JHP_161229_SYDNEY_1035Sydney Opera House and Harbor from the Pylon on the Sydney Steel Bridge.

I would bet most of my readers know that I am an American.  This is important because I am currently living in Australia for the next few months and I am thoroughly enjoying the exploration of a new place and meeting the friendly people!   Unlike the posts I am doing on Iceland at the beginning of each month I will be taking you along my journey as it happens.... okay maybe a few weeks after the fact, but either way, I am going to be posting as I go along and the first stop is Sydney, New South Wales.

JHP_161229_SYDNEY_1023-PanoPanoramic of Sydney from the Pylon. Circular Quay to Darling Harbor

The two photos above are images taken from the Pylon Tower Lookout of the famous Sydney Steel Bridge.  After a long 22 hours of traveling from home to Sydney International we took a couple days to adjust to the time difference and the seasonal differences at an inexpensive AirB&B in Bondi Beach.  A few days later we ventured out via an Uber to Sydney's richly historical downtown area first finding ourselves at the Rocks, which is the main part of old town and sits between the cruise ship, the skyscrapers and the freeway. The Ship is docked in Circular Quay and the bay on the upper right of the image is Darling Harbor.  These two photo's could just about be merged together with the opera house image being attached to the left side of the one with a cruise ship.  Needless to say, the view from the Pylons was spectacular and lucky us, we landed free entry tickets, normally $13 AUS Each.

JHP_161229_SYDNEY_1069Steel Bridge and Ferry

The main agenda for the day was to see the big sites and to do that just requires a little walking to best e enjoyed.  After climbing up the pylon and walking back down we stopped to enjoy a beer and cool down. Then onward toward the iconic Opera house but along the way we were treated with yet another good view of the harbor, bridge and various boats.  Ferries are a main mode of transportation around Sydney and it seems as if one is always coming or going.  Construction of the bridge started in 1924 and it opened in 1932 and remains the largest steel bridge in the world, although it is not the longest.  Total steel work totals 53,000 tons and holds 6 million rivets that were hand driven by 6 men.  It has 8 traffic lanes, 2 rail lines and a pedestrian path. 

JHP_161229_SYDNEY_1075Sydney Opera House

The Sydney Opera House was designed for a contest in 1957 by Dane Jorn Utzen. Construction took many years but was officially opened in 1973. The interlocking ceramic tiles were an engineering feat that took over 3 years to compete.  The radical design quickly became an attraction and recognized symbol both of Sydney and of Australia as a whole.   In 2007 UNESCO added it to the list of World Heritage Sites.  The building is not just architecturally significant but acoustic as well and there are multiple concert halls that are among the best in the world for preforming artists.

JHP_161229_SYDNEY_1121Botanical Garden

Adjacent to the Opera House is the Royal Botanical Gardens.  Opened in 1816 it is 64 hectares (158 acres), houses almost 9 thousand species of plant with over 67,000 specimens.  There is plenty of room to find a quiet spot to sit or take a hike on one of the walking paths.  As you would expect with a garden there is an ample amount of bird, insect and reptile life.  The image below had to be included of a colorful and boisterous parrot amongst many hundreds in a large tree within the park.

JHP_161229_SYDNEY_1103Colorful Parrot in Tree at Botanical Garden

We continued over to Darling Harbor and over to the Australian National Maritime Museum which had a nice exhibit that was open to the public and finished the day with another way to cool down: icecream! Below are 3 images I captured on my cell phone, so quality is not guaranteed but it is still fun to share.

      JHP_161230_Cell_1348Darling Harbor     JHP_161230_Cell_1348Darling Harbor      JHP_161230_Cell_1353Darling Harbor, Sydney Australia    

I will end this post with a notation on the New Years Eve celebration that takes place in Sydney.  The town is one of the first on the planet to bring in the New Year and they put on a world class fireworks show both at 9pm (for the kids) and 12pm (for the adults).   Pyro-technic are launched from the bridge, barges and rooftops for a 12 minute show.  Not only do attendees pay a pretty price to get an upfront seat, they also get a long wait to get back to bed with over a million people looking for the prime view; however, I am sure the madness is worth it.  We were able to view the fireworks from a hillside a few miles from town and are glad we found our spot early in the evening.

JHP_161231_SYDNEY1_1034

Thanks for spending a day in Sydney with me!

If you have questions or know something more of the town please feel free to leave a comment. 

As always, just click on any of the above images to be taken to a larger, theme oriented gallery.