Day 10 - A night at the Opera

Everyone knows what Sydney Opera House looks like but not everyone has seen it up close... 

...or from the inside.

We attended a performance of "Great Opera Hits" in the Joan Sutherland Theatre which was a wonderful experience.

Inside the theatre we had a very good view of the stage and the acoustics were perfect.

The performance was most entertaining and finished off with audience participation so we can now truthfully say that we have sung at the Sydney Opera House!

After the performance it was time for a walk along the front...

...and to take in the great views on offer.

What an experience!

Day 8 - Sydney

We spent 3 days in Sydney but I have put photos from each of them on this one page just to keep things simple.

On each occasion we got to the heart of the city, Circular Quay, on the ferry from Parramatta, a great way to travel. 

Around the harbour were a couple guys dressed, (or undressed?) as aborigines playing a didgeridoo and selling their CD which we bought. "Didgeridoo disco with sounds of wildlife" is how I would describe it. Great stuff! It is called "Spirit of the Land". Highly recommended. Click HERE for more info. (Not available in the full 10 track version from Amazon.com for some reason.)

The Opera House is a major landmark.

And yes, we have walked on the Harbour Bridge!

We had to eat Kangaroo steak - the sauce was terrific so we asked for and got the recipe.

Darling harbour is around the corner from Circular Quay and is worth a visit.

Just a short distance away from all the hustle and bustle of Darling Harbour is the Chinese Garden where they did a great pot of tea and scones with jam and cream. I didn't realise they had a Chinese connection - I thought they traditionally came from Devon or Cornwall.

The gardens were wonderful and you could have spent all day wandering around.

Although in a relatively small area, the gardens were designed so that there was something of interest around every corner.

Bondi beach was also on the list of places to visit...

...although the shops were generally the ones you could find anywhere on a busy sea front .

So here we are on the beach although the surf wasn't quite right so we had to give that particular experience a miss!

Also on the front was a skateboard area. This guy was brilliant. I can't wait to get on to the video I took which I shall probably publish to YouTube. And to see the video, click HERE.

Another quiet and peaceful retreat from the city was the Royal Botanic Garden...

...along with the gorgeous plants...

...exotic wildlife...

...and fascinating sculptures.

On this particular day the temperature in Sydney broke all 
previous records with a high of 45.6°C

I thought gold was non-magnetic but Margaret is always attracted to it!

 We made our way up the Sydney Tower Eye, the tallest building in Sydney at 300 metres...

...to get a good panoramic view of the city.

Day 6 - Flat Whites!

I didn't drink all these coffees in 1 day; they are some of the ones I drank over a period of 5 weeks. 

Down under they are known as "Flat Whites" - in other words a coffee with milk or café con leche.

The interesting thing about them is the design on the top and each coffee maker has their own style.

Some styles are better than others!

Generally the price is around $AU4.50 which is around 3.5euros, just over 3 GBP or just under $US5.

Strangely enough, in New Zealand the cost of a coffee is also around $NZ4.50 which is under 3 euros.

A cup of coffee here in Spain is usually around 1.20 euros and tastes just as good.

The coffee above has no design but was one of the most expensive at $AU5.50 at Ayers Rock airport. And it was served in a paper cup.

It is always interesting to see the design when the coffee arrives and it is a pity when the design has to be broken up when the sugar is stirred in.

If you don't take sugar or stir the coffee, the design can last all the way to the end of the drink.

Day 5 - The wildlife park