Today after breakfast we took the ferry, train and bus to go to Featherdale Wildlife park to see kangaroos and koalas in their element. All of the animals in this wildlife park were native to Australia- a sharp contrast from New Zealand! We saw marsupials such as koalas, wallaby, kangaroos, wombats, walleroo, and many native birds and reptiles. We got to feed the kangaroo and pet the koala who was sleeping. Koalas sleep about 18-20 hours a Day! We also saw a joey in a Mom's pouch which was a lot of fun. We all really enjoyed this park.
We returned to town. and went to the Rocks market where there were many artists displaying their wares. Jane, John and I shopped and Forrest returned to the Hero of Waterloo bar and listened to jazz. Both Jane and Beth found some opal jewlry which was fun. We met up an hour and a half later. Then we started to look for dinner options and walked up to Lord Nelsons pub- the oldest pub in Sydney- and shared a table with Rosie, Rich and John, who were from St Gambia, Australia. They have a crystal blue lake from summer to fall in their town, which is really a caldera. Stunning! They were in Sydney to go to the Opera House and hear Carmen. We talked with them for about an hour before heading out in search of food. We then had a wonderful barramundi fish dinner at the Cafe on the Rocks and were talking about our upcoming sailing trip in the Whitsunday islands off Airlie Beach. Barramundi is Australia's most widely eaten fish. It was then that we started hearing the news of Cyclone Debbie and realized we needed a Plan B.
Forrest, Jane and John were quick to create limericks to note the occasion.
" We planned on a trip to go sailing
But the cyclone winds were wailing
We changed our plans
To play in the sand
Because we 'd rather be safe than bailing!"
" We planned to go sailing from Airlie
With blue skies and sun shining fairly
There wasn't a doubt
Our luck had run out
Storm Debbie had hit Airlie squarely".
"Debbie was the cyclone's name
She promised to bring lots of rain
She ended our crew sail
But we didn't have to bail
For Byron Bay is where we came."
March 24
Today we had breakfast at the hotel and gen took the ferry across the bay to take a tour of the Sydney Opera House. The design challenge for the Opera House was won by a Danish man named Utzon, who sadly, never got to see the result of his work. It was started in 1956 and completed in 1978- 17 years to complete! Over that time there was a conflict with the architect and the engineers and politicians and a new team took over. It wasn't until 1999 at they asked him to re- engage in the future of the Opera House and his son is now working on.
There are 6 concert halls - three of them quite small and serve more drama fares. There is the large concert hall for music, symphony, and ballet and here is a dance theatre and drama theatre.
After the tour we waited for the rain to diminish and then walked to Town Hall to pick up our free walking tour of Sydney. The tour guide was delightful. She explained that she was a descendent of convicts and that her family had been in this country since the late 1700s. Many of the older buildings had been repurposed for retail space and there were many tunnels throughout Sydney underground the buildings filled with retail and restaurants. Queen Elizabeth building had been there since the 1800s, but acquired a statue and. Dog statue from Ireland, when they broke free of England's hold on them. We also walked to a building that had a huge model city under glass in the floor. We walked on it and could really tell the scope of the city. Sydney has about 7.5 million people in it, including the suburbs.
After resting with a beverage, we went into the Rocks area looking for the Australian Heritage Hotel to enjoy kangaroo, and emu pizza. While we were sitting there the Premier from China drove by in his police escorted caravan. The pizza was actually very good. We had the "Coat of Arms " pizza and the Australians we were sitting next to we're proud to say that they are the only country that eats the animals on their coat of arms.
Then after dinner we ventured to find Larry's recommendation, Hero of Waterloo bar to hear live music. It was fun and a very interesting old tavern. We took the ferry back to our hotel and went right to bed.
March 23
Well as I said, we sadly and fondly left New Zealand. We all really enjoyed ourselves and loved the country! We drove over the Crown Range Road through the Pisa mountains to get to Queenstown. We stopped at the Bradrona fence where there were hundreds of bras posted on a fence and a statement and request to support research for breast cancer. Across the road was the Cardrona hotel , which was developed in 1863 during the gold rush era and before they had a solid road there. The road is the highest sealed road in New Zealand. A man named Jimmy served alcohol in the hotel, but would watch how much people drank before attempting the road home. Inside the hotel, there was evidence of a mine shaft, old stone fireplaces and many antiques. They had a few rooms in this place as well. Adjacent to the hotel is an old school and church, where they still have music venues locally.
We arrived at the airport in time and said good bye to NZ driving and hopped on he plane. We arrived in Sydney and went through customs. Both islands are very strict on what you bring into the country and provided many warnings to us to declare everything- we had to mention the shells and rocks we collected and the sheep fleese we got on the sheep farm. Jane forgot to mention hers , but they took my sheep fleece away. We took a cab to our budget 4 star hotel in Kirribilli, which was just across the bay from the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House.
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