It has been raining for over a week, but it began after a sunny and warm Australia Day. Andrew and Elsja invited us to their friend Alex’s house for an authentic Aussie barbie on the harbor. We swam in the pool, jumped in the harbor, fished, ate shrimp on the barbie, tattooed ourselves with Aussie flags and shouted Aussie catch phrases like “Crikey” and “Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!” To be honest, I only personally did half of these things but it was an epic day regardless.
Last weekend, Hayley and I took a ferry to the Darling Harbour Maritime Museum. The museum has a large collection of nautical treasures on display, including a sailboat made of beer cans and a few large models of mythical sea creatures such as the Kraken and a half-monkey mermaid. More interesting though was the collection of century old whale bone crafts- including whale bone bones (dominoes) and a chair made from a whale vertebra. My favorite item by far was an old captain’s journal from the late 1700s. Old journals rule.
Afterward we walked about a hundred kilometers (or at least it felt like it) to the Rocks and collapsed at a table in an Irish tea shop. I had the raisin scones with my tea, and they were damn fine scones.
Hayley, Elsja, Andrew, Ben and I met at the Bondi swimming club, Icebergs, to start our Saturday afternoon Bondi-to-Coogee trek. The well maintained trail hugs the coastline for six kilometers, all of which sport breathtaking views of the eastern Sydney beaches. Dividing the crowded beaches, rocky cliffs drop off into coves of crystal clear water, offering snorkelers and scuba divers secluded- relatively speaking- access to some of the most spectacular underwater life in the world.
So that was my sales pitch. Did I do well? Perhaps this was all I needed to show you?
Gordon’s Bay, Sydney’s premium snorkeling location.
The walk passes through many amazing sites, none more unexpected and remarkable than Waverley Cemetery, final resting place of many Australian politicians, poets and athletes.
Not a bad place to spend eternity.
The McMurray grave, containing a small child-sized coffin, looks away from the ocean but is nothing short of spectacular.
Is that paint splattered on the side or something else entirely…?
Of course no Australian walk would be complete without seeing unique Australian wildlife. I present to you the Golden Silk Orb-Weaver, a toxic widow spider that spins webs strong enough to be used as fish nets.
One of three that were roasting in the sun near the trail.
The walk ends at Coogee Beach, where we went for a dip and ate yummy toasted sandwiches.
Coogee beach, definitely worth the walk on a weekday…
Afterward, Hayley and I split off from the group, riding forty minutes on a bus to Circular Quay. We watched a street performance and then boarded a harbour ferry back to Neutral Bay.
I woke up bored and peevish. I will dub today “Blue Saturday” (a rip-off of “Blue Monday”), the most depressing Saturday of the year, when the holidays have passed and endless work awaits us on Monday.
Well, I was not going to succumb to the depression. I got dressed, tied my shoe laces and ran out the door, leaving my iPod on the counter. I ran west- inland- towards Crow’s Nest and cut north. I ran over the highway and passed an old World War II monument and a stone clock tower. Shortly after I came to the most remarkable monument, Long Gully Suspension Bridge.
Before Tunks Park was created, Long Gully Bridge (aka Cammeray Suspension Bridge) crossed over the Sydney Harbour.
I walked across the bridge, then continued down to Tunks Park. The view in all directions is stunning, the harbour lies to the east, Jungle surrounds the entire park and to the west is that stunning stone bridge. It just so happens that this park is situated in the middle of Northbridge, a beautiful community that is rich with Aboriginal and European history.
I realized at this point I was lost. That can happen easily when trotting aimlessly around the meandering Sydney harbour without a map. I hiked up a hill to the south and back down a side street. It terminated in the back of Green Park, where I regularly play tennis- very lucky, indeed.
On the way back to our studio, I picked up a Frangipani flower for Hayley. It seemed like the perfect souvenir from such a wonderful place.
Hopefully Hayley won’t mind that I share her gift with the world.
And so that was the start to my day and my weekend. So much for “Blue Saturday.”
Last weekend wasn’t bad either. Hayley and I opened our Christmas presents and did Christmassy things. We packed up around 11 am, took the bus across the Harbour Bridge to the Sheraton on the Park in downtown Sydney and checked in to our new home for the next 24 hours. We spent the entire day relaxing and using the facilities, and at night we ordered room service, cracked open some champagne and watched a movie. The next morning we enjoyed a free buffet breakfast. The short vacation was just what we needed after several months of hard work.
Somethings never change, no matter where you are.
New Years Eve was also a success. We claimed our spot at St. Leonards Park around 4 PM. We relaxed, read books and drank champagne until midnight. The fireworks show spanned five different barges, not including the spectacular Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Cheers to a great year and another excellent one to come!
Our college friend Dana Facebook messaged me last Thursday with the exciting news that she would be stopping off in Sydney for twelve hours on her way to New Zealand. We chose the busiest tourist attraction possible as our meeting place, the Opera House, and took the obligatory jump-as-high-as-you-can-in–front–of-the-Opera-House picture before grabbing a quick bite at a nearby café.
Afterward, we walked around the sea wall up into the Royal Botanic Gardens where we encountered a flock of cockatoos. The first parrot we saw was drinking from a tall sprinkler head. I was amazed by his ingenuity; he had wrapped his legs around the tall pipe and was dabbing his beak into the sprinkler head. I snapped a few photos then walked back to Hayley and Dana, who now had more parrots walking casually around them. We fed them Dana’s trail mix and in came the whole flock!
It’s ok buddy, do what you gotta do!
We all took turns feeding the birds. After a while we gained their trust and they were eating straight from our hands. The birds then took this a step further by flying up to our shoulders and climbing on our legs. I’d be a liar if I said it didn’t freak me out, but I was also enjoying it immensely. The birds were surprisingly gentle. Not once did they snap at any of the food we offered; instead, they were very polite and relaxed. We took a few photos, set them back on the ground, and went on our way.
Our tribute to the Jackson Family Route March continued as we meandered through the park, around the Opera House, through Circular Quay, and into the Rocks, where we settled for a mid day snack. Dana and I both ordered the chicken sandwich and Hayley had the veggie delight. We were all very pleased. We talked about everything from traveling to college buddies, and watched a few lorikeet scavengers pick away at leftovers on recently deserted tables.
A rainbow lorikeet on a red chair with fruity, colorful drinks behind him.
Afterwards, we walked back to the Quay, said goodbye to Dana, and boarded a bus back to Neutral Bay. Hayley and I rushed off the post office to mail out a package, which is probably still there due to postal strikes. Afterward, we shopped for groceries and prepared for the Carols in the Domain concert. We left at 3:30 pm and arrived to a completely packed event. We found a small patch of grass in the far back section between two other parties, and setup camp for the evening.
Our view… note the bats going mad in the top left corner.
The event featured the winners from both Australian Idol and Australia’s Got Talent, the full Wicked cast in costume, the Wiggles, Engelbert Humperdinck, and Kate Soprano. While none of these people interest me in the least (except maybe the Wicked cast), we were looking forward to Ronan Keating’s performance since his version of “When You Say Nothing At All” was the song we chose for our first dance at our wedding. Unfortunately his performance was recorded “live” from somewhere far away and projected on all the video screens around the venue. To make matters worse, it was a duet with Kate Soprano who was there at the venue, which made for a pretty awkward performance. We had a great time though!
Sunday morning I went surfing with Freddy and the Sydney Surf Group at Freshwater. Surprisingly we got a few good waves. We surfed an hour and a half and topped it off with breakfast at a nearby café. Thanks for the wrap, Freddy!
It was an hour or so later that I started feeling sick. For the last few days, I’ve been taking it easy. I’m eating Zicam Rapid Melts like candy in the hopes that I’ll squash this bug quickly so we can enjoy our holiday to the fullest.
Which is exactly what I wish for you- a full and happy holiday that is. And do something grand for New Years, will you‽
* Forgot to mention that I created a new, extremely simple theme for my website, http://mswebby.com.
