G’day Mates and welcome to Sydney,

Today we took up residence in the capital of Australia, Sydney, – okay, only for 9 days, but we found the grocery store and bought supplies, found the central train and bus station and bought passes (good for buses, trains, subways, and ferries), bought wine and settled in – no worries.

 

We quickly became adept at navigating the massive and complex public transportation system which is a good thing because Sydney is about the size of Chicago and, like Chicago, it sprawls over miles and miles some densely populated sections and other suburban or rural areas, and there is lots and lots to see.

It is definitely a large thriving modern city but there is an old English feel to much of the architecture. I loved the eclectic mix as we walked around the city.

We stayed at the Central Railway Hotel which was conveniently close to the Central Station,

But the hub of activity – the happenin place – is Circular Quay (pronounced Key). This is the heart of Sydney and is a fun and exciting place to be.  The area includes downtown Sydney, the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbor, (where our cruise ship docked four weeks earlier) and of course the Sydney Harbor Bridge – a busy, busy place.  Each day started with a jaunt to Central Station, a quick train ride to Circular Quay and then off to the adventure of the day (All roads/tracks/ferries lead to Central Quay).

In case you didn’t get the message, Tom and I both think that Sydney’s Circular Quay is awesome! And we had some amazing adventures here.

Let me tell you about some of our very cool escapades in the Quay:

On Wednesday Tom and I had tickets to a concert at the Sydney Opera House (another bucket list check). We headed to the Quay for an early dinner in one of the dozens of restaurants overlooking the harbor. After dinner we made our way through the throngs of people waiting in line to see Jack Johnson who was performing that night in the outdoor venue of the Opera House plaza. We also encountered many families who were attending a performance of Cinderella at one of the indoor venues.  We were headed for the main concert hall. All-in-all The Sydney Opera House can simultaneously host up to six events at the same time.  We attended a concert – “Variations of an English Theme” which was lovely. Okay, I have to admit, I snuck out during intermission to listen to Jack Johnson. I was able to see and hear him from the outdoor balcony – way cool!!! The evening was very memorable and we came away knowing that the Sydney Opera House is one of the icons that helps make Sydney a world class city.

Our Thursday adventure was a huge one on our bucket list. As Tom says, “We got high – literally!!!!!! Wait for it, okay; TOM AND I CLIMBED THE SYDNEY HARBOR BRIDGE!!! I’m not talking about walking from one side of the bridge to the other. We’d already done that several times and while the walk was great, it’s not really an adventure. I’m talking about the climb to the top of the arch which was beyond awesome! We headed down to the Quay early so we would be there on time and ended up being over an hour early – eager? We walked around downtown for a bit and then headed into the Bridge Climb Museum which was a very interesting about the building of the bridge.

Watching a video of the guys walking around on narrow beams with no safety measures during the building of the bridge didn’t do anything to settle my nerves…

Anyway, we went out to check in early and were told that we could join an earlier climb group – “starting now” – Yikes! There ended up being only six in our group which was great because there are usually 14. We got a lot more personal attention from Maria, our great guide.

Moving right along, we all signed the form releasing the Bridge Climb Company from any responsibility due to untimely death or bodily injury that might occur on the climb and another swearing that we were of sound mind (?). Next we each took a Breathalyzer test – no, I’m not making this up – “You don’t pass, you don’t go.” Luckily Tom and I both passed as did the others. We were then issued the lovely gray and blue suits that you see in the picture. They are to help you blend in with the bridge so that you don’t distract the drivers, honest. Next came the radio, headset, pouches containing jackets in case it got cold or rainy and a ball cap which we got to keep. After donning our gray apparel, we headed for the practice area where we each received a harness with a safety line that hooked us to a cable and slid with us as we moved. We practiced climbing up and down ladders in all our paraphernalia and repeated the mantra, “at least 3 points of contact at all times!” Finally we were ready to go. Maria cheerfully said, “No worries”, but I had serious doubts about that. How high is this climb? (To be exact, it is 159ft wide, spans 3,734ft, 435ft above sea level at the top of the arch – I think I’m going to be sick…)

Despite the heart palpitations, sweaty palms, and trembly knees, I stepped in line with the others, and we headed up. We started in the museum and then moved out a small door and onto the catwalk (see the diagram).

As we walked past the piling, Maria told us that legend says that rubbing the solid granite rock would calm you and give you strength. We all chuckled but every one of us rubbed that granite as we passed. The first ladder took us from a catwalk beneath the bridge to the roadway between the sixth and seventh traffic lanes of the bridge with cars whizzing by on either side – eeaow!

On up we climbed until we reached the bottom left side of the upper arch. After emerging through the opening onto the arch itself, we posed for pictures – let me reiterate “On the Upper Arch!!!” Holy Cow!

 

 While pictures were being taken, we stood staring down at Sydney whirring below, wow. Pictures done we started the climb to the summit of the arch. Then more pictures and time just to soak-in the amazing panorama below.

We then took the walkway across the top and headed down the other side, back through the opening, down the ladder this time between the two railroad tracks with trains rumbling by at top speeds, to the catwalk and back to reality. Wow! How cool was that!!!? The whole adventure took about three hours but seemed like minutes, yet, the memories will last forever.