Sunday 2nd March
Breakfast up the road in Kirribilli and then as the day didn’t look too promising over to the library in North Sydney for a blog update (free Internet).

Local restaurants are limited on a Sunday so we took the train into Sydney to Chinatown and an interesting food experience in an underground food court.

Monday 3rd March
Lunch at ‘The Club’ followed by coffee at Gloria Jean’s. Coffee in Australia (and New Zealand) is a wonderful experience. There is little or no drip coffee, it’s all espresso based. Every coffee shop has an espresso machine and the regular choices are cappuccino, a long black (double espresso) or a flat white (an espresso mixed with lightly foamed milk). Lattes and mochachinos are frequently available, cream never is. Starbucks are everywhere here but they serve long blacks and flat whites too.

The Stable playhouse in Sydney has last minute $10 admittance tickets to plays on a Monday night, so two trains later we are in the Kings Cross (red light district) area of Sydney going to see Motortown (a British play) being very well performed.

Sydney has its dark side - legal prostitution, legal (and illegal) brothels and sex shows most of it based in the Kings Cross area – not a good place to be late at night, they even had a couple of shootings there early Monday morning. We got back home unscathed.

Tuesday 4^th March
Headed into Sydney for a marathon movie experience at the Broadway complex. The intent had been to watch three movies but after “Valley of Elah” and “There Will Be Blood” we were all a little drained so Ira and Anne headed back to their place and Carol and I went for some more of that fake abalone.

Wednesday 5^th March
Walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge which gives the best views of the harbour

(this promontory has the Prime Minister’s house on the end)

and the Opera House.

Walked into the centre of Sydney looking for Internet at the Westin hotel – no luck so took the train back to North Sydney and the library.

Thursday 6^th March
Took the train to Chatswood (North Sydney) for garlic prawns at a street vendor which were just superb

then went on a bush walk to Berry Island, seeing the collection of a bower bird


and a kookaburra – we’ve heard their calls (sound like chimpanzees) but sightings are illusive,

Back to the North Sydney Club and a twofer fish and chips and then home to get some rest.

Friday 7^th March
The best way to get to the Taronga Zoo, Sydney’s famous zoo, is by ferry to the foot of the hill that it covers from top to bottom and then a bus to the entrance at the top. The birds in flight display was probably the best

But there were many other standout animal displays such as gorillas

Kodiac bears

and the reclusive orang-utan

We even got this up-close shot of a kookaburra which wasn’t even in an enclosure.

We finished our wonderful day with a ‘hot pot’ sizzling supper in the Chinatown food-court where we had eaten before. They serve on cast-iron plate-like things that keep it very hot until the end – excellent.

Saturday 8^th March
Breakfast in the village accompanied by this little guy – an Indian mynah bird.

Took a walk to North Sydney for another Costi’s grilled fish lunch before taking a walk round the North Sydney market.

We then walked back to the ferry and took a trip to Darling harbour where they were having inflatable ‘dinghy’ races. Except these dinghies aren’t quite like anything people normally use.

There was also this other strange water feature simulating a gravity well - I suppose.

Sunday 9^th March
Took a trip into Sydney for the wine tasting festival which was a human zoo with overpriced wine tasting and food and zillions of people. So we took a walk via the travelator

and its wall-art

to the art gallery.

Supper was actually free in a closing food-court where they give their leftover food away at the end of the day, Greek salad and tuna and pasta – hard to beat at the price.

Monday 10^th March
By ferry, off to Manly, a local resort very popular with Sydneyites (named 'cos the white guy who found it thought the aborigines were very 'manly') . A very pleasant holiday kinda place

with surf and sand.

Back in Sydney we passed this street artist at work.