Our last day in Sydney began where yesterday ended, at the Opera House. This time, we were there for the tour. It lasted about an hour, and it was fascinating. The story of the architect who designed it, how has design was chosen, and how the Opera House was built is a bittersweet and compelling tale. It’s well worth your time and money. I kept thinking about how much my friend Art would enjoy it. With his architecture background, he probably knows everything I learned today. But I know he’d love the tour, anyway.
On the way back to the hotel from the Opera House, we saw an oddity the distinguishes Sydney in my mind. Every big city (and a lot of small ones) I’ve ever visited has pigeons in the downtown area scrounging for food. Sydney has pigeons, too. But it also has these:
This is an Australian native known as a Rainbow Lorikeet. This one was at an outdoor cafe near the Opera House, hoping for a chance to grab a scrap of food. Roslyn took this picture with her phone from about two feet away, and the bird could not have cared less.
Next, we checked off the last item on Roslyn’s “Things I Really Want to Do in Sydney” list. We walked across the Harbor Bridge.
Some of our friends who’ve been here encouraged us climb the bridge, rather than just walk across it. That’s right, for the ridiculously low price of about $300, you can climb to the tippy top of the steel arch, up next to those flag poles. You can’t take a picture, because they won’t let you carry anything. You’ll be up there with the birds and helicopters, just 440 feet above the water. But there’s nothing to fear. You can’t fall off because you’re wearing a body harness. No one’s died yet!
No, thank you. We were quite content with the view from the pedestrian walkway.
Even on a cloudy day, it’s a great view. And it doesn’t cost a penny. Walking across the bridge and back took less than an hour.
Then Roslyn’s cousin Carol and her husband Victor picked us up so we could spend the afternoon together. We drove out to Manly, a suburb popular for it’s beautiful beach. We had a late lunch at an outdoor cafe and strolled down the beach crowded with surfers and sunbathers (it’s still summer vacation for the kids). But the best part was just having the chance to get better acquainted with family we really hadn’t known before this trip.
We leave Sydney tomorrow morning, and I’m sorry to go so soon. But I’m very excited for what’s to come!