Sydney Day 4

This week is whooshing past, although we have done very little. The week in Sydney also whooshed past.

Victor is a very busy man, working two jobs, neither paid. He sees lots of films, plays, performances and travels often, within Australia and overseas. Yet he set aside his day off, Thursday, to show us some sights. How kind people of the internet have been, people who gone on to become friends. He collected us at our hotel at 10.30 and we crossed the bridge to the northern shores. Our first stop was Bradleys Head, a wonderful spot. We had seen it from our cruise the day before. It was so nice there, we wished we brought along a picnic lunch and a thermos. The weather was divine, sunny and warm but not hot. Bradleys Head was once a fortification.

This is a mast from HMAS Sydney.

Ah, across the shore is the building where Victor lives.

This is as good as time as any to bring this up. ABC local radio Sydney is very different to ABC local radio Melbourne. ABC Melbourne between 8.30 is quite hard hitting, with local, national and international matters discussed at quite speed by perhaps ABC's local radio senior broadcaster, Jon Faine. ABC Sydney local radio is so different, hosted by the quite lovely, funny and very clever Wendy Harmer. Instead of as in Melbourne between 8.30 and 9.00, Wendy was lightweight, with discussion of Sydney's jacaranda trees in bloom and brush turkeys. They have come into Sydney of late, like the Bin Chickens did some years ago, aka Ibis.They cause havoc in people's gardens and are becoming a pest. I did laugh when a radio caller in said to spray them with a water pistol to get rid of them, and Wendy responded, no, that does not work. She knew as her own garden had been invaded. Brush turkeys are native birds, so can't be easily dealt with as they are protected. Here is a brush turkey.

Maybe you have worked out that that this is the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

This column came from the original demolished Sydney Post Office. Doric, is it?

The brush turkey is an interesting looking bird, but it is invading.

Ah, did I mention the view of the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge?

Train tracks out onto the pier, perhaps for the supply of provisions of whatever force was resident there.

Just such a beautiful spot.

Bradleys Head light.

Kookaburra was not sitting in an old gum tree.

We reluctantly left Bradleys Head and went on to Manly.

We had a nice lunch here.

This photo is not one to click on. It is terribly bad, but what a monster of a tree.

I had mentioned to Victor that I would like to see Fairfax Lookout. He had no idea where it was and nor did any of his friends. It was worked out that where I wanted to go was North Head, that is the northern side of the entrance to Sydney Harbour. Looking at South Head.

Black bull rushes. Interesting.

We went on to the old Quarantine Station. We had to be driven down to the site in a mini bus. Doesn't this little beach look so fabulous.

Things were moved around at the Quarantine Station by trains.

Oh, could this be an inclusion for an updated Loos with a View by Red Nomad?

Now, there was a discussion about whether this was a regular Sydney Ferry service or not and I don't remember the outcome.

The quarantine station was a place to isolate foreigners who arrived, in early days. Those with infectious diseases, Cyclone Tracy victims, and the Vietnamese War baby orphan lift babies. You could not help but feel some sadness. Victor as a government employee visited the quarantine station in an official capacity often.

Pile your luggage onto trains that will ride into these autoclaves. Your luggage will be steam heated by the boiler to 46 degrees, 115 for you foreign folk, and all nasties will be killed.

These are called the funicular stairs as once a funicular travelled up the steep hill.

The boiler chimney. It was very quiet with few people around. We knew the site offers accommodation, but no one was staying. There was a decent sized restaurant. We waited for quite some time for the mini bus to return to collect us, and then we found where all the people were, sprinkled all over the large site. There were holidaying people along with two day work conference people. It hosts weddings etc. Quite interesting. You can see some more here.

We headed back to our hotel by going under Sydney Harbour in a tunnel. It had been a lovely day out. Once again we went down the steep hill for dinner and ate at Bill and Toni's Italian restaurant.

There, I managed to finish this before we left for the wedding. Bye.

Sydney Day 3

We like to have our studio apartment to have our breakfast. While we ate out for lunch and dinner, breakfast was always in our apartment. I have cereal and toast and R, who does like to eat early, did have toast most mornings.

The night before, somewhat on a whim, we booked Sydney Harbour cruise, which included a seafood lunch.

We walked through Hyde Park and caught the train from St James to Wynyard and then walked. I had looked on electric maps already. How come this walking direction takes us through the middle of buildings? It is the newish tunnel from Wynyard Station to Barangaroo, Barangaroo being a highrise development at what was called East Darling Harbour colloquially known as The Hungry Mile, where wharf workers used to wait for ship unloading piece work. The walking tunnel was good.

The ticket I had on my phone told me King Street Wharf number 1 but there was a Captain Cook harbour cruising boat there. On Google Maps I can see the name of the company we booked with at Wharf 5, so we went up there. No, no booking for us. She looked closer at the document on my phone and told us it was a Captain Cook cruise, even though we had booked with another company. Back to Wharf 1 and it was very soon boarding time. We were on a upper deck.

On the dot of 12 the ship left the wharf and journeyed around to Circular Quay where more passengers were collected. We were told to begin eating before then and be ready for the best position for shots of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge five minutes after we left the Quay. Side thrusters are on!

The food was quite nice and plentiful.

I hope I get the locations correct. The Royal Botanic Gardens, with I think hidden by trees, Government House, home to the Governor, who does not actually live there.

I suppose the windows would need a lot of cleaning.

The city skyline.

Both the Bridge and the Opera House.

Farm Cove

Woolloomooloo where there was once a naval base. I believe it is now closed but there is still a naval ship anchored.

You must be very rich to live in houses on the edge of the harbour.

I think the old house was once owned by a former mayor.

A passing ferry. We had swung over to the northern side of the harbour from around Watsons Bay.

Bradleys Head.

Cremorne Point Wharf.

Shell Cove?

Neutral Bay?

Kirribilli.

Who lives there? No body, but it is supposed to be the Sydney residence of the Prime Minister of Australia. Like Government House for the State Governor, it is still maintained.

Admiralty House, once home to Admirals, now the Sydney home of the Governor General of Australia.

Not much a beach for the PM or GG.

Fort Denison where last time we were in Sydney you could lunch. Closed down now.

The northern approach to the bridge. We have never explored this area.

They almost all waved to us.

Luna Park.

Lavender Bay.

More Luna Park.

The horror of North Shore, Blues Point Tower. I wrote about it back here.

Back on the southern side, housing built on wharfs.

The ten? storey white building is a bit interesting. We docked back at Wharf 1 where some left the ship. We stayed on to Circular Quay.

I really like the way rocks were shaped and used in the park part of Barangaroo.

Just more tall towers.

Two wedding, but no funeral, at The Rocks. The cruise was very good value, we thought, at $89 each. It lasted two and quarter hours. We were going to get the train from the Quay to Museum, but we could only find an entrance to trains going the other way, so we caught a bus instead. Dinner that night at a cheap restaurant in Oxford Street called Pad Thai. You would not go there for the decor but the service was good and the food cheap and absolutely delicious. 

This may be the last post for a few days as we are away for Fire Fighting Nephew's wedding for a couple of nights. Quell horreur, we are warning there may not be internet or phone reception. I will die.