A Slice of Sydney

We had heaps of fun in Sydney!! (how am I doing speakin' Australian?) We arrived on a beautiful sunny Wednesday and were off to a good start celebrating at the pub with a pitcher of Fat Yak Pale Ale! The next day, we were climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge. What a cool experience! If anyone plans on going to Sydney, and isn't afraid of heights...do this! We got to see the structure and design of the bridge up close, and the view from the top can't be beat! Looking down onto Sydney Harbour and the Opera House, and you can see for miles, the Blue Mountains in the West, the Ocean to the East...just incredible. And to top off an already amazing day, on our way to the grocery store we chanced upon a bar playing the Phillies on all the flatscreens! Halliday was on the mound, and they lost in extra innings, but this was the first time we have been able to see a game on TV instead of just catching up online, which was a huge treat.
On Saturday, we went on a backstage tour of the Opera House. This tour began at the crack of dawn, but was totally worth it. We knew nothing about the Opera House before the tour, but we got to see all 5 theaters, empty, and go backstage to see the behind-the-scenes happenings and dressing rooms. Outside, a crowd was gathering to witness the homecoming of Jessica Watson, the 16 year old who sailed solo around the world in 7 months! We found a nice grassy spot to hang out. There were thousands of spectators in front of the Opera House where they had set up a stage and a huge welcome back event for her. There were tons of sailboats following her into the harbor, along with an entourage of security and family, and helicoptors everywhere. Quite a scene!
Another highlight of Sydney was when we had a surfing session at Bondi. The weather had taken a turn and there were showers in the area, but the water was unusually warm and we had so much fun riding the world-famous waves. In all, we spent time in Manly Beach, Bondi Beach, The Rocks, and the CBD.  We were in Sydney for nearly 3 weeks, and could have stayed longer, but it was time to move on up the East Coast toward Brisbane!