THE GREAT CITY OF SYDNEY

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Day 1 - Thunder down under----NOT, but it is overcast and cool. The flight in from JFK was remarkably comfortable. Qantas served tasty dinners with complementary good Western Au wine, a lovely hot breakfast and a bag of snacks to time me over in between. I LOVE flying internationally. I also caught up on my reading on my new Kindle and enjoyed a marathon movie night; The Blind Side, Up in the Air, and Inglorious Bastards.
A fellow was on the aisle from LA to Sydney but the middle seat was empty. This time I brought a pillow and was able to get plenty of good sleep. Probably the most comfortable long flight I’ve been on. Am now waiting for my room to be ready and plan to shower, change, explore the area, and grab a bit of lunch.
I purposely did not plan anything for today as I had no idea how I would survive the round the clock travel day but I feel surprising rested and ready to go.
Lot’s of backpackers are in town. It’s late summer here and they are ready for adventure. Heard that the weather in Melbourne has been dreadful with golf ball size hail and torrential rains and flooding. Last year it was the wildfires. Sure hope things calm down when we arrive there.

Day 2- a day of disappointments, sort of. Yesterday when I arrived I was all set to go but after waiting for a room for three hours I thought a little nap would be good. Those who know me well know that that was a huge mistake. When I woke up it was 3 am and I had “napped” for 12 hours. By six I was out and about, found a coffee shop, had breakfast and a cappuccino, bought my rail, bus and ferry pass and hurried back to my room because ……………. the dreaded Abo revenge hit. Well that was not to get me down so I rode the train down to Circular Quay and checked on my Tribal Harbor cruise. This was one I was really looking forward to and I also hoped it would appease the Abo revenge gods. Unfortunately, I was the only one who signed up so the tour was cancelled. Instead I was offered a Sydney Harbour seafood buffet cruise instead.
Next it was back on the train to an area of Sydney where there are bookstores, to pick up a Field Guide to Australian Birds and find a McDonalds with free WiFi to e-mail Joe. Abo encouraged me to hurry back to the hotel and decide whether to take the cruise or not.
I took an anti Abo revenge pill, rested for a few minutes then back on the train to Circular Quay for the cruise. It was a good decision.
The day was sunny. While waiting on the pier I talked with an elegant, attractive Frenchwoman. She lives in Nice and shared that she likes Obama very much but was very angry about the Iraq war. She feels that the decision to invade Iraq put Europe in grave danger.
Once on board the food was served and the buffet was very good. I sat next to couple from Newcastle, our first port of call. They were in Sydney for the day. Her husband says she would “talk to a snake on a log” and, since I’m the same way, we had a great chat. She was born in Sydney and told stories of the town when she was a child. She pointed out where her father used to fish on the harbour and where today, folks are still fishing. Her Dad worked on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and she laments the construction of the tunnels instead of bridges.
This is one of the parts of travel that I love the most. I enjoy hearing different views and experiences.
After the tour I headed to the hotel, picking up wine and cheese for dinner. The Abo revenge seems to be gone for now.

Day 3 - Something tells me it’s all happening at the Zoo. And that something is right!!! One of Toranga Zoo’s elephants was expecting a new calf. A couple of weeks ago the keepers lost contact with the baby’s heartbeat and assumed it had died. A pall fell over the zoo and all the workers. On the morning of the 10th the baby was born. It just lay there. The keepers went to it’s side and he raised his head. He was very weak but before the day was out he was suckling and mommy elephant was tossing wheat into the air in celebration. Needless to say the Miracle at Toranga Zoo made headlines and everyone I met was excited about the news. I spent a couple of hours visiting the animals and birds and then took the ferry to Circular Quay to change to a ferry to Watson’s Bay for lunch at Doyle’s on the Wharf, a popular and famous seafood restaurant. The food was delicious and the staff very helpful and I left an appropriate tip. My server was beaming and thanking me all the way to the door. It wasn’t until later I realized I had forgotten that there is no tipping in AU. I had just automatically added one.
Day 4 - A day at the opera. La Traviotta began at 1:00. My seat was row five, center. This is a very musical opera with many arias that were familiar. The production was lush and the voices glorious. It was a magical afternoon.
I went back to the hotel to dress up a bit for the next show, Tosca. This was a whole different type of opera and a very different production. The arias were further between and I had to follow the plot by reading the translation on the screen above the stage. Even after reading the libretto the was action and characters that were not explained.
Rather than a period peace it was staged as if happening today. There was graphic sex and an emphasis on politics and the ending had been changed. I understand that half the opening night audience booed. It was certainly a different experience.

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