March 2 - Sydney, Australia
Our last day in Sydney. Got a nice photo of the sunrise over the city from our balcony.
We had a tour to Featherdale Wildlife Park, about an hour west of Sydney. At one point we went through a new tunnel and according to the clock on the bus, it took 4-1/2 minutes. Would love to have the grandkids hold their breath for that tunnel! The suburbs of Sydney that we saw looked clean and mostly well kept. Once in a while we'd see a pile of old furniture in a yard, but for the most part it looked very nice, if modest.
The Wildlife Park was a hidden gem. They had so many native animals it was hard to keep track. First we had bush tea with Anzac biscuits (cookies) and Lamington cakes (sponge cake rolled in chocolate and coconut - delicious). I was hoping for some Vegemite on toast, but not this time.
On the way back, Carol and Phil suggested we take the shuttle into town, have a late lunch at The Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel, and do some errands. By the time we got to town, figured out how to purchase the tickets for the harbor ferry to take us to Circular Quay, we missed the ferry and had to wait 25 minutes for the next one. Then it made 3 stops, so it was almost 2:30 and we had to get the last shuttle back at 4:30. So we gave up on the lunch idea and we each went to do our errands. Michael and I found the post office so he could mail some more postcards then had a quick lunch at a pub. We walked back to King's Wharf to catch the ship's shuttle. My phone said the temperature was 99 degrees and I believe it. It was VERY warm, but we made it.
With Jan and Tom gone, I went back to my original trivia team with Diana, Jane and Joe, Renzo and Gail. I contributed Marconi as the Italian who declined a free trip on the Titanic, but whose invention saved over 700 lives. We got third place with 11 points.
Had a nice happy hour with Tim and Maureen up in the Observation Lounge for sailaway. Now we've heard that there are fewer than 500 on board - this from Tammy the social hostess so it is probably accurate. Of course that could be anything from 400-499, so who knows for sure. But it certainly seems like the ship isn't full.
Had dinner at Sette Mari and I was a bit disappointed in my fish. I should stick with the pasta or lamb chops. I think my favorite restaurant is the general dining room of Compass Rose.
The seas are a bit rocky-rolly tonight. (That's a technical term well known in mariner circles.) I've hung up my necklaces with my magnetic hooks so I'm hoping they won't be making noise tonight. I was having some trouble with my lower back over the last few weeks and Maureen suggeted I have the mattress turned over to the "hard" side. For the last 2 nights it has been an improvement, but I also carry around one of the small lumbar pillows from the upstairs lounge. Could be worse, I guess. At least 2 World Cruisers have left for medical reasons, one of which was a sciatica issue.
We had a tour to Featherdale Wildlife Park, about an hour west of Sydney. At one point we went through a new tunnel and according to the clock on the bus, it took 4-1/2 minutes. Would love to have the grandkids hold their breath for that tunnel! The suburbs of Sydney that we saw looked clean and mostly well kept. Once in a while we'd see a pile of old furniture in a yard, but for the most part it looked very nice, if modest.
The Wildlife Park was a hidden gem. They had so many native animals it was hard to keep track. First we had bush tea with Anzac biscuits (cookies) and Lamington cakes (sponge cake rolled in chocolate and coconut - delicious). I was hoping for some Vegemite on toast, but not this time.
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| Phil and Carol |
On the way back, Carol and Phil suggested we take the shuttle into town, have a late lunch at The Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel, and do some errands. By the time we got to town, figured out how to purchase the tickets for the harbor ferry to take us to Circular Quay, we missed the ferry and had to wait 25 minutes for the next one. Then it made 3 stops, so it was almost 2:30 and we had to get the last shuttle back at 4:30. So we gave up on the lunch idea and we each went to do our errands. Michael and I found the post office so he could mail some more postcards then had a quick lunch at a pub. We walked back to King's Wharf to catch the ship's shuttle. My phone said the temperature was 99 degrees and I believe it. It was VERY warm, but we made it.
With Jan and Tom gone, I went back to my original trivia team with Diana, Jane and Joe, Renzo and Gail. I contributed Marconi as the Italian who declined a free trip on the Titanic, but whose invention saved over 700 lives. We got third place with 11 points.
Had a nice happy hour with Tim and Maureen up in the Observation Lounge for sailaway. Now we've heard that there are fewer than 500 on board - this from Tammy the social hostess so it is probably accurate. Of course that could be anything from 400-499, so who knows for sure. But it certainly seems like the ship isn't full.
Had dinner at Sette Mari and I was a bit disappointed in my fish. I should stick with the pasta or lamb chops. I think my favorite restaurant is the general dining room of Compass Rose.
The seas are a bit rocky-rolly tonight. (That's a technical term well known in mariner circles.) I've hung up my necklaces with my magnetic hooks so I'm hoping they won't be making noise tonight. I was having some trouble with my lower back over the last few weeks and Maureen suggeted I have the mattress turned over to the "hard" side. For the last 2 nights it has been an improvement, but I also carry around one of the small lumbar pillows from the upstairs lounge. Could be worse, I guess. At least 2 World Cruisers have left for medical reasons, one of which was a sciatica issue.
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