffic because a light-rail tram system was being built. I’d love to come back and see it in action.
Sydney is developed with modern high-rise office and apartment buildings. A few original sand-stone buildings are still standing as a reminder of Sydney’s elegant Victorian British roots. The Strand Arcade is one of those original buildings. Today the Strand houses Australian high-end boutiques, tailors and dressmakers, a custom shoe manufacturer, a bridal salon, art gallery, jewelers, a chocolatier, and several restaurants.
At the other end of the commercial shopping spectrum was Market City. This was a low-end marketplace with outlet stores, a supermarket, Paddy’s Market filled with inexpensive tourist souvenirs, and an Asian food-court.
Did I mention the Australian White Ibis? They’re everywhere, like giant pigeons or our sparrows, picking up bits of food dropped by careless people. Their heads, tails, and feet are black and their bodies are off-white or light gray, so I don’t know how they were named.
Buskers were at all the prime tourist locations. The young man playing the didgeridoo in the photo below was near the train station on Circular Quay. He was very good!
