I have lots of catching up to do. Today is Tuesday November 12.
We flew out of Honolulu Thursday-a lovely, smooth flight, thanks to Hawaiian Air, even though it was a day later than we’d originally scheduled because one of their planes was taken out of service, the one we were supposed to take Wednesday. We landed at Sydney Friday evening ten hours after our departure and took a taxi to our hotel.
Our only sightseeing option was a Saturday morning city tour, before our sail away in the afternoon which we booked online before we left..my sister spent ten days there but this was my first trip.
The weather was perfect – late spring with a hint of a breeze. We did a comprehensive tour that began with a guided walking tour of the area called The Rocks, which is where the city began. The quaint historical buildings have been repurposed into shops and restaurants. Parks and the gorgeous natural beauty of the city seem to coexist gracefully with skyscrapers and other high density buildings.
I was captivated by Bondi Beach, one of the world’s best surfing beaches. We found a cute café and settled in for a muffin, a cappuccino and some great people-watching before heading back to join our tour group. The ambiance reminded me a bit of Santa Cruz. We also drove around many of the architectural districts of the various neighborhoods of the city. The average price of a home in Sydney is $900,000.
Our last stop was the Sydney Opera House and we were scheduled for a tour. We didn’t realize it was an afternoon tour. Unfortunately we couldn’t do the tour and get to the ship on time. The paperwork indicated it would be at noon, not 2:00 pm. Oh, well. I comforted myself that I had done the architectural tour of the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, another very unique edifice. We still had time to walk around and get up close and personal with this building.
I urge you to spend as much extra time in Sydney as you can. There’s so much to see and do. Our guide was wonderful.
We’re allowed one bottle of wine each on board without having to pay corkage fees, so I got an Australian Sauvignon blanc called Catching Thieves and my sister got a Tasmanian Pinot noir to keep in our room..
We took a taxi back to the hotel and the driver waited for us to collect out luggage. Check in for the ship was fast with no lines since most people were waiting way before the 1:00 check in time to get into their rooms. We arrived in our upgraded veranda room by 2:00. It was a treat to hang out on our balcony and sail pass the beautiful harbors of Sydney. The life boats are our neighbors but it doesn’t obscure the view.
We had the sail away from Sydney Saturday at 5:00 and continued on toward Melbourne. Day 2, Sunday, was a sea day. We needed to catch up on the time change, get some much-needed sleep and recharge our batteries. The waves were a bit rough but not too bad.
We were in Melbourne Monday, on Remembrance Day, November 11 and were able to see the Shrine of Remembrance, where veterans of all wars were honored on our Panoramic City tour. More of that will be mentioned in my next post.
Today is another much needed sea day.
Wednesday we’ll be in Hobart, Tasmania. It’s my birthday and we chose to see the Bonorong Wildlife Refuge, a non-profit organization that rehabilitates wounded native animals. We’re looking forward to this excursion.
I hope to post the day in Melbourne today at some point in between naps.
Questions? Be sure to ask. We’re enjoying both the ship and our itinerary.