Heller Neilson Travels: Sydney

We departed the Blue Mountains at 0630 to meet our commitment to return the car in downtown Sydney by 1030. I knew this would be a test as it would be like driving into Manhattan in rush hour. Traffic into Sydney about an hour out was like going into DC on I95. Fortunately the Garmin has been working throughout Australia so I was dependent on those directions. I passed by the hotel once and told Cliff to go in and get us registered as we were dropping off our luggage and then returning the car. There was no place to park or stop for very long. He was reluctant to get out and said he might never see me again. This was about 0830. One wrong turn can really mess things up! Next thing I knew I was crossing a bridge leading away from downtown Sydney (the bridge one can walk across the top for about $200) and thought oh no! With the help of the navigator I made my way back to the hotel to a very concerned Cliff 40 minutes later. Even with this delay, we dropped the car off in ample time.. I was very happy to give up the driver's seat. It was fun and not hard once I got used to being on the other side, but not a challenge I wanted in the city.

What a user-friendly city; one can walk almost everywhere. The only thing missing is sunshine, but it is warm. The harbor is magnificent with the Opera House as its centerpiece. The city is very alive with people, cafes, shops and all that cities offer as well as beauty. The cafes are full and it is hard to believe people actually get work done here. Rain has been forecast all week so we took advantage of the overcast skies and took a ferry to Manley, a beautiful Australian beach 30 minutes by ferry. So very quickly one can leave the city and go surfing. Manly Beach is quoted as being the "learner's surfer" beach and the second busiest beach in Australia. Being it was a week-day it wasn't as crowded as one would imagine on the week-end. We actually watched a surf class in session.

For shoppers this town is full of beautiful shops, however, I have found it to be very expensive. It doesn't deter me from window shopping!

Tomorrow the forecast is the same so we will be tourists on the double-decker tour bus.

SIGHTS OF SYDNEY

Speaks for itself!