The Hills Hit The Harbour City

Saturday

It was still dark as midnight when we left the Crowne Plaza and hopped in a cab at 6:15am. It’s kind of weird having such short winter days in such a warm, tropical place. The flights available to get from Darwin back to Tauranga are pretty onerous, timewise. We would have been looking at a 20+ hour trip unless we left at 1:45am – not an enticing option with a 5 year-old. So, we decided to break up the journey with a day in Sydney. We flew on JetStar, a new low-fare subsidiary of Qantas, famous for charging extra for nearly everything.

Sherry drying Ro's socks before our flight

While waiting for the plane, we picked up a few last-minute souvenirs, and Ro got a die-cast Qantas plane for his collection (he loves planes). As we boarded, we noted that the same lady who had puked on our van ride to the Jumping Crocodiles cruise was sitting just one row up and across the aisle. Mark envisioned her wheeling around out of her seat to run to the bathroom and spewing all over him. Fortunately, that never materialized.

Ro thankfully slept for the second half of the flight; we knew he would need extra rest for the day ahead. Looking out the plane window at the Outback passing underneath, it looked a lot like the American southwest, only flatter with redder dirt and fewer roads. With the exception of Alice Springs, there’s not a whole lot in the middle of Australia. All the cities of any appreciable size are on the coast, and it was easy to see why. As we gathered our belongings to stow them for landing, we discovered Ro had been sleeping on his (capless) red magic marker, and thus had red markings all over his shorts.

Ro exploring the cockpit after we landed in Sydney

Our taxi driver (from Bangladesh) offered us the choice of taking the expressway (and paying an extra $5 toll), or taking the city streets. Figuring it would be a wash, we elected to see a little more of the city so he took us through the neighborhood of Darlinghurst which was filled with gorgeous row houses, and down Oxford Street, which is the famed local gay district. Ro wondered what was so funny as we passed storefronts with double-entendre names like Thai Me Up, The Probe, Leather Connection, and Spank! Records.

We were duly impressed when we arrived at The Intercontinental, which is right next to the Royal Botanic Gardens. Normally, this place would have been waaaayyy out of our budget, but Mark used some of his Priority Club points to give us a free stay. Guess staying in all those crappy Holiday Inns while interviewing for residency and doing locums paid off, eh? In the lobby, they had live piano music to accompany their locally famous Saturday afternoon high tea. Although we were all famished, we figured $50 per person for a cuppa and some bikkies was a bit much.

Ro wanted to raid the minibar as soon as we got into the room, and was downright testy when we told him he couldn’t. He did enjoy, however, repeatedly opening the window to the bathroom. Yes, that’s right, there was a pane of frosted glass on a hinge that you simply pushed open to see into the bathroom. No lock. I’m not sure who thought this was a good idea, but they obviously didn’t take inquisitive 5 year-olds into account.

"Put your finger in the water, daddy!"

Swine flu paranoia still going strong

We coaxed Ro out of the room with the promise of food, and headed downstairs. He stopped to play in the fountain outside the hotel, then we walked down Macquarie St alongside the botanical gardens towards the Sydney Opera House, figuring there had to be something to eat around there. We were soon inundated with choices, all of which looked good, if a bit overpriced. But hey, you’re paying for the view, not the food. The most reasonably priced place also turned out to be one of the closest to the Opera House, a little gathering of tables alongside Sydney Cove called Portobello Café. The waiters were very patient with Ro, who had trouble making up his mind, and they even brought him a “baby chino” (what Kiwis call a “fluffy”) when Sherry ordered her cappuccino. Ro’s reliable restaurant staples are chicken nuggets, rice, plain spaghetti, or cheese pizza. Today it was a Margherita pizza, which was close enough. Mark & Sherry enjoyed a big plate of antipasto; the roasted red peppers were particularly good. Although we could have eaten more, it was a late lunch and we knew we were going to have a big dinner.

Ro eating the foam off his baby chino

There are a few city landmarks in the world so iconic, that so permeate our popular culture that you feel like you’ve already been there a hundred times. Times Square, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Mall in Washington, Piccadilly, the Eiffel Tower, the list goes on. The Sydney Opera House is a beautiful, striking building, to be sure, but what sets it apart from all those other places is what’s around it. Sydney Harbour is quite possibly the most gorgeous cityscape we’ve ever seen. Granted, we’ve never been to Rio de Janeiro or Hong Kong, but Sydney was pretty darn impressive.

Sherry & Ro with "The Coathanger" in background

Sherry at Sydney Opera House. Note the live band below

Ro & Sherry at Sydney Cove

The Opera House, which features daily performances year-round, is set out on a peninsula. All of its souvenir shops, cafes, and ancillary services are below ground level, so nothing obstructs your view - very well thought out. Ro’s favorite part of the place was the large cement support ramps, which made for good sliding down (only later did we notice the sign saying “Keep Off”), and the steps leading up to the Opera House, which made for good jumping down.

Ro wanted to be the tallest

Leave it to Ro to climb Sydney Opera House

The Hills in Sydney

As much as we would have liked to hang out at the Opera House longer, we only had one day in Sydney, and these winter days don’t last very long, so we moved on. Some ominous-looking rain clouds hung over the city all day, but it fortunately never rained. We walked up through the botanical gardens, where a wedding was being held, and continued on to a sort of sculpture garden where all the sculptures were old columns and facades from old buildings. We followed a paved trail that runs from the park over Macquarie St and continues alongside the expressway all the way to and across Harbour Bridge. The path is called Cahill Walk, and features some truly impressive views of Sydney Cove, the Opera House, Harbour Bridge, and the historic neighborhood known as The Rocks.

Sherry at the Opera House with the botanical gardens in background

Ro in the Royal Botanic Gardens

Where old facades go to die

Ro overlooking Sydney Cove

Don't ask...lol

The Hills at Circular Quay

Looking north on George Street in The Rocks from Cahill Walk

As we neared the Harbour Bridge, Ro was starting to fade; we had already done quite a bit of walking, and we were all getting thirsty. We had briefly entertained the thought of doing the whole 3.5 hour BridgeClimb experience, where you are led up onto the arched part of the bridge, tethered to a safety line, but kids have to be 10 years old to do it. Fortunately, after a little prodding, Ro caught his second wind and we made it across the bridge to Milsons Point, enjoying the sight of the city lights coming on as the sun set. We promptly stopped in a convenience store for two big bottles of water, then made our way down to the shore to check out Luna Park, which we had seen from the Opera House.

Sherry & Ro crossing Sydney Harbour Bridge

Mark & Ro savoring the view of the Opera House

Sydney as dusk approaches

View from Milsons Point

Luna Park is a Coney Island type amusement park on the north side of Sydney Harbour, at the foot of the bridge. The Ferris wheel can be seen easily from across the harbour, and that’s what Ro wanted to ride. Not much bigger than a Ferris wheel at a state fair, The London Eye it wasn’t, but Ro still had fun. And seeing the lights of Luna Park below us and its Crystal Palace (where the previously mentioned wedding couple were having their reception) made us remember what it was like to be a kid at a carnival again. For anyone thinking of going, Luna Park is fairly pricey if you’re just staying a short time, but would be more reasonable if you were going to spend a whole afternoon or evening there. After riding the Ferris wheel, we hopped on a water taxi to take us to Darling Harbour. The water taxis seem to take you nearly everywhere in Sydney a tourist would want to go, except maybe the beach, and it’s a lot nicer than fighting city traffic in a rental car.

Ro & Sherry at the entrance to Luna Park

Sherry at Luna Park

Ro enjoying the Ferris wheel

Ro on the water taxi in Darling Harbour

For anyone who’s ever seen Finding Nemo, you should be familiar with our next stop: the Sydney Aquarium! Easily the best aquarium we’ve been to, including Monterey and Baltimore, the Sydney Aquarium gets a lot of mileage out of just using sealife native to Australia. Most aquariums have sharks, but Sydney’s were a lot bigger and there was a lot more of them. They even had dugongs, a relative of the Florida manatee. Guess what they feed the dugongs - Romaine lettuce leaves hand-inserted into racks so it stands on end – that’s right, dugongs basically live on Caesar salad! Although a bit cheesy and patronizing, there was a SpongeBob theme in many of the exhibits, but the kids got a kick out of it, and the fish didn’t seem to mind. Plenty of real-life Nemos and Dorys, too.

A once-in-a-lifetime gathering: crocs, Ro, & SpongeBob

Ro was too busy looking at the dugongs to pose

A stingray soars above Sherry

Ro in one of several tunnels at Sydney Aquarium

This shark seemed to like Sherry a lot

Word spreads fast among sharks. Note Squidward's house

Ro soooo wanted to get in the tank to meet them

After spending a couple of hours at the aquarium, we were all hungry, so we walked along Cockle Bay (the next cove over from Sydney Cove). There were tons of restaurants, all of which were crowded with patrons watching the Wallabies rugby union test match against France. After perusing some menus, we settled on Adria Rybar & Grill. The food was very good; Mark had a Barramundi fillet, and Sherry the chicken prosciutto. Not willing to waver from his usual fare, Ro went with spaghetti noodles, although we were amazed that he actually tried red sauce for the first time…and liked it! The waiter had wisely brought Ro’s food out first, but his dinner was soon interrupted by the crackle and boom of fireworks over Darling Harbour. Ro immediately rushed to the railing to watch the show, jumping up and down with giddy delight. By the time he got back to his food, he apparently forgot that he liked the red sauce, muttering “what’s this stuff?” with a look of disgust on his face. Oh well.

Looking over the kids menu at Adria

"Look, Mommy! Fireworks!"

Ro got his 4th of July fireworks a week early

Do you think Ro liked his dessert?

After dinner, we walked past some nightclubs on our way back to the hotel. Mark’s observation: there seemed to be a LOT of young women in Sydney dressed alike in barely-there miniskirts with leggings to keep their legs warm, with glittery tops and stiletto heels. Either we stumbled into a red light district and didn’t know it, or we’re getting old. Is the mini with leggings a trend back in the States and we missed it? Have the 80’s recycled already? Or is Oz just a quarter-century behind Los Angeles?

We walked back to our hotel through the CBD (Central Business District), enjoying the hustle and bustle of such a cosmopolitan city on a beautiful Saturday night. Ro rode on Mark’s shoulders to speed things along, since it was way past Ro’s bedtime. Sherry surprised Ro when we got up to the room and let him work the electric window blind. You’d think he’d discovered uranium when he hit that switch. Mark went up to the top floor to check out the pool, but it was closed. While up there he snuck into the Ambassador Club behind another patron. He turned on his heels before the bouncer could question him, but not before taking in an amazing expansive view of the city. No time to take a pic, unfortunately. Once back in our room, Sherry put the kettle on and we enjoyed a cuppa as we wrote more postcards, and Mark savored watching something he hadn’t seen in 5 months: SportsCenter! With American sports!

Ro sacked out hard after a long day exploring Sydney