On The Road – BretH – On The Road – BretH – Australia! Melbourne and Sydney Part 4

So our third day in Sydney found us on the 30 minute ferry ride to Manly Beach to hike the North Head, where we knew we would find views of Sydney harbor area from a distance. To warm up we walked along the shore near the Manly ferry port and saw the most unusual thing – a swimming pool built next to the water designed to fill with the incoming tide. Apparently these are found all over the place and provide a place to swim and lounge in the water protected from the surf.

Manly itself is cute and a little touristy – but not in a terribly tacky way. We picked up a couple of bánh mì sandwiches, filled our water bottles and set off for the North Head on path that took us pretty much around the entire thing with the much talked about views of Sydney far in the distance. One thing that caught my eye was their method of creating trails in areas that needed protection: they laid down galvanized steel walkways, a sensible and surprisingly unobtrusive solution.

The views were indeed spectacular, especially from the Third Quarantine Cemetery, a place established for victims of smallpox who had been quarantined on this remote point and which also held the graves of others who died of influenza, the bubonic plague, smallpox and scarlet fever, having been quarantined in the same location. I suppose it is a little better than the tuburcolosis quarantine huts I recall seeing deep inside in Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, but lonely nonetheless.

Having started on the bay side of Manly we ended up on the ocean side coming down of the headland to a small beach with a walkway leading back to the main Manly beach. In the middle of the walkway was a café and gift shop, and there was an ocean pool here as well. If anything could sum up the vibe of Manly it was seeing folks sipping coffee in the cafe while others walked the path and still others were on the rocks out front – both sunbathers, swimmers and skin divers.

Then it was back on the ferry for the half-hour ride to Sydney harbor, back through the botanical garden, and back up the 130 stairs to Potts Point. Rewarding ourselves after our ten mile walking day we found ourselves at the open door of a tiny restaurant called Chester White’s Cured Diner. Although normally booked all night we were able to hit them as they were opening, and had expensive but delicious wine and the most marvelous bruschetta and focaccia in the southern hemisphere.

The next day we decided to cross the bay once again, this time to try the Bradleys Head to Chowder Bay walk, coming back through the Taronga Zoo located on a hillside on the Head just above the small ferry port. Here again were lovely views of Sydney and a meandering path that took us along the coast ending at a lovely little harbor and a little park where parrots, magpies and kookaburras abounded. We ran into a jolly older man who informed us that magpies are also called dusk devils, as that was when they are at their mischievous worst.

The zoo was the nicest I have ever seen, partly due I think to its being on a hillside so the path through it meandered down the slope giving each tier a sense of uniqueness and privacy. We did get a dose of sensory overwhelm when we went into the rainforest aviary and took in the calls, squats and screeches of a multitude of birds, up close and personal. We saw the koalas and hear a sad talk on how endangered they are, saw wallabies and kangaroos and finally the Little Penguin (albeit in an enclosure). too many zoos have a view from their amphitheater like this one.

Sydney really is a lovely waterfront city. although I really enjoyed Melbourne, I found the waterfront views and variety of Sydney more to my liking. I suppose if you grew up there and were closely related to the water the feeling might be even more powerful.

Throughout our time in Sydney we saw signs and announcements for Vivid Sydney, a huge arts celebration marking the start of the winter season where parks, buildings and other landmarks are lit up in the evening. Our last day in Sydney marked the first day of the festival which was also the day of a special display called First Light, with fireworks and where the Opera House would be illuminated with a moving display. The harbor area is already stunning by night so we were excited to see what extra they could bring to it.

We had spent the afternoon at Manly with a friend of my wife’s and decided to wait and take the ferry back to catch First Light. We got back to the harbor in time to get prime spots at the harbor railing across from the Opera House. a huge fireworks display got First Light off with a bang (sorry!) with fireworks launched from the Opera House, the Bridge and other areas around the harbor.

The evening was truly amazing, with the harbor and surrounding buildings lit up, lasers crisscrossing the skies, and drones overhead. The final act of the evening was an animated story honoring the ancestral women of the original inhabitants of the area that was projected onto the Opera House itself. What a fitting end to our trip to Australia.

Well, there was one more trip back through the botanical garden and up the 130 stairs.