Baranagarangaroona

  • May 24, 2022

Yesterday Sue an I woke early like roosters, and decided to walk over the same bridge that we had climbed the day prior! We wanted to do it for its own sake, and to visit a secret garden hidden just over the other side.

To get there we walked along the harbour walk that winds past Barangaroo, the new casino-that-isn’t-yet-a-casino. The weather was lovely and the new foreshore development was great and I’ll almost certainly do this walk almost every time I visit from now on. It led right to the bridge, over which we then strolled!

That’s the view looking back from the northwest side, and you can see Luna Park on the left. It may look cold and menacing, but it was actually quite comfortable. Right behind us from where this photo was taken was Wendy’s Secret Garden, which is an eccentric fairytale garden designed and built over many years by a Sydney artist.

After the return to the CBD and lunch it was time to head to Newcastle and mum’s, and the long-awaited reunion:

Dinner was meat pies followed by a Toobs binge:

You can bet this won’t be the first bag of Toobs I’ll be inhaling this trip 🙂

  • Posted in Australia
  • Robert

Finally, I’ve Climbed The Bridge

  • May 23, 2022

Sue came down to Sydney today and surprised me with a belated birthday gift: we were climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge!

The entire endeavour took just over 3.5 hours including about an hour of setup and safety training. We had to strip to our underwear before donning full body climb suits, a safety harness, two hats, a radio, rain pants and a rain coat. We were part of a group of 14, and by request we were at the front of the line (since I knew I’d have a lot of questions).

We couldn’t bring anything with us which meant no phone, so I grabbed the above pic from the internet just to show scale. At all times you are connected to a rail that would catch you if you fell, and every action is rehearsed in a ‘simulator’ even before you start the climb.

The views from the very top were of course breathtaking (that’s another pic from the net above) but even underneath (the road) or inside the main structure there was lots to see including the harbour about 450 feet below.

There’s me at the top to prove I did it! I loved everything about the climb and highly recommend it if you’re ever in town.

  • Posted in Australia
  • Robert

Sea Legs

  • May 22, 2022

There were pernicious rumors a while ago that I was, shall we say, ‘weak to boats’. To put it bluntly, the rumors suggested I was a jelly-legged half-man that fainted at the first sight of a wave crest when sailing across the briny deep.

I scoff at these rumors, and today was proof of that!

I woke so early it was still yesterday and since I couldn’t return to sleep I read and sorted my luggage until sunup. Then I walked down to the pier at Circular Quay and bordered a ferry bound for Manly!

It’s only a 22 minute trip but for a couple of those minutes the ferry crosses the harbour entrance, which is famously choppy. At this point the boat bounced up and down and left and right and I rode it like a king. My sea legs were as sturdy as ever, and not even for one moment did I faint! And it’s not like the boat didn’t have the potential to sicken: I beheld some green-faced passengers who seemed to be praying for land, and I gave them a steely glance as I inwardly laughed at their pathetic weakness.

It was very early and nothing was open in the Manly shopping street, but the beach was beautiful and I walked it’s length before returning to ride a ferry back to the Sydney piers again.

Oh and check out the vending machine above: for only $2 you can buy a mask from a possessed girl with glowing eyes!

Back in Sydney I ate and wandered around and eventually ended up playing a ufo catcher machine in Chinatown. And believe it or not I won!

Not bad for about $30 wouldn’t you agree? 😉