Sydney

We spent a week in Sydney. Jess and I stayed at a backpackers near the major shopping and business areas of the city. All week our diet consisted of Thai, Chinese, pizza, and more Thai. We had a mixed time. Jess and I bought five different airline tickets, and took care of our Philippines visa and Indonesian visa. Needless to say we were very busy. I don't feel like I could accurately record the beauty and character of the city because of my slightly jaded emotions....but here it goes.
Jess and I thought Sydney to be a normal (average) city for a few days, until we took a walk down to Darling harbor and watched the sunset and the light fade. This led from the colorful reflections of the city buildings, to the brilliant shining of city lights dancing across the water. The air was much warmer than all of NZ and Melbourne. This was just the beginning. The next day Jess and I paid a visit to the Royal Botanical Gardens and The Domain. (The most diverse and beautiful gardens that I have ever seen)
Walking from the city we headed in to Hyde Park. As we walked in we passed a giant chess set where a couple of Italian men were in a match. The walkway led up to the Archibald Fountain, which is there to commemorate the relationship between Australia and France during WW l. There were groups of school children on a field trip running around and music from a man playing Spanish guitar. A little further and we were at St. James Church. The construction of the church was completed in 1824 and is Sydney's oldest existing place of worship. From there we went past the Anzac Memorial, up past the Art Gallery of New South Wales, and into the Gardens. One of the garden's most striking features is that it is inhabited by thousands of fruit bats (flying foxes). They hang all over the trees around the palm groves. At night their silouettes can be seen souring across the sky. Other attraction within the gardens are ponds (with eels), a succulents garden, the rose garden, the herb garden.....and so much more.. Jess and I loved the giant cockatoos that live in the trees. They have a menacing screech that can be heard from a mile away. We had the opportunity to have them perch on us. The photos will say it all. This was an unforgettable experience. We walked up to the famous Mrs. Macquaries Chair ( a seat fashioned out of a rock) from there one can view the harbor.
The next day we walked to the famous Sydney Opera House. Something that was new to me was that it is made out of tons of square white tiles. It was lovely. That night we went back to the Art gallery of New South Wales for a night at the museum. Literally. There was a special program where we had a guided tour through the "Truly Dutch" exhibit. This display was of post WW ll abstract paintings from Holland. It was interesting and informative to hear about the the influence upon the art community after the war. The rest of the museum was fun. My favorite area was in thee style of art nouveau, one piece in particular was of a young woman playing a flute in the woods with about ten magpie's gathered around her watching. It was titled, "The Music Lesson".a
We saw a professional skate competition the day that we left. That was exciting. We watched it with two of our roommates. Ah, our roommates. We were staying with a French, an Italian, an Irish and a Chinese. All in one room. We were the first Americans that the Chinese guy had ever met. He talked to us about the Chinese culture and his experience as an international student with a desire to immigrate. There are so many challenges... I cannot even begin to explain how he described his experience. We are so lucky to live the lives that we do.
Well, Love you Family and Friends!! Hope summer has been so much fun back home!!