Sydney by Night

On day 1 in Sydney I vowed to go back to Mrs. Macquarie's Chair to take night photos. After the performance at the Opera House, we headed out to get those pictures before we flew out the next day. Nothing like waiting till the last minute....

This picture turned out to be my absolute FAVORITE from the entire trip. (That photography class paid off in this shot!) I can't wait to have it framed!

Sadly, our trip had to come to an end. But a wise man (Uncle Kenny) has told me many times that the best trips are the ones you don't want to end. This certainly was one of the best trips we have taken to date.

It was just that good!!!!

A Night at the Sydney Opera House

One of the last hoorahs while in Sydney was to attend a performance at the Sydney Opera House. We saw the "Not New Years' Eve Spectacular." Spectacular described the night pretty accurately.

We arrived early enough to enjoy the view from the Opera House.

The Opera House up close

You can get a feeling for how monsterous this building is if you look at the people standing on the balcony waiting for intermission to be over with.

Walking the Harbor Bridge

Our guide book says that one thing few tourists do while in Sydney is to walk across the Harbor Bridge. Well, we weren't going to make that mistake. We had the opportunity to take an up close look at the beauty and structure of the bridge. I can't believe more people do not take advantage of this cheap, easy, and spectacular must-do!

It takes about 30 minutes to casually walk across the bridge. We also saw many runners. What a great place for a run!

Jason takes in the breath-taking view of the Opera House.

This bridge is made of some serious steel!

Jason shows off the plaque for the Harbor Bridge.

The Sydney Harbor Bridge is one of the only in the world to fly 2 country's flags: Australia & New Zealand.
After leaving the bridge behind, we happened upon this tree full of parrots. They were chirping and eating and having a grand ole time.

As we walked away, we got one last magnificent look at the Harbor Bridge.

A White Christmas Down Under

Being from Georgia, I'm used to a warm Christmas. But even in Georgia, we try to pretend that Christmas resembles life at the North Pole...even if it means we have to turn on our air conditioner just to light a fire in the fireplace!

In Australia though, they have decided to embrace the summertime weather by enjoying a "White Christmas" on the sandy beaches.

When in Rome, do as the Romans....so, when in Australia, do as the Aussies! Jason and I ventured out to Manly Beach for Christmas Day.

Even though a tropical storm loomed on the horizon, the beach was packed. These life guards and surf rescue had a big job to do, but they did it with lots of Christmas spirit!

Some Aussies sported their Christmas spirit while overseeing the building of a sand castle.

Others just enjoyed sitting in the sand

Others enjoyed the wild waves

And Santa even made an appearance!!!!

Next time we need to remember our Santa hats!

After a day on the beach, we headed to the top of Sydney for Christmas Dinner. (It's not actually the tallest building, but it was tall enough for us to enjoy.)

As you can see the restaurant has a panaramic view of the city. (Something we learned: Evidentally Aussies aren't especially prompt. We arrived 5 minutes before our reservation to find the restaurant not quite set up and ready for us.)

Most of the pictures didn't turn out all that great because the glass wasn't non-reflecting. But this one gives you a decent look at our view for the evening.

We even had Christmas crackers. So much fun!

You've heard of beef jerky, but have you heard of...

Does it make your mouth water??? Neither of us tried the crocodile, but Jason did try the kangaroo. He said it was actually good. We wanted to buy a whole bunch and send it to yall...but customs wouldn't let us. Stupid mailing rules!

The Blue Mountains of Australia

Our next excursion took us to the Blue Mountains, about 2 hours away from Sydney.

The first stop was at the Featherdale Wildlife Park, which turned out to be the highlight of the day. We were able to see almost all of the typical Australian wildlife in this one place.

What Australian wildlife park could pass up kangaroos?

Or the WallabyAnd although most koalas were asleep, we did manage to get our picture taken with this cutie who was actually awake.

I don't know how they sleep like this without falling out of the trees. This particular koala is the New South Wales version, which is larger than the typical Victorian version.

Crocodiles (large enough to eat a child- yeesh!)

Ghost Bat

Dingo

Wombat

Tasmanian Devil

Our time at Featherdale came to a close way too quickly. Next we were off to the bush.

Here we are after taking a brief bush walk (which basically means a walk in the woods).

Next all the boys learned how to throw a boomerang. Surprisingly the boomerang is strictly forbidden as a toy in Australia. These are the real deal...meaning they are deadly.

Jason's didn't quite come back to him, but then again...no one's did.

They actually have signs warning drivers to beware of kangaroo crossing the road.

Then we arrived at the Blue Mountains. They don't look blue in these pics, but from a distance they reminded me a lot of the Smoky Mountains with their blue haze.

At the end of our day with the Blue Mountains behind us.

Excersion to Port Stephens, Australia

After 2 fabulous days in Sydney, we set off on a third adventure...only to be let down. It wasn't "Sydney's" fault...it was ours for not remembering our own mantra...Do it yourself!

On Day 3 we headed out on an over crowded tour bus towards the town of Port Stephens.

Our first stop was at the Sydney Reptile Park. Funny enough, the main attraction was NOT a reptile.

We learned that in our next life we want to be koalas...who get to sleep 22 out of the 24 hours in a day. Can you even imagine!

And Jason fed the kangaroos.

Then we actually made it to Port Stephens.

Here we are on our boat getting ready to head into the crystal blue/green waters and find some dolphins.

And right on cue...there they were....

They loved riding the waves our big boat was making. They swam in and out, jumping and playing. One last pic after being wind-whipped

Then it was on to the monstorous sand-dune mountains. Sandstone is the bedrock of Australia, so they have more sand than they need or can use. These mountains of sand build up in places like Port Stephens.

Australia uses its abundance for some capital gain. They export the sand to places that need it...like Waikiki Beach. So, if you've ever been to Waikiki, you can also say you've set foot on Australian soil.

It was SO hot this day. It really felt like we might melt.

You've heard of snow boarding? Well, this is sand boarding. No, we did not try it. It was way too hot, and the ride home was way too long to have that much sand in our shorts.

It was an interesting day....but certainly NOT the best. But really, is it right to complain about anything when your in Australia though?

More fun to come. Stay posted for:

- Blue Mountains

-Christmas with surfing Santas

-An evening at the Opera House

-Sydney by night