Wednesday, November 18, 2009

It's time to act like tourists in the big city - we're off on a bus to learn some of Sydney's history and to see the major sites. This area was settled by the British as a penal colony, and convicts were put to work building churches, hospitals and barracks. Sheep were brought in, gold was discovered nearby and all this wealth ensured a prosperous future for Sydney and the state of New South Wales. As we rode around, Wayne kept up a running commentary - we'll just mention some of the highlights (or some of the things that we remembered!).


Not far from our hotel, we passed by the state office of vital records, which has information on everyone who as “hatched, matched or dispatched” – born, married, or died. Aussie humor.

Our first stop was Mrs. Macquaries Point (named after the wife of an early Governor of the colony) - a spot which offers a beautiful view of Sydney's most recognizable sites - the Harbor Bridge and the Opera House. Here we posed for all sorts of group photos.

At the very tip of the point, convicts fashioned a stone chair for Mrs. Macquarie to sit and watch for ships entering the harbor - the story is that she was always eager for news from England and this was the perfect lookout spot. Look how easily Vicky slipped into the role ...

Further down the coast, we stopped for a walk at Bondi Beach, an area famous for its lovely beach and waves great for surfers.

A large portion of our tour took us through various neighborhoods of Sydney, which is a huge (>4 Million people) and sprawling city. We saw where the rich and famous lived (Russell Crowe, the Prime Minister, etc) and learned that the average price for a house is well over half a million dollars. Houses here are sold by auction, a system that seems to work well. So, lots of nice houses, but the major lasting impression of the city is the traffic - lots of it, with massive gridlock at rush hours - not a place you'd want to drive.

In the oldest part of the city, we stopped for a quick look at the Garrison Church, which was built for the British soldiers and marines stationed here. It was built in 1840 and is still used today.















Our bus tour ended in the old town, a section known as The Rocks, where we did a walkabout. Our fearless leader pointed out some of the oldest buildings in Sydney and told us that the name came from the fact that some of the original European settlers camped here amidst the rocks of the sandstone ridges. The early history of this area involved a collection of bars and brothels, but today it's a much more sedate place of cobblestone lanes, shops and tearooms.

The city was sponsoring a public art show in laneways and alleys around Sydney. This one is entitled "Forgotten Songs." From a canopy of birdcages, you can hear the sounds of fifty species of birds that once sang in central Sydney before Europeans settled and gradually forced them away.


We stopped for lunch at Wayne's favorite kind of place - a food court. This one resembled a three-ring circus (only noisier), but it did have variety - if you could keep your wits about you, there was every conceivable type of ethnic food, especially Asian.

From The Rocks, we walked to Circular Quai, a big complex on the harbor for large and small cruise ships, and all the ferries that move people to and from the communities around the harbor.

Near the harbor was an Aboriginal man playing the didgeridoo, an instrument made from a eucalyptus tree that has been hollowed out by termites. It was developed by the Aborigines about 1500 years ago. The didgeridoo makes a very unusual sound and takes a lot of lung power to play it.

We hopped aboard a small ship for a cruise around Sydney Harbor. From the boat, we enjoyed some nice views of the Opera House, the Harbor Bridge, and the city skyline as we joined the hustle and bustle of boats of every shape and size.

One of the wharfs was decorated for a wedding party, and we saw the young couple out posing for pictures.
















After the cruise, we took a tour of the Sydney Opera House. Its architecture is fascinating, as was the story of its designer and the great difficulties faced in moving from concept paper to reality. Our tour took us inside this massive building, which has multiple facilities for symphony orchestra, concerts, opera, ballet, and theatre. We made stops in the theatre in the round, the opera house, and the big concert hall (pictured).

Back at our hotel, we wandered around the neighborhood in search of the perfect place to eat - just too many choices! We ended up eating Portuguese grilled chicken - pretty tasty.