Crossing the Great Divide (Sydney Harbour Bridge)

We had decided to spend some time in Sydney so we get up in our own time, which is unfortunately still tuned in to a mix between Brisbane and New Zealand time, so I'm awake about 6 and because we've got our own rooms, I haven't a clue whether Becky's awake or not. As we're with family and my cousin's husband is a computer whizz, the wifi is accessible all over the house and doesn't cost anything, unlike the wifi in the motel in New Zealand which admittedly only cost $5 but lasted 5 minutes and was long enough for us both to get on Facebook but not to reply to any messages and certainly not to do any blogging! So I think I'll see if anyone's around at home and FaceTime the family for a catchup, which is amazing, instant chatting and being able to see them as well - and I take the IPad down to Becky to see if she's awake so she can catch up too. My daughter back in England is bringing us up to date when her baby wakes and starts to cry and she takes us with her, up the stairs and into her room, where we join her as she plugs the dummy back in and the baby settles back to sleep. This new technology is amazing and I'm sorry but I just can't get over the fact that we're on the other side of the world and are walking around a house back in England. My parents would never believe it if they were alive today! I can barely believe it, when I was a child, blah blah blah ...

During the night, Becky was woken by her phone receiving an email and found that she has an interview when she gets back to England for the next stage in her life so she's very excited and let's me and her sister know whilst catching up. Then we try to Skype John to let him know the good news and we manage a chat where he can see us, but we can't see him - probably just as well, we have only just woken up!

When my cousin gets up, not realising we were up because we were being so quiet, we decide that we'll go out for breakfast so leisurely get up, showered and dressed and by the time we're ready to go, it's well after ten so we drive to a place in one of the many inlets around the Sydney harbour and Sue takes us to a tucked away place called 'Echo On The Marina' where they serve breakfast 'til 11 and we just make it in time!


The photo below is from the top of the area looking down to where the restaurant sits right on the water. After a beautiful breakfast, and a bit of a walk around the headland (we drive from one side to the other, probably less than half a mile) and view it from the other side, where we took the photo, then we head back home to pick up our bits and head off to catch a bus into Sydney.


The bus turns up and Sue pays our fares using a system whereby you buy a card from a newsagents and it has a set number of journeys on so you just 'dip' the card in the machine - no talking to the bus driver! She dips three times for us, telling the driver at which he grunts his 'ok' and the journey then takes about half an hour and we're in The Rocks area near the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge but unfortunately the famous market is only on at weekends but its nice to have a look around and it brings back memories of our other visits. We make our way to Circular Quay and take a few pictures of the Opera House, again - it hasn't changed from last time! Then we decide to have an ice cream as we're not hungry after our late breakfast. It's very pleasant sitting in the sun on the Quay eating our ice creams and listening to what sounds very like an English busker doing his version of Mumford's hits and some others which I can't remember!

Then we head for the Harbour Bridge and find that we have a couple hundred steps to climb to get up to street level on the bridge. When we came out to Australia in 2000, we all did the Bridge Climb (except John, for the same reason as he hasn't come on this trip, i.e. fear of heights) and thoroughly enjoyed it - you get an amazing view of the city from the top of the bridge. I discussed it with Becky before we left home and we decided we didn't need to do it again, plus it is very expensive to do the official Bridge Climb. Sue and Phil had suggested walking over as there is a dedicated pedestrian path so that's where we're heading and it doesn't disappoint. The views are just as amazing, albeit only in one direction, but it's the right direction as we can see the Opera House and Circular Quay and the ferries that criss cross the harbour all day long.

When we get to the other side, we go to catch a bus home and have a while to wait until it turns up so while we're waiting Becky spots a likely looking traffic sign and we leave Sue to go for a photo opportunity for Becky's Pole group and manage a nice shot (if i do say so myself) with the Harbour Bridge in the background. Eventually, the bus comes and when we arrive back, before going to the car, we stop at the local supermarket for a few bits which I win and pay for! I still find it strange that you can't buy alcohol in a supermarket here, having walked around looking, but Sue takes us to a Bottle Shop where we find a nice bottle of red wine with a lovely label and a beautiful whale on it, I just wish I could remember what it was called to look out for it again! We walk to the car, parked just around the corner and drive two minutes down the road to the house and soon we're home again and ready to put our feet up.

Luckily for Becky, as previously mentioned, Phil is a computer whizz and there's at least four laptops in use around the dining room, not counting the others in all the other rooms, so Becky has been set up with a Laptop to use and soon settles herself down to getting her blogs up to date. We have a nice relaxed dinner and a quiet evening, all sat playing/using our respective devices - whatever happened to the old fashioned art of conversation?