Digger Posted November 20, 2016 Share Posted November 20, 2016 As most of you already know, Gael & I had a rather unusual trip to Sydney last week. Not wanting to belabour this for most of you that have heard what I have had to say already, but there may be some who will be interested in our experiences of the city called Sydney. For a start we didn't fly or drive which would be our usual options, we went by ship!! Last Sunday 13th we travelled to Melbourne by coach and boarded the Emerald Princess which is a (almost) 300 metre "city" full of luxury. We haven't been on a cruise before and this very short experience was intended to give us an idea if we would like to do something longer. As we were only on there for a couple of nights we opted for some luxury with a "Mini Suite" and we weren't disappointed, it was luxurious! Initially it was difficult finding our way around this 17 floor colossus and we relied heavily on a map. There were a series of restaurants and a 24 hour buffet which could be a trap! One day we had breakfast twice! Well it really was nice. Standard of restaurant meals was very good but you could opt for top quality with some of the places which had a surcharge of $29 each in ship credits. WE started off with a bunch of free credits that you get for booking plus another $50 for me for being a returned serviceman (Thank you P&O). As we weren't on for longI encouraged Gael to spend the balance of the money in the shops. She came back with perfume and a couple of tops for herself and a Quicksilver polo shirt for me. Best of all Gael bought me a box of Butlers Irish Whisky chocolates which were to die for! Most of the way we experience 2 1/2 metre seas but this giant barely moved, it was a comfortable ride! All too soon we were in Sydney Harbour, coming through the heads at 0430 and were greeted by 6 tugboats lined up and letting off Roman Candle style fireworks to welcome the ship to Sydney Harbour for the firs time. As we passed the sun was emerging from the sea behind the Opera House. It was a beautiful Sydney morning! We disembarked at 0620 and trundled our cases past Circular Quay and found a cafe where we had coffee and waited until we could ring the apartment in town where we were staying. Having waited until they were open we taxied to Martin Place right in the centre of town and left our luggage at reception as we couldn't get access to our apartment until 1100 Hrs. Relieved of our burden we made our way to a food mall in Martin Place and relaxed until we could move to our accommodationt. Sydney is a vibrant multi cultural place and we found it exciting to be there. The best part is that it really works! All the non European Aussies we struck there were friendly and respectful, all well dressed and seemed happy. Sydney is a clean city and never once did we feel threatened or insecure. Our accomodation was in a block of serviced apartments which were much more reasonable than hotels which were all over $300 a night! We paid $220 a night for a lovely self contained accomodation that consisted of one comfortable bedroom with a balcony and outdoor setting, a well equipped full kitchen with a quality modern appliances inc. dishwasher, a comfortable lounge area with comfortable furniture and a spacious bedroom with a great bed. We only had to walk 50 metres and we were in the thick of things! Next door was a Japanese restaurant which looked very interesting, we will certainly go there next time we are in Sydney! Sydney abounds with restaurants and bars, it's a very lively scene! As we were up at 0430 we had a bit of a rest and then made our way down Pitt Street to Circular Quay, it was an easy walk. Circular Quay is the ferry hub to destinations around this magnificent harbour. It was flat out busy! Our ship had disgorged 3000 passengers and there were other cruises in harbour and there were people everywhere enjoying the town. Not far past C.Q. we arrived at the Opera House, and what a sight that is with it's soaring sails catching the sun and gleaming in it's full magnificence! The forecourt around the Opera House was alive and well with thousands of people enjoying the warm sun and a variety of food and drink outlets available to them there. As an Aussie those surroundings made the hair on the back of my neck rise up, as there is nothing more iconic than the opera house sails rising behind you, the harbour bridge a short distance away and Sydney CBD tucked in between. Being surrounded by thousands of happy people also made us feel good. On the way back we stopped for a light meal amongst all this activity surrounded by all races and colours of people. We saw Buddhist Monks in their saffron robes chatting away as they were, passing, an Aboriginal playing a rocking didge, street performers of all variety, even an ancient Asian bloke with a whispy beard who had a board on his back and front saying something about Horney and Love...he was a scream! That night I rang a mate Stuart (Eggs) whom I became friends with over years on the Epi forum and asked if he and his lovely wife would like to join us in Chinatown for a meal, and we arranged to meet the following night....good news indeed! Wednesday we walked down Pitt Street again to circular Quay and after securing an "Opal Card" we jumped on a Sydney ferry and headed off to Manley on the opposite shore, passing the heads on the way. It is always great being on Sydney harbour, surely the best harbour in the world. Speaking of iconic, these ferries have been around forever but every day they make their way around the harbour carrying people cheaply and reliably to wherever they need to go. Good fun! Manley was jumping! People everywhere making their way to the beach. We bought fish & chips for lunch and sat near the beach watching people surf or tan. There were groups of young girls everywhere, young Asians and others in search of men? (Really my imagination!) Heaps of cafes, restaurants and shops in "The Corso" and a real holiday feel here. That night it was into a taxi and off to Chinatown to meet with Stu and a great evening with terrific company. As he had the day off Stu offered to take us out to the Blue Mountains the following day and we gratefully accepted. It was a 1 1/2 hour drive but in Sydney morning traffic it was probably more like 2 hours. The Blue Mountains are part of the Great Dividing range that runs up the eastern coast of Australia and a popular scenic spot is looking at the "3 Sisters" an unusual rock formation. Later we had lunch at a beautifully restored 1950's cafe in Katoomba. Friday was time to come home which via taxi, plane, bus, train and taxi we finally did at 5.30 pm, somewhat tired! It was only a few days but we had crammed so much into those days that it was a rich experience. Anyone coming to Oz has to spend time in Sydney which as far as capital cities is concerned is surely the crown jewel! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glp2012 Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Thank you for letting me live vicariously through your post. I feel like I went on vacation with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted November 21, 2016 Author Share Posted November 21, 2016 I was hoping that what I posted would help you do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Australia looks better and better every time I see photos. If Deb and I can ever afford to go we will have to visit Sidney. Out of all 50 states here, there's only one state I haven't been to. District of Columbia. So glad you had a wonderful vacation and those memories will stay with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted November 21, 2016 Author Share Posted November 21, 2016 Thanks mate, pleased you found it interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie brown Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 What an excursion! Outstanding, Digger! CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Great pics Dig! Makes me want go myself.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Thanks for sharing. Your post brought back fond memories. I had the good fortune to visit Sydney on a business trip back in February 2008. I stayed at the Marriott on Circular Quay so I was within walking distance of the Opera House, Queen Victoria Square and other points of interest. I also found time to do a harbor ferry tour and an excursion to Manley Beach. Sydney is a great place. Normally I would have taken some leave and spent more time there, but I'd had knee surgery a month earlier and was not getting around all that well, especially after the 14 1/2 hour flight from LAX to Sydney. I would like to return to Australia someday and visit some other parts of the country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Scales Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 I've lived there 3 times over the years and it's a good town! I probably go back for work trips around 10 times a year and enjoy the city centre - for a big place it's still pretty relaxed to get around. Must be few more beautiful settings for major cities anywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted November 21, 2016 Author Share Posted November 21, 2016 I've lived there 3 times over the years and it's a good town! I probably go back for work trips around 10 times a year and enjoy the city centre - for a big place it's still pretty relaxed to get around. Must be few more beautiful settings for major cities anywhere. What time did your flight land on Friday Scalesie? We were supposed to leave at 0900 but after pushback we sat for about 10 minutes and then the pilot announced that there was a light on the control panel that had failed and so we taxied to engineering and sat for an hour waiting for the replacement to be carried out. Lost so much time between that and the Skybus delays that we caught our train by 5 minutes only! I thought I read that QF2 got back at about 0745?? We find that Sydney is a clean city, very multi cultural but didn't seem frenetic like other big cities we have experienced. Yes some places there are lots of people but they all seem to get on alright and the places we were we felt quite safe. Considering that we are "bushies" and unused to all those people, that is saying something. Did you have a good trip? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted November 21, 2016 Author Share Posted November 21, 2016 Thanks for sharing. Your post brought back fond memories. I had the good fortune to visit Sydney on a business trip back in February 2008. I stayed at the Marriott on Circular Quay so I was within walking distance of the Opera House, Queen Victoria Square and other points of interest. I also found time to do a harbor ferry tour and an excursion to Manley Beach. Sydney is a great place. Normally I would have taken some leave and spent more time there, but I'd had knee surgery a month earlier and was not getting around all that well, especially after the 14 1/2 hour flight from LAX to Sydney. I would like to return to Australia someday and visit some other parts of the country. I hope you can and am pleased that you enjoyed our country. Thanks for your comments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Scales Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 What time did your flight land on Friday Scalesie? We were supposed to leave at 0900 but after pushback we sat for about 10 minutes and then the pilot announced that there was a light on the control panel that had failed and so we taxied to engineering and sat for an hour waiting for the replacement to be carried out. Lost so much time between that and the Skybus delays that we caught our train by 5 minutes only! I thought I read that QF2 got back at about 0745?? Did you have a good trip? Yes thanks Dig. A good short trip, mainly work in London and a bit in Paris. I saw your note when I got home in another thread - I was in the Q Club when you were waiting for your flight and would have come and said hi, but for reasons known only to themselves QANTAS do not allow you to log onto the Gibson Lounge on their computers (Rex do, Virgin do, so...??) so I didn't see it at the time. Didn't have a lot of free time but went to the local pub each night for a pint or two and England had 2 soccer matches in that time so watched them in the pub which was cool. Guitar related... well I went to Denmark St and played some nice instruments. I went and saw a gig at the 100 Club which was a mighty punk venue in the day and is still like a grotty, grimy trip back in time to the 70's That was great fun! and I was in the area so walked past Jimmy Page's house - was a nice Sunday arvo so I thought he might be out pushing the Victa, but no sign. 100 Club gig and Pagey's place pics I took below... Still, nice to be home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tman Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Outstanding! Glad you had a great time and what a cool way to get there! I love Sydney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tx-ogre Posted November 22, 2016 Share Posted November 22, 2016 I hope you can and am pleased that you enjoyed our country. Thanks for your comments. I really would like to see an AFL game in person. We get 2-3 games a week on Fox Sports 1 and 2 during the season here in the States. I just set my DvR to record them all. I almost forgot: Sydney was the first and only place that offered a hamburger with a fried egg, and a slice of pineapple and a beet slice. All good, except for the beet. 😳 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger Posted November 22, 2016 Author Share Posted November 22, 2016 I really would like to see an AFL game in person. We get 2-3 games a week on Fox Sports 1 and 2 during the season here in the States. I just set my DvR to record them all. I almost forgot: Sydney was the first and only place that offered a hamburger with a fried egg, and a slice of pineapple and a beet slice. All good, except for the beet. 😳 A good AFL game is awesome! Vey exciting and very skilful. I don't go the pineapple but always have an egg. Beetroot is Australian, I'll leave at at that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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