On Tuesday, June 5th, we flew back into Sydney. There was a storm as we landed in the area. We were fortunate to gather our luggage, get a taxi, and find our lodging. We thought it took a long time until we saw the news where some people had to wait 3 hours in the airport to get their luggage. The wind and rain were so bad that the baggage could not be removed from some of the airplanes until the storm had passed. Sydney is a great waterfront city, but it was colder and rainy.
On Wednesday, we took the green 555 bus. It’s a free bus that makes a loop through the more popular stops in Sydney. It was perfect for us. Our first stop was Circular Quay to see the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. We also walked over to the Royal Botanical Gardens before returning to the bus.
On Thursday, we took a tour bus (one of those red double decker buses) through the Sydney and Bondi Beach areas. We visited Darling Harbor and Paddy’s Market. That night as we wandered through shops, someone spotted Alan’s Atlanta Braves sweatshirt and started doing the “tomahawk chop”. We stopped to talk to him. It turns out that he is Austin’s age and lives about 5 miles from us. We talked for awhile, but didn’t get his name. You go half way around the world and meet a neighbor down the street!
On Friday, we took the ferry to Manly Beach. We really liked this area. Parrots were flying along the scenic water walk. There were signs on the walkway regarding penguins, but we didn’t see any of those. The beach had spectator seating so we could watch the surfers riding the waves in their wet suits. This was our last full day in Australia. We packed up in the evening and prepared for the long flight home.
On Saturday, June 9th, we returned home to Austin and the dog. I don’t think they had as much fun as we did!
The King Family 