N 73     Sydney

It was on our first visit to Melbourne that we went to visit Sydney. Sydney though it is the biggest in Australia is not the capital of it. It is the state capital of New South Wales and located on the west coast. It is 545 miles northeast of Melbourne. This metropolitan surrounds the largest natural harbor and sprawls towards the Blue Mountains to the west.

We went there by flying with a budget air and stayed in a budget hotel. I cannot recall anything special about what we did on the day we arrived , but maybe we went to dinner  Ko Ko Aung gave us at a restaurant (or was it the next evening ? )But the younger people said they visited Chinatown.  We older people may  just stayed at the hotel.

Our itinerary for the next day was to visit tourists’ attraction sites. So naturally we went to the icon landmark; the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge which is nearby. As we did not go in, what we did there was to go round the famous architecture , taking photos and absorbed in the magnificent sceneries. And with Harbour Bridge which joins Sydney CBD and North shore, we did the same. I am now regretting that we did not walk on it.

After that we went to Bondi Beach. We took the sightseeing bus, but I remember that it is not free like in Melbourne. These buses are going around the whole day . Once we had bought tickets we can get on one from where we are and alight where we want to. By this bus we got to Bondi beach. As it is a famous beach there were crowds of people enjoying themselves, like surfing , swimming,  soaking up in the sun or jogging.But as for us we just did sightseeing. And we saw Bondi lives up to its name. After some resting , and strolling around, taking pictures and having lunch we got back on the city bus and headed back to the city.

I  cannot recall clearly about the places we visited serially. But I remember we had been to the Hay Market where we bought some souvenirs. We  strolled leisurely along Hyde Park, among its numerous monuments and statues, The Anzac Memorial building, and pretty lanes shaded by big trees. And when we got tired we took some rests on the garden chairs provided there.

We also visited the Museum of Sydney which took us on a journey exploring Sydney’s people, places, and cultures from dream time to modern times.

The next day we went to the famous Blue Mountains. We had booked seats on a minibus in advance  and it came to pick us up punctually. Our driver’s name was Jim, but he was everything, driver, conductor, and guide and was also friendly.

I had heard that the Blue mountains’ elevation is about 4000 feet above sea level and thought we will have to climb high and  was feeling afraid to climb such heights. But I soon found out that there was nothing to be afraid of because the roads are very good and wide and   the climb so gradual that there was nothing to be afraid of. And we also saw pretty houses and villages on the way.

When we came to a viewpoint Jim would explain to us about the place, stop the bus and took us to see the view. Every place is carefully planned and done for the convenience of visitors. And every place is so nice and the sceneries awesome. But when we got to the top of the mountain ; Wow....what a panorama.... so magnificent.... so awe inspiring....We felt we were in the midst of a blue ocean surrounded by blue waters nearly on all sides. We could see Blue Mountain lives up to its name. I have seen beautiful  blue seascapes but not such blue mountains. We stayed there for sometime absorbing the beauty of panoramic view.

 I later heard that we were lucky that we can enjoy the magnificent views of Blue Mountain when some other people cannot . This happens when the weather is so foggy or when there are too much mists.After we came down Jim drove us to a jetty where we can board a river craft for some sightseeings along the coast.   

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