A week in Sydney May 12, 2016 An action-packed weekend in Australia's largest city! View fullsize I went to meet my special guest bright and early on Thursday morning. View fullsize And then I didn't see him again until dinner time. View fullsize And here he is at breakfast the next morning. Keeps popping up everywhere! View fullsize Same with this cruise ship passing by Darling Harbour. View fullsize Finally! Friday night! View fullsize Seeing the famed Sydney Harbour Bridge for the first time. View fullsize It's the Sydney Opera House! Looks just like it does in all the movies. View fullsize Up close and personal - there was a function going on inside. Also, can you spot the stars (in the sky)? View fullsize The opera house roof is actually made up of many small tiles. Who knew! View fullsize Friday night dinner at a pizzeria in The Rocks. View fullsize It was a cozy little place with walls lined with celebrity photos. View fullsize The next morning, we were in for a surprise. A haze-filled Sydney from the controlled burning in the Blue Mountains. View fullsize This man has something on his mind. View fullsize Walking through The Rocks, on our way to the bridge. View fullsize A convincing facade? View fullsize The rays of sun are easy to spot with so much haze in the air. View fullsize A neat mural on the side of the on-ramp to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. View fullsize Looking toward Circular Quay. Can you see it beyond the cruise ship and through the haze? View fullsize I think that's the opera house over there. View fullsize It was a lovely walk; just felt like we were seeing everything through a smoke screen. View fullsize A pirate ship. View fullsize Some color-correction helped the opera house pop out more in this photo than it did in real life. View fullsize Peeking into some neat back yards. Spot the emu? View fullsize Milson's Point, in Kirribilli, is a very cute part of the city with a suburban feel. View fullsize Lots of green, and a great view! View fullsize This seagull looks like he woke up on the wrong side of the bed. View fullsize You can see one side of the bridge clearly, but barely make out the other. View fullsize This kayaker is very daring. I'm sure he's the smallest boat in these waters. View fullsize The famous Luna Park Sydney! Not quite as famous as its Melbourne predecessor. View fullsize Spot the difference. View fullsize The classic Rotor. Free to watch! View fullsize Don't think I could stomach this ride anymore. View fullsize Very picturesque. The park has been very well restored over the past decade. View fullsize Classic! View fullsize The Wild Mouse! Originally built in 1959, and relocated a few times before returning home. View fullsize I reckon I can't stomach most rides anymore! View fullsize Inside "Coney Island," a fantastic little well-preserved funhouse. In fact, it's the only operating example of a 1930s funhouse left in the world. View fullsize Like this dense spaghetti string. View fullsize And a mirror maze. View fullsize And these rotating bridges. View fullsize And this crazy rotating tunnel! View fullsize Whoosh! There I go down the slide! View fullsize A late lunch at a delicious Chinese Vegetarian place not far from the hotel. View fullsize Next stop: the ANZAC Memorial in Hyde Park. View fullsize The ANZAC Memorial was completed back in 1934. View fullsize The interior features a domed ceiling (not shown!) adorned with 120,000 gold stars – one for each of New South Wales' military volunteers during World War I. View fullsize Continuing north through Hyde Park: a helpful sign warning of "tree failure". View fullsize Still hazy! View fullsize Families enjoying the warm afternoon, and local ibises enjoying their crumbs. View fullsize Learning to love pigeons at an early age. View fullsize Inside Saint Mary's Cathedral, where a wedding ceremony had just finished. View fullsize An Australian White Ibis welcomes us at the entrance to the Royal Botanic Gardens. View fullsize These 'bird of paradise' flowers really look like a flock of birds! View fullsize Careful! Train coming through the gardens! View fullsize The videographer in action. View fullsize And a local duck coming over to see what's so interesting. View fullsize "Hello! Hello!" View fullsize Making friends with the Chinese tourists! View fullsize Not so interested in saying hello to me. View fullsize Resting at a safe altitude. View fullsize The opera house and bridge at sunset. View fullsize Great view of the CBD. View fullsize Single-handedly holding up this rock. View fullsize More Opera house. View fullsize Went to go see it up-close and personal during daylight. Did you know that there are actually 2 theaters inside? View fullsize Great place to hang out on the weekend. Spot the bridge climbers? View fullsize And all the cafe-goers next door. View fullsize Back at The Rocks, where we heard there's a good view. View fullsize Proper sunset now, and a nicely-lit Luna Park in the background. View fullsize Old buildings lining Campbell's Cove Jetty. View fullsize Well-restored. View fullsize Photographer in action. View fullsize The famous profile pic! View fullsize Here comes the pirate ship, home after a long day at sea. View fullsize A 3D map of Sydney in the floor of Customs House, the building that served as the headquarters of the Customs Service until 1990. View fullsize Back at the hotel, a light dinner and sparkling wine in the lounge. And planning for tomorrow's activities. View fullsize Great view over Hyde Park and the Cathedral from the hotel. View fullsize Here's our trusty Sheraton on the Park. View fullsize And we're off to Bondi Beach, where all the surfer dudes and dudettes hang out. View fullsize The overcast skies and 20-degree weather don't deter the local surfers! View fullsize Or the Chinese tourists. View fullsize Setting off to catch some waves. View fullsize A cute mural on the side of the boardwalk. View fullsize More waves, and the surf splashing up against the Bondi Icebergs Club in the background. View fullsize Two boys practice their scooter skills at the skate park. View fullsize More surfers and spectators. View fullsize We're off on the cliff-side walk from Bondi to Coogee! View fullsize Skills I'll never have! View fullsize An impressive female surfer. View fullsize The famous Bondi Icebergs Club, winter swimming club. View fullsize Great cliffs, worn smooth by the waves over the centuries. View fullsize These girls don't seem to be afraid of heights! View fullsize As we rounded the cliff, we were treated to a show by a pod of dolphins. View fullsize There seemed to have been at least a dozen of them! View fullsize Next up: Mackenzies Bay and Tamarama Beach in the background. View fullsize Great skills! View fullsize Looking backward. Some nice real estate! View fullsize A little Westie who's not so sure about the giant cliff he's on. View fullsize This guy had to weave his way through all the other paddlers. View fullsize The weather was good enough for many games of beach volleyball! View fullsize Tamarama Beach used to be home to a roller coaster that went out over the water! I imagine the wood had to be replaced often. View fullsize Seagulls standing guard until the lifeguard returns. View fullsize These two have an even better vantage point. View fullsize Another ocean pool - this one open to the public. View fullsize The Waverley Cemetery, which contains the graves of many significant Australians. View fullsize Lawn bowling at the Clovelly Bowling & Recreation Club. View fullsize And a group of local boys practices their teamwork at Burrows Park. View fullsize More great real estate! View fullsize Park your dinghy here! View fullsize A memorial to the victims of the Bali Bombing. The local Malabar community lost 9 residents who were traveling there as members of a Rugby team. View fullsize An enterprising bird finds a way to get his drink of water! View fullsize 6.5 km later, we've made our way to Coogee Beach. View fullsize Where (almost) all the locals are having beach-side brunch. View fullsize We take a bus back to Surrey Hill, to see what all the fuss is about. View fullsize Cute, colorful homes. View fullsize No parking -- or else! View fullsize Always was, always will be! View fullsize A tasty lunch at Whole Meal Cafe. View fullsize The massive Coke sign at Kings Cross intersection. View fullsize A modern house among classics in Woolloomooloo. View fullsize More classics. View fullsize An aboriginal-inspired mural. View fullsize "Almost Once", a giant sculpture outside the Gallery of New South Wales. View fullsize Coffee break at a cafe inside said gallery. View fullsize In the basement of the Gallery of NSW, an art exhibit of local high school students. This Seuss-inspired one was amazing! View fullsize And a ball-point pen rendition of the view from above the CBD. View fullsize Giant pieces of chalk - remnants of a fascinating social experiment in which artists had left similar pieces of chalk in the CBD and filmed. View fullsize Up-close and personal. View fullsize Tuesday morning Sunrise over Sydney. Beautiful! View fullsize Office workers queuing for their coffee. We all knew Aussies were crazy for coffee, but never knew it was THIS important!
