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Chose a good time to go to Australia. January. Their Best Summer Month. This is also the most expensive time to travel. Air fare is at its peak. The Cheaper time to travel would be anytime between March 1 and November 30. The Journey from my home in Connecticut (Departed on January 17, 1997) to my Hotel in Sydney (Arrived on January 19, 1997) with a Change of Planes in San Francisco and a refueling Stop in Nadi, Fiji and an Overall delay of 3 Hours took around 30 Hours !! Slept through Most of the flight anyway and, therefore, was not unduly perturbed by the long flight. Flew United Airlines. The flight was Packed and the Seating Cramped. (Not Surprising)
The Australian Immigration like its US Counterpart is quite specific about Fruits / Vegetables being brought in. Customs Officials roam around the area with Sniffer Dogs. Needless to say one pesky little animal would not let go of my Handbag. I had to open up the same and explain to the lady that all I had there was a Bag of Cookies. (I was allowed to keep that and Carry it into Australia !!!)
I exchanged a couple of hundred US Dollars at the Airport in Sydney. My Hotel was located in Kings Cross. The Best way to get there (and the Cheap way) is to take a Bus that goes into the City from the Airport. It Stops at a number of Places in the City before returning to the Airport. I Paid A$5 for the trip from the Airport to the Hotel. (At the time of my Visit One US $ bought A$1.25)
[A note of Carrying Money: Always Carry US Dollars. (Preferable TCs) You always get a better rate in the foreign Country than you would in the United States.]
I had booked a room at Springfield Lodge (Springfield Lodge, 9 Springfield Avenue, Kings Cross, NSW 2011. Phone: 61-2-9358 3222) located in the Kings Cross Area for A$45 a Night. This was done from the US (by Phone). All they needed was the Date & Approximate time of my Arrival in Sydney. No Credit Card Number was required. The room rate did not Include Breakfast.
The room at the Hotel was extremely Small. It had an Attached Toilet / Shower. It did not have a Fan nor an Air-Conditioner. After a shower I called up a couple of friends and we decided to meet at a Metro Station later in the Day. Had Lunch (?) at McDonalds and walked around Kings Cross Area for a while. The Place reminds one of Times Square (as it was a Couple of Years back) with Strip Joints, Hookers and Druggies.
Took a train to Bondi Junction (the end of one of the Metro Lines) and met with my friends. They drove me around to South Head, Watsons Bay, Rose Bay and Piper Point before dropping me off near my Hotel. In all we spent around 2 Hours seeing these places. Called up another friend of mine and we met at my Hotel at 7 PM. We drove to the Rocks Area (The Place where the Opera House Stands) and spent some time there. Had dinner before getting dropped back at the Hotel. The Setting Sun casts a Brilliant Yellow over the Opera House. Makes for a Good Picture. On returning to Hotel talked with one of the Owners who recommended a number of Day Trips to Places around Sydney. The Hotel is a Place where a lot of Pensioners (Retirees) live. Some of them have lived there for Years. No wonder the furnishings bare and the facilities quite Utilitarian. The lack of a Fan or an A/c did not affect my sleep.
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Woke up Early. Had my Breakfast at McDonalds. There are a Number of buses that run around Sydney covering a quite a few Attractions between them. They are Called Explorer Buses and come in two Colours. The Red Explorer Covers certain Attractions while the Blue Explorer covers other Attractions. The Buses run from 8 AM till 5:30 PM at 15 Minute Intervals. A Day Trip on the Red Explorer Bus costs A$20. I bought a Day Pass and took the Red Explorer Bus to CentrePoint. This is the Tallest Building in Sydney with a Glass Enclosed Observation Deck at the Top. One gets Great Views of Sydney (in all Directions) from this Point. Took the Explorer Bus to Darling Harbour. Walked around the Place a bit and Visited the Aquarium there. The Main Attraction there seem to be a Pathway inside a Huge Fish Tank. As one walks through this Pathway one can observe Sharks and other Marine Creatures swimming around you and above you. After Lunch took the Explorer Bus to the Rocks Area. Took a Guided tour of the Opera House. Watched the Set Designers and the Crew working on the Stage for 'La Traviata'. I had a ticket for a Performance of the same in the evening. Since I did not Carry a Tie or a Jacket, I was quite relieved to learn that there is no Dress Code to watch an Opera. The Opera House is excellent. For folks like me not fluent in any of the Operatic Languages the Opera House Offers Super Titles in English. The Tour Guide also explained that the Puritans (who are well versed in the Opera and the Language) who are annoyed by this Hideous Technological Innovation are usually advised to take the first few rows of seats in the Opera House. (Thereby, not being forced to read the English Translations put out for simpletons like me)
After the tour got back to Kings Cross. Had an Early Dinner before heading back to the Opera House for a Performance of 'La Traviata'. During the Cab Ride to the Opera House, my erudite Cabbie (He was reading a Biography of Henry VIII) compared the Past Royals with the Present. Listened to his entertaining Commentary during the 15 Minute Ride.
The Set Design for 'La Traviata' was Excellent. This was my first Performance of this Opera. Had Managed to read a bit about it beforehand and managed to Stay awake for the first 2 Acts. Did fall asleep quite a bit through the third Act. (Was quite Tired after doing a lot of walking all Day) The Opera ended around 11 PM. The Rocks area is alive with People even during that time of the evening. I Took a bus back to my Hotel. Booked myself on a Day Trip to the Blue Mountains for tomorrow.
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A Small Minivan picked me up from the Hotel the Next Morning for the tour to the Blue Mountains. The Driver of the Van had a full-time Job with the Government of New South Wales (the State in which Sydney is Located) as a 'Bush-Regenerator'. The Job Involves recreating Bush Land (or replacing them when Destroyed). Glad to know that the Government of NSW was still intent on Protecting the Natural Land (by not shrinking it) as much as Possible. The Minivan (after picking up a few more folks from a number of Hotels) finally dropped us off near the Rocks where we transferred to a Mini-Bus with a Four Wheel Drive. The Driver / Tour Guide was Helen. A well travelled Individual with Ambition to boot.
About 45 Minutes from Sydney we stopped to Visit FeatherDale Park. This is the equivalent of a Petting Zoo. Almost all the Animals / Birds here are Native to Australia (Koala / Kangaroo / Wombat / Kookaburra etc.) You can get real Close to the Koalas here. Took a bunch of Pictures of Koalas from a Foot away. You are also allowed to feed Baby Kangaroos. Needless to say we also stopped at a Tourist Trap. (i.e.; A Small Handicraft Shop)
The Blue Mountains get their Names from the Blue Haze that Pervaded the area. The Mountain contains Eucalyptus Trees and the Sunlight reflecting off the Eucalyptus Drops results in the Overall Blue Haze. The Australians call these 'The Grand Canyon' of Australia. The Comparison is not a Good One. While the Grand Canyon is filled with Rugged Rock faces with little Vegetation to be found, the Bluer Mountains is filled with Vegetation with little Barren Rock faces to be found. Ah well, somebody in the Tourism Department of NSW had to come up with something to sell. Don't go there with great expectations and you won't be disappointed.
Visited the 3 Sisters and took the Scenic Skyride at Katoomba. It was quite Good. Returned to the Hotel around 6 PM. Had Dinner at the Hare Krishna Restaurant in Kings Cross. Good Vegetarian Food for A$16. You are also welcome to Stay and watch a Movie on Video later. No, the movies are not on or about the Hare Krishna Movement. The Movies are the latest Hollywood has to Offer.
Took a Cab to Mrs. Macquarie Point. From this Place you can get Excellent Panoramic Views of the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Governor Macquarie's wife used to sit here on the evenings and enjoy the Sunset and hence the Name. If you are into Photography, this is certainly a place worth Visiting to Capture the Spectacular Vistas of Sydney.
Proceeded to the Circular Quay (Rocks area) and took the Harbour Lights Cruise. This Cruise starts close to Sunset and takes a grand tour of the Harbour. As the Sun sets the City is lit up and the Setting is Pretty Good. It was extremely Windy though and I did manage to lose my Camera Eye-Cup during this trip ! The Trip ended around 9:30 PM. I hung around the Opera House and took some Pictures. Also took some shots of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The Sydney Harbour Bridge Connects the Sydney CBD (Central Business District) with North Sydney. People living in the outlying areas of Northern Sydney commute by Ferry to the CBD.
After Spending an hour of Picture-Taking took a bus back to the Hotel. A note on Safety. Sydney appears to be an extremely safe City. People take the Bus even late at Night. Even the walk to the Hotel in Kings Cross from the Bus Stop is quite peaceful at Midnight. Even though the place if filled with Hookers and Other Unsavory Characters, none of them bother you (something which definitely cannot be said of Times Square of Lore). One of reasons is probably the law banning the Ownership of any type of Guns by the Citizens of Australia. The Only people allowed to own Guns are Farmers who can prove that their farm Animals / Birds are in danger from Predators. Panhandling is Non-Existent.
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After Breakfast, took a bus to North Sydney. The full View of the Opera House can be obtained only from North Sydney. The Place to go is called Milsons Point. After taking a Couple of Pictures, I decided to walk across the Bridge to the CBD. There is a walkway for pedestrians / Bicyclists across the Bridge. One can also climb on to the Pylons for a Grand View of Sydney. (Though not as Far-reaching as the View from Centre-Point Tower). There are around 200 Steps from the Bridge to the top of the Pylon. A Good Exercise (esp. In the Morning) Only one Pylon is Opened for this Purpose. The one at the Southern End. On the way Up to the top, are a number of Photographs and a history of the Construction of the Bridge. Quite Informative.
From the CBD, I took a bus to the SCG. For those of you not familiar with the game of Cricket, Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) is a definite one to be Visited. (Akin to Visiting the Maracama Stadium in Rio or the River-Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires - for fans of Soccer) The Stadium did not have any guided tours and I was able to walk in and walk out without any problems.
After Lunch, I visited the Queen Victoria Building. This is an Upscale Mall. Pricey Stores abound. |
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