Arrived Sydney around 22:00 and cleared security and quarantine checks fairly quickly. By the time we'd walked around to the meeting point, the taxi driver was waiting for us. He must have been in a hurry to get home as sped through the narrow lanes to our hotel (Breakfree on George) for 22:30 ish. The hotel didn't have the expected health club according to the info off the web site. Oh well that's one good intention out the window! ... read more

Got to Newcastle Airport, kindly dropped off by Liz at around 11:30. Didn't have to wait long to drop off our bags. Showed the check-in desk attendant our e-Boarding cards for both flights to Dubai then onward to Sydney. I was about to leave when Brian asked whether the bags were going straight through. She had to call over the supervisor to be able to reprint the baggage tags, otherwise we would have arrived and the bags would only have gone as far as Dubai! No! didn't want any mishaps this time. Got into the air around 14:00 and arrived early in Dubai just before midnight their time. Here's some pics of the lighted wall - didn't get the indoor garden - will see if we have time on the way back. We were in the ... read more

It's the end of another year and we'd decided to watch the New Year's Eve fireworks at the Botanical Gardens. Guess what - it was cloudy and misty again when we looked out the apartment window. The gates opened at 10:00, so we made some sandwiches and packed our bags at walked through Hyde Park again to the Domain car park. Got to near the Art Gallery ignoring not realising the queue on the car park field was actually the start. At 11:20 we joined the queue, we got past barriers eventually at 13:30! Whilst we were waiting it started to rain! The crowd amused itself by doing Mexican waves. Got to our pitch near the McQuaries Point at settled down for the wait. Passed ok as I got a bottle of wine. Brian had a ... read more

Yay! the sun has got his hat on again - went back to Watsons Bay on the ferry. Glorious afternoon at Lady Bay basking and swimming. The bay is surrounded by sandstone cliffs topped with trees and bushes. At the far end there was mini waterfall from all the rain - great for a shower and freshening up after sunbathing in 26 degree plus temperatures! Of course we had fish and chips (only 1 between us this time!) from Doyles - lovely!... read more

Video of the return trip up the Katoomba Cableway in the Jamison Valley, Blue Mountains. Views of the Katoomba Falls and Orphaned Rock... read more