Sydney!

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I love Sydney! It is so clean, so modern, so "with it," just plain wonderful. We arrived early Saturday morning as the sun was coming up. Truly incredible to step out on the deck and see the Opera House dead ahead with the famous Bridge beyond it. As we got nearer I could see that the roof of the Opera House is not just painted white or made of a solid white material, but is actually covered in what look like bathroom tiles in a white and beige pattern. It really was almost overwhelming to cruise past this icon. The usual ship berth near the Opera House was occupied by another, larger ship (P&O's Arcadia), so we had to continue on to Darling Harbour which meant we got to go under the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Too cool! Our berth is near a beautifully redeveloped area filled with sidewalk cafes, museums and shops. Luckily our cabin looks out at the harbor so we can watch the non-stop traffic of ferries, tour boats and water taxis right from our balcony. There's a casino across the way that puts on a spectacular light display all night long.

Mom and I took a tour of the Opera House on Saturday. We had a fantastic guide whose love of the place was clearly evident. The largest hall, the Concert Hall, makes our Orchestra Hall look like Tornstrom in comparison. It took 14 years to build...and much controversy...but what an amazing building. The guide said one of the advantages of the tile roof was that it was self-cleaning. Also, that it reflected the light well so that it changed color depending on the sky conditions. Lots and lots of steps, though. Obviously built before handicap accessibilty was an issue!

We took a ferry back to our ship which was fun because it took us around the harbor a bit. It was a long walk back from the ferry port, but along a pleasant boardwalk.

Yesterday we went to Chinatown, to a place called Paddy's Market which sells everything under the sun. Just a crushing mass of people of every nationality. We actually bought some skirts and tops at an Indian stall and had a great Chinese lunch, too. The walk back to the ship was fascinating because we went through the part of town where many of the Olympic events were held in 2000. It was clearly designed to handle large crowds and, this being a Sunday in mid-summer, there were plenty of people around.

This morning I took off on my own to The Rocks, the really old part of town where the fancy shops and hotels are. I stopped at Sydney's most famous opal store and almost spent a fortune on a beautiful pendant. Instead I continued down the street and, figuring I had just saved a lot of money, went on to buy a whole bunch of clothes, a much cheaper pendant and, for mom, a nice wool cap to replace the one she's been wearing for 25 years. The Rocks area is called that because it juts out into the harbor on high rocks. So it is a very hilly area crammed with winding lanes and interesting old buildings. Really a wonderful place to wander around. A little bit too hot today, though, and with all my packages I couldn't wander too long.

Sydney is the second of the three places on the cruise where passengers could leave or join. Only 290 of the 800 on board are going all the way around (as we are) so we are seeing a significant changeover in our floating city's population today. We sail this afternoon at 5:00 which will give us another chance to see the Opera House and the rest of the harbor before we set out to sea. Wednesday we will be in Tasmania.

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