Friday, August 17, 2012, Sydney, Australia

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We arrived in Sydney around 620am. Our flight was delayed from Perth. The pilot advised us that the Sydney airport does not allow aircraft to land before 600am due a flight curfew. Never heard of that before. Apparently the winds going from west to east are very strong and if we left on time we would arrive before 600am. The flight was uneventful other than they did serve a meal, Thai Chicken with rice. This tasted so so. Most of the trip all three of us slept because we were flying through the night.

Instead of eating breakfast in town, we went to the Qantas Lounge and ate a continental breakfast. We were only there a short time because we had to collect our luggage in baggage claim since Qantas made Cindy’s Dad and I check our carryon again. I am glad we picked up our bags when we did. They were about to take them off the belt and store.

From the Sydney airport we took a taxi into town our hotel, Marriott, a few blocks off from the harbor. We attempted to check in at 730am, however no rooms were available. We had the option of sitting in the arrivals lounge or access to the Executive Lounge on the 30^th floor. We headed to the Executive Lounge with our luggage to grab a coffee/snack to plan our day in Sydney. We decided we would take the first harbor cruise at 1000am. Cindy’s Dad booked our tour while Michael and I stayed in the lounge. At about 900am we returned to the lobby and check our bags with the bellman.

We left the hotel and headed to the harbor area. I have vivid memories of visiting this area when I traveled here in 2000. Our harbor tour tickets were available for us at the Captain Cook line. Cindy’s Dad got a $10 discount because he showed our tickets from our Captain Cook line cruise last week.

At 1000am we were on the harbor cruise ready to spend the next two hours touring the vast area of the Sydney Harbor. The sites and scenery are like no other. The Opera House and the Sydney are something you always see when see shows or advertisements on Australia. Both are breathtaking. Our tour took us by the Opera House first and then along an industrial area. Next we passed several multi-million dollar homes sitting on the sides of the hills. The narrator on the tour point out the various homes where many of the Australian wealthiest have homes. Nicole Kidman had a place, but sold it because the city would not allow her to add shutters to her windows. Further into the tour we passed by the entrance to the harbor which was a little choppy. I remember when I did this tour before the waves were high and it was hard to standup. Before the tour ended, we went underneath the harbor bridge. This was interesting being up close. We saw people hiking up the sloped part of the bridge. I had done research before we arrived to hike the bridge, but it cost $250. I attached several photos of the harbor area for your viewing. Great stuff. Enjoy.

After our tour, we walked around the harbor looking for a place to eat lunch. Before lunch we a panhandler dressed up as an aboriginal person playing a pipe with some dance music. I enclosed a photo.We ended up finding a place outdoors (no surprise) overlooking the harbor and the harbor bridge. The name is Sea Rock. We had sandwich/salad type foods, I had a cheeseburger, Michael and Cindy’s Dad had a salad. It was very nice because the sun was out, the wind speed was light, and temperature was reasonable.

We returned to the hotel after a great lunch. Thank goodness our room was ready at 100pm. The room was a king size bed configuration and they were bringing a roll away bed for one of us to sleep on. Cindy’s Dad took a nap (no sleep in over a day) Michael went and worked out and I went to the Executive Lounge to work on my travel blog and school stuff.

We left the hotel around 530pm to find a place to eat dinner before theatre started. We ended going to the same chain of restaurants, however next doors and they served steaks and seafood. They had a great food arrangement, theatre dinner specials. You can pick from a variety of dishes and the preparation time was faster than normal service.

We were so fortunate to be able to attend a show at the Sydney Opera House. What a treat and something I have never done and neither had Michael. The Opera House up close is incredibly huge. What an incredible structure. There are several theatres in the Opera House; however we were in the main theatre. We were so lucky to see South Pacific. What an awesome show and very entertaining story line. Great stuff.

We were back at the hotel by 1100pm and in bed shortly after that.

Saturday we are heading back home to the states. I don’t plan on doing any additional travel blog entries for that day, however I will probably write my final thoughts about Australia shortly after our return home.

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