Sunrises and sunsets at sea

Post World Cruise (3rd) in Sydney and Departure for Home Day (Feb 12th and 13th)

Post World Cruise (3^rd) in Sydney and Departure

Day #38-Sydney day #3

My first night off the ship and I found that I was still feeling I was being rocked to sleep by the ship at night. I love that feeling.

 

After having a nice breakfast at the sumptuous breakfast buffet at the Intercontinental Hotel, I walked over to Circular Quay then, up to Harbor Bridge. Along the way, I could not take my eyes off of the stunning Sydney Opera House. That is one of my favorite structures. It has such a beautiful design.

It was tricky to find the multiple sets of staircases leading up to the harbor bridge. I walked through the intricate maze of streets in the Rocks district passing some of the oldest buildings in one of the first districts of the city.

I was happy to finally reach the top. In all, it took about 20 to 25 minutes from my hotel. This includes a few stops to look at the map to verify I was headed in the right direction.

As I walked along the bridge, I just stared at the glistening opera house, so pristine, housed in its own little world it's a little I was surrounded by glowing, iridescent blue water, seagulls flying about, tourists along the harbor front, happily posing for photos in front of this magnificent structure.

I decided to walk half way across the bridge, a walk which was approximately 15 minutes in duration. I slowly strolled back, descending various staircases while exploring the cafés, shops, open market, and food stalls, in the trendy Rocks area.

It took me forever to locate the rocks Discovery Museum nestled away among the labyrinth of streets in the rocks area.

The museum shares the history of pre-European Time to the present day using interactive displays and four permanent exhibitions that include discussions of the port, the colony, and the activism during the 70s that succeeded in preserving the historical Rocks area. Included were exhibits about the gadigal people, the colony built by British convicts and European settlers, the thriving port filled with merchant ships and new immigrants, and finally how the rocks has flourished as a treasured precinct.  Importantly, my tour guide from two days ago recommended this museum as one of her favorites and believe it or not, there is no admission fee.

 

Next, I decided to take a slow stroll up George Street, one of the main arteries of Sydney, lined with many shops, cafés, administrative buildings, and government centers and more.

 

30 minutes later, at Liverpool and Dixie streets, I found Chinatown. I was a bit disappointed because it was much smaller than what I had expected. I suppose I was very spoiled by the vast extensive Chinatown in Singapore. There were no more than three blocks with mostly Chinese restaurants and a couple of souvenir shops. Singapore is Chinatown is composed of street after street replete with large merchandise-filled stores and shops with only a few restaurants nestled in between the merchandise. Although this was distinctively Chinese with all of the red lanterns, it almost wasn't worth the long walk. However, I did enjoy my stroll on George Street. In the end I was so exhausted and had walked more than 18,000 steps, so I decided to sample the metro system. I bought a one-way city ticket for four dollars for  the 3 stops back to circular Quay.

 

I strolled around the area that staring at my beloved Sydney Opera House a bit more before heading back to my hotel at 4 PM. 

 

Dinner was with friends and friends of friends at seven chophouse five minute walk from the Intercontinental Hotel near Australia Square.

 

Conversation was lively and included mostly travel politics.

 

I headed home after 10:30 PM knowing that my wonderful 38 day adventure had come to an end.

I slept well for the second night in a row felt the movement of the ship, rocking me to sleep at night, in my hotel bed.

Sydney observations: fast-paced, cosmopolitan, ethnically diverse, polite people, expensive, beautiful city, spectacular architecture with the old juxtaposed with the new, lots of construction – apparently second only to Dubai in the number of construction cranes found in the city. In direct competition with the city of Melbourne for most cultural city in Australia.

Learned that voting is mandatory in Australia.

 February 13

Next day at airport: ran into guy who stood our group up for dinner Thursday. I just said hello. He asked me what I did for two days in Sydney. I asked him and he said I had a couple of drinks. SMH.

My first two pieces of luggage were included. I informed them I weigh less than 90 lbs. and do they give consideration if my luggage is overweight since the average passenger weighs 165. No of course. My third cost 200AUD plus extra 75 AUD for weighing 30.6 kilos---17 pounds overweight. Total about $193US total. Not too bad. I had invested so much time trying to get someone to take a suitcase (or two) off the ship for me when it returns to Ft Lauderdale April 30. Glad I decided to simply bring all of my luggage with me. That way I don't have to stress about retrieving bags at the port in Fort Lauderdale at the end of April. So many things could've gone wrong.

 

I spent almost a 30-hour travel day and a half complete with a 15 hour flight from Sydney, Australia to Dallas, Texas, a five hour layover, a three hour flight back to Miami. I crossed 14 time zones.

 

 

 

Disembarkation in Sydney-World Cruise Continues Without Me

Cruise World-Day 37--Cruise ends in Sydney-Disembarkation in Sydney--off the ship February 11, 2016.

 

I enjoyed my last room service meal in the privacy of my room. I knew I would get distracted with conversations and hugging new friends goodbye so I decided to just be alone this morning. It served me well because I was ready in time to leave at around 8:30 AM, as planned.

 

First I checked into the Intercontinental Hotel, left my bags in storage, and headed to the Wildlife Sydney zoo to see some kangaroos, koalas, and other animals indigenous to Australia.

 

10AM: My first stop was to the Darling Harbour, A large complex of shops, restaurants, all set against the backdrop of the harbor. Situated on the north end are a series of attractions including an aquarium, a small zoo, and a wax museum. Here, I visited the Wild Life Sydney Zoo, known for its collection of the largest variety of indigenous Australian animals. There was no way I was coming to Australia without seeing a kangaroo, a koala bear, a wombat, and a wallaby. Although small, the zoo did not disappoint. I saw Ringo the wombat, several wallabies, a cassowary, (the world’s deadliest bird who fiercely protects its young, it’s the world’s 3rd largest bird. Emu and cassowary are cousins of ostrich). Later on, I observed groups of kangaroos relaxing in their habitat, with an occasional one hopping around visiting the others. The Tasmanian devils were so cute and I was surprised to see they had a red beak which was prominently displayed as they were being fed. I saw one of the largest crocodiles I ever seen.

 

I was a bit disappointed that I could not get as up close and personal with the koalas as I had wanted to. Alas, they charged a separate fee to go inside another small enclosed area to interact with koalas. Importantly, here in Sydney you cannot hold the koala bears as a visitor. The province of Queensland is the only place where customers can hold a koala bear.

I learned that 80% of species in Australia cannot be found anywhere else in the world. I'm not sure how this statistics compares to other countries and their indigenous creatures but it was certainly impressive to me.

 

I spent about an hour and a half looking at and reading about all of the animals on display. I think the museum does a nice job of providing an overview and they employ a variety of learning aids to educate visitors. I recommend this attraction for those who do not want to make the huge commitment to go to the zoo that's at least a 30 minute ferry ride and 3 to 4 hour minimum visit.

 

I strolled around the lush botanical gardens and along some of the shopping areas around Pit Street. Attention: I did not make any purchases!

 

I stopped in to the basement of a gourmet food store and purchased a meat pie. It was delectable.

 

1:45-Next: I visited the Hyde Park Barrack's Museum, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

This is a museum that serves as a reminder that Australia is the world's only penal colony that became a nation.

As my tour guide yesterday had promised, this is an excellent museum, well designed, with clear interactive educational displays.

 

The Barracks is a UNESCO world heritage site that was built by convicts in the early 1800s in Hyde Park. More than 50,000 convicts passed through its gates between 1819 and 1848.

 

Beginning in 1848, and lasting through the end of the century, was a period when the barracks became an immigration depot for 40,000 immigrant women and their children; an asylum for destitute, aged, and infirmed; and eventually a bustling complex of courts and government offices.

 

And audio guide was included in the admission fee of $10. It provided a succinct overview of the contents of 20 galleries.

 

When extensive conservation works began in 1979, archaeologist recovered more than 130,000 artifacts, from beneath the floorboards. Included in the exhibits were canvass hammocks in which the convicts slept in dormitories, cedar chest ls of private possessions brought by female immigrants, clothing, iron tools, iron dormitory beds for women, kitchen utensils including entire place settings, devices of torture and punishment including whips and chains, miniature models of sections of the building, construction equipment, and more. I was mesmerized as I immersed myself in this part of history. I spent almost 2 hours engrossed in the material.

 

In the early 19th century in England, sentencing and punishments for all crimes were harsh. Amazingly, pick pocketing carried a life sentence that could be shortened if a convict served time in the Sydney convict colony. Other convict categories included political protesters, machine breakers, bank robbers, pirates, slaves, petty thieves, and hardened repeat offenders.

 

One of my favorite displays was a large map of all of the penal colonies created in the Americas by European colonizers such as England, France, and Portugal. Outside of Australia (160,000 convicts arrived) French Guiana had the second largest number of convicts in the penal colony, 90,000.

 

I left there pretty mentally exhausted and took a slow stroll back to my hotel.

 

7:15-1045-I had dinner with friends of friends from Australia at the famous Chophouse.

 

The conversation was lively but with a bit too much politics sprinkled in. That should not be surprising because Michael has already run for local office and has strong political aspirations to serve in elected positions in the near and far future. He even discussed his campaign slogans.

 

I heard that after the ship sailed away from Sydney harbor today, it had to return to port to remove a sick man in his 50s. I will have to find out who this was later I bet it was Mark.

 

Here is a newspaper blurb about it:

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/nsw/cruise-ship-gridlock-in-sydney-harbour-as-ms-amsterdam-offloads-sick-passenger-20160211-gmrz4o.html

 

My smart phone app indicated that I walked 8 miles and 23,000 steps today.

 

I fell asleep at almost midnight.  I slept surprisingly well given the fact that I would be checking out of the hotel and beginning the long 30 our journey back to Miami. This is the longest trip I have ever taken away from home since I spent the entire summer after graduate school in Europe several decades ago.

 

Day#36-Sydney Australia, last day of cruise.

Day #36-Last Day: Sydney, Australia

I set my alarm to ring at 5:50AM so I could enjoy the spectacular sail-in to Sydney Harbor with up close views of the iconic Sydney Opera House, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

 

Since this was our last port visit, I was happy they opened the bow as they did for The Panama Canal, French Polynesia, New Zealand, and now Sydney. 

The Opera House was stunning as it glistened under the sunny skies. It took my breath away. I was so happy to add this beautiful symbol to my list of sites visited!

Sydney is the largest and oldest Australian city that began more than 200 years ago as a British penal colony. In 1806, Capt. Bligh (of Mutiny) was made governor of the province of New South Wales, where Sydney is located. BTW, Bligh was part of multiple mutinies and a coup d'etat.  

 

The city is known for its diversity and contains more than 200 ethnic groups within its borders.

Unfortunately, our ship did not dock in Circular Quay adjacent to the Opera House.  They gave us a story that we were assigned to the boondocks since our ship was small enough to pass under the harbour bridge. The Princess Dawn was docked next to the Opera House.

 

I passed up the free shuttle to town and instead chose to take to take the $9, 20-minute, scenic ferry ride. It was awesome to pass The Opera House up close and personal.

 

I decided to take a Sydney Free Walking Tour. Www.imfree.com.au  After stopping by my hotel to touch basis, I walked along the Botanical Gardens Street, thru Martin Square and up George Street to the tour’s Town Hall meeting point, in front of the anchor.

 

I arrived 15 minutes early and could not help but remark that for the first time in 5 weeks, instead of being surrounded by grandparents, I was among “their grandchildren”. The 20 something, Justine, guided our group and I learned she founded Free Sydney Walking Tours and Free Melbourne Walking Tours six years ago. See her photo on the brochure here. Www.imfree.com.au

Justine was charming and enthusiastic about both Sydney and Melbourne. I learned these cities have been competing for the title best and brightest, continually since their inception, trying to outdo each other with the tallest building, best street art, most efficient public transit system and more. It is obvious that Sydneyites resent Melbourne for being crowned “the cultural capital of Australia.”

 

Some highlights of the tour were learning about: the Hyde Park Barracks, the Rocks' seedy history, underground mall in The Queen Victoria building, the bird cage outdoor art exhibit, free things to do, hidden cafes/bars and more.  The coat of arms contains the kangeroo and the emu. They are not hesitant to admit they eat both. If you order a “coat of arms pizza,” guess what it is!!

 

Sydney celebrates Chinese New Year with a variety of festivals and art installations including: see website excerpt here

 

The 20^th Sydney Chinese New Year Festival will welcome the Year of the Monkey in magnificent style.

From 6 to 21 February, Sydney will come alive with the sights, sounds and tastes of Asia in one the biggest celebrations of the Lunar New Year outside of mainland China.

 

One of the festival highlights, the inaugural Lunar Lanterns exhibition, will begin this Saturday (6 February) when the City lights lanterns representing 12 animal signs of the zodiac in some of Sydney’s most iconic locations for the first time at 8pm. The lanterns, designed by Chinese-Australian artists including Laurens Tan, Fan Dongwang, Tianli Zu, Hu Ming, Claudia Chan Shaw and Justin Qian, include: three eight-metre high wise monkeys outside the Opera House; a majestic ox made with 700 mahjong tiles in Martin Place; a giant happy tiger lantern in the QVB forecourt; 14 giant rabbits at Customs House; and a Goat lantern gifted from the City of Guangzhou in Chinatown.

The exhibition will run for nine days and nights to 14 February and is designed to be equally impressive regardless of the time of day.

 

Lunar Lanterns, various locations, 6–14 February --Giant lanterns representing animal signs of the Chinese Zodiac will grace some of Sydney’s most popular locations for 9 days and 9 nights.

Lunar Lanterns is a contemporary take on a centuries-old tradition, with some lanterns standing several stories high and located throughout the city from Circular Quay to Chinatown.

 

We saw most of these spectacular animal lanterns on our tour.  See me with the rabbits below.

 

Our tour ended at Circular Quay across the harbor from the Opera House.

 

After strolling around circular quay a bit, I wanted to soak in more of the flavor of the city by walking up and down the bustling George Street, a major street lined with many businesses, restaurants, and is adjacent to main shopping streets.

I had another juicy steak pie from the Pie Face shop before taking the beautiful ferry ride back to the ship.

 

The ship was virtually empty tonight as many of the guests stayed in town or went back in town to see the opera, Barber of Seville.

 

Tonight's featured entertainer was a comedian, Jeff Green. He was really funny and touched on a number of universally humorous topics, especially all the popular gender-related ones.

 

I finished my packing and make sure all of my bags were out by 11 PM.

 

Tomorrow: disembarkation from my beautiful home for the past 36 days!

 

I will spend two nights in Sydney before flying back to Miami.

 

My fit bit indicates I took 22,671 steps and walked 8.3 miles.

 

Justine Tour Guide

Public art in Sydney Australia – "Forgotten songs

Public art in Sydney Australia.

"Forgotten Songs" is a delightful art installation representing Sydney's lost birds. In Angel Place, in downtown Sydney, here is a constellation of empty bird cages from which you can hear a variety of birds in song. In competition with Melbourne, Sydney prides itself on its proliferation of public art works.  I learned about this thought provoking work of art during a walking tour in Sydney, at the end of a 36 day cruise from Fort Lauderdale Florida, through the Panama Canal, with visits in several South Pacific ports, and New Zealand. February 2016.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBjbv1VBqQI

Towel Animals Every Night

Yes, EVERY night!!!

Really--EVERY night!!!!