A Great Trip to Australia
|
The Hendersons Getting to Australia and Sydney |
|
A Great Trip to Australia |
|
|
25 April 2019 Thursday Our Aussie adventure begins. This trip has been five months in
the making. We had no idea how big Australia is, so had to be careful to
identify and prioritize what we wanted to see. We found that one of two Aussie
certified travel agents in Texas is located in Frisco, so we created a document
of our highlights, along with approximate number of days in each and total
travel budget. In the end we came within a few hundred dollars of the budget but
dropped Tasmania and a few touristy dinners. Our flight departed DFW about 22:30. We found the A380 quite comfortable, having opted for Premium Economy, which had more legroom, greater seatback recline and better amenities and food than Economy. 27 April 2019 Saturday We landed in Sydney about 7:00am on 27 May, having crossed the
International Date Line and lost a day. The flight was 17 hours in all. We
cleared passport control easily, but we're very disappointed to find that our
luggage hadn't made it to Sydney. We checked with QANTAS and left our contact
information, then met our driver who took us to the Park Royal Darling Harbour
hotel. As it was still early, our room wasn't ready, so we had a light breakfast
in the hotel. While waiting for a seat we met a trio from Venezia, father,
mother and adult daughter, and had a brief chat. They were so happy to be able
to speak Italian, even for only a few minutes. We were happy as well since we've
had no chance to speak Italian for a year. Our room was ready, so we had a shower and tried to freshen up
and went out for our first tour, a walking tour of The Rocks, the area of Sydney
that was first settled by the British in the late 1780s. Most people are aware
that Australia was originally a penal colony because after the American
Revolution the British didn't have a place to send the convicts. As it turns
out, convicts is rather a harsh term. They were generally petty criminals, not
hardened felons. They weren't incarcerated, as escape would have been suicide.
In the 1970s the city government wanted to tear The Rocks down
and replace the old buildings with modern skyscrapers. The plan was halted part
way through so the old sections were somewhat preserved. For a number of years
they served as subsidized housing, but now have been gentrified and are small
but very expensive houses. We learned over the next few days that housing in Sydney is
extremely expensive, in fact it seems to be a point of pride for the tour
guides. The Rocks is an interesting area, but rather touristy, so we
were glad to be staying in another part of town. We took a cab back to the hotel, then went for a walk. As the
hotel is next to Chinatown, it was almost impossible to find a restaurant that
wasn't Chinese. We ended up at a Peruvian restaurant and had a light lunch. We
went back to the hotel, still no luggage, so made our way to the very bustling
shopping area. I needed a pair of close toed shoes for our Sydney Opera House
tour the next day and we both needed under clothes. The first place I stopped to
look at shoes was lovely but I'm not up to paying $450 for a pair of shoes. We
found a Footlocker store and I found a pair of Nikes for about $60 and we'll be
reimbursed by the travel insurance company. Shopping seems to be a religion of the Chinese who are
visiting Sydney. They actually queue in front of the Gucci store. We found a department store and I bought some under clothes,
then walked along the main street and found a men's wear store for Tom. The
clerk who helped us was from Brazil. Apparently the political, economic and
safety situation there is very bad. She is finding more opportunity in Sydney
than she would at home. We deposited our purchases at the hotel, then found a spa
nearby and each had a very much needed massage. We had spotted a Greek restaurant near our hotel, so walked
there for dinner. We shared a lovely roasted lamb shoulder with Mediterranean
vegetables. Our waitress was a nice young woman from Salerno, in the south of
Italy. we got another chance to speak Italian! the opportunities for young
people in Italy are so scarce that she has had to move to Sydney for work. She
gave me the requisite kisses on each cheek as we left. Still no luggage, but early to bed as we have a tour of the
beautiful Sydney Opera House tomorrow. 28 April 2019 Sunday Up early, then a cab to the Opera House. It is usually called
the iconic Opera House for good reason. I'm glad I bought the new shoes as they
take safety seriously. Our tour guide, Alexander, is a sound and light
technician at the opera House and he has dozens of interesting stories and great
knowledge of the workings of the place. We had no idea how much technology there
was in a major opera House, computers everywhere, a lot of computerized
mechanisms, industrial sized elevator, trap doors, ropes, pulleys, quite
amazing. Sets may be rented to other companies and may end up traveling the
world. There are six theaters in the Opera House, ranging from seating about 300
to over 2000. Tom had a chance to test the acoustics in the two largest theaters
by singing the opening phrase from Nessun Dorma. We took a chance to conduct an
imaginary orchestra in the pit of the Joan Sutherland theater. We both thought
it was the best tour we've ever had.
After the tour, the group (there were only 12 of us) had
breakfast outside with a view of the famous Harbour Bridge. We took a cab back to the hotel, still
no luggage. Had a very light lunch and prepared for our next tour, a private
vehicle tour of most of the city. We were met by our driver, Rowan, at the
hotel. There was one other passenger, a man from San
Francisco. Sydney is huge with over five million in
the greater metropolitan area or about 1 in 5 of every persons living in
Australia. There are hundreds of high rises, some attractive, others just plain
ugly. The original Georgian and Victorian architecture is beautiful, mostly
brick or sandstone. We didn't have time to go to the arboretum, unfortunately,
it looks beautiful, situated above the harbor. Rowan drove through the posh
areas and we had a stop at Bondi Beach. At one time the women went topless here,
but Australia has the highest rate of melanoma in the world, so people are being
much more cautious.
Rowan told us some interesting things, such as school children
all wear uniforms, both in public and private schools and they must wear a hat
when outside for recess; no hat no play. The Harbour Bridge is as famous as the Opera House. It was
built during the Great Depresssion, sort of a public works project. Originally
the city government wanted only two lanes, thinking that would be adequate.
Fortunately, the architect insisted on eight lanes plus a rail line. As a
result, the growth in the opposite side has been very high with some extremely
expensive homes overlooking the beautiful harbour. It is still the longest
bridge of its type in the world. Rowan dropped us off in the shopping area and we bought a few
more things, then walked back to the hotel. Tom checked the QANTAS lost luggage
site and our luggage had been found, but no idea of where - Dallas? Sydney?
Dubai? We had dinner in the hotel restaurant. We ordered a ravioli
starter, barramundI, a sea bass from this area. It came with pureed carrots and
fresh asparagus. We shared both then had a dessert of tiramisu. The service and
food were good, but there was a group of about 12 teenage Asian girls
celebrating the birthday of one of them. They were really loud and constantly
giggling. We asked the hostess to ask them to keep it down. We found the noise
very annoying. Back to our room, a phone call to QANTAS and the message that
our luggage was going to be delivered in 30 minutes. Joy! We had another busy
day ahead of us and didn't want to have to wear the same clothes another day. 29 April 2019 Monday We found a little coffee shop just around the corner from our
hotel, so had breakfast there, then took a cab to the Circular Quay for a Hop On
Hop Off tour of the Sydney Harbour, which we've learned is the largest natural
harbour in the world. The route map was really confusing, so our timing wasn't
great and we ended up missing a place called Manly, said to be so named because
when the British got there the aboriginals threw spears at them and were
scantily clad. The tours went to the outer area of the harbor where three
Japanese mini subs managed to get into the harbour at the beginning of WWII. The
Aussies managed to sink two of them, the third escaped but the wreckage was
found near the entrance to the harbor. It is surprising to us how close the
Japanese came to invading Australia. In fact, they managed to bomb Darwin, but
we're told that the government kept it hushed for many years, apparently until a
Freedom of Information Act passed and someone requested that the news be
disclosed.
After the tour, we went to the seafood market which Rowan had
pointed out to us. Our planning was a bit faulty and we ended up having lunch at
what probably was the only poor restaurant in the market. Rowan had explained to
us that this is the third most popular tourist attraction in Sydney. Early in
the morning they have a Dutch auction, which is sort of a reverse of a
traditional auction in that the opening ask is set above the expected price,
then lowered until someone bids on the seafood. It is one of the largest sea
food markets In the world. After the commercial sales are done for the day, the
market's retail stalls open.
I have observed in the various public women's rooms that there
are posters showing users how to sit on a toilet. I assume this is because
Western toilets aren't familiar to the Asian visitors. Chinese make up the
greatest number of tourists to Australia now.
We walked back to the harbor and spent some time at the National Maritime Museum, which has a restored iron hull sailing ship, plus some retired Australian Navy vessels.
We then headed back to the hotel and checked
out an Italian restaurant on the pier. We went back to our room, had a bit of a
nap, then went back to the restaurant for dinner. Our waiter was from Brescia,
Italy. Like the young woman from Salerno, he has left Italy because the
opportunities in that country are so poor. Dinner was good, though, and we
enjoyed yet another chance to speak Italian. We had a mushroom appetizer,
fettuccine with prawns and a rosewater panna cotta. Our appetites are smaller
now than they used to be, so we usually split each course. 30 April 2019 Tuesday Our last day in Sydney. We were picked up at the hotel by our
guide and eventually had a full van of about 12 people for a full day excursion
into the Blue Mountains. They aren't really mountains like the cascades, but
more like hills. They are named blue because the eucalyptus produces sort of a
haze that makes the air look blue. The drive took about an hour after we left
greater Sydney. There are a number of small towns and villages along the route
and people have a variety of homes ranging from vacation homes to empty nester
homes to permanent homes. There is a national park, a portion of which has been
leased out to a concessionaire. In that part of the park there was coal mining
until the 1980s, after which the mines were abandoned. The miners had cut all of
the trees down, but the forest regenerated itself into something like a young
rain forest. There is a gondola over the valley from which you can see a couple
of interesting rock formations, the Three Sisters and The Orphan. There also is
a funicular and a short train. We took walk down to the valley floor, then up
some fairly steep walkways, then took the short train ride to the top. It was
pretty strenuous.
We stopped at a pub for lunch, then drove to a wildlife farm not far from Sydney, where they had many birds, some koala, kangaroo and other marsupials.
The driver, Tim, is originally from Ontario, Canada, but has lived
in Sydney for a number of years. He must have a gift for languages as he speaks
English, French, German and Spanish, plus a smattering of Japanese. He really
hates the modern architecture in Sydney, but what was interesting is that many
of the ugly buildings from the 1970s are being taken down because they can't be
maintained properly in the climate. Too bad they lost so many of the original
sandstone buildings, the ones that are remaining are in better condition than
the ugly ones. Tim took us to a ferry landing where we caught a boat ride and
went back to the wharf. We browsed some of the menus in the numerous restaurants
on the wharf and found one that looked appealing. The hostess was a lovely girl
from Sicilia, another example of a young person without future prospects leaving
home.
|
|
