our sydney trip

gotta love the irreverent aussie humour

if the fall does not kill you, the crocodile will


pat the koala's


wimpy scorpions!!

before going to sydney people warned about the racism and such. but the sydney-siders were nothing but nice throughout, with a couple of exceptions, which had nothing to do with race I feel. just bad service. in fact, the only issue I had was at Changi Airport of all places! i went to an electronic store at the airport to buy a memory stick, but the staff there paid no attention to me at all. but were instead fawning all over the caucasians that came in. go figure.

SYDNEY AQUARIUM

dugong, mermaids of the sea




it is an ok aquatic park, but seen better elsewhere.wonder how it is so highly rated to be amongst sydney's most popular sights.

AROUND SYDNEY TOWN


DARLING HARBOUR, THE COCKLE BAY WHARF SIDE

the area around Darling Harbour is bustling with stuff to do.
and lots of food and shopping to be done.
and also you can catch a ferry from here to go to just about anywhere.


ST. ANDREW'S CATHEDRAL

the oldest cathedral in sydney, but by no means the most impressive. that honour goes to St.Mary's


THE INTERIOR OF QUEEN VICTORIA BUILDING
a nice building, but the shops are over-priced for people like us.


A BIG GAME OF CHESS IN THE PARK

the thing about sydney (and australia) is how the locals find so much time to play, chill and rest. even on a weekday, you see people having extended lunches, lazing in the parks or just simply having fun. a big difference to the hectic life in singapore. but think i would go mad doing nothing after a while.


ST. MARY'S CATHEDRAL
a truly awesome building. too bad they do not allow pictures (actually they do, but you have to pay). one of the better ones i visited.


THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE APPROACH
somehow seems more yellow than white when you see it. but somehow in the pictures..it is white! we did the obligatory tour. we were unable to catch the backstage tour though.


A CRUISE LINER UNDER THE SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE
the bridge is huge. regrettably we did not actually walk on it, though I had planned to.


SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HARBOUR


UNDER THE BRIDGE AT SUNSET ON A FERRY


ALL TOGETHER NOW

SYDNEY WILDLIFEWORLD


A KOALA, MY FIRST TIME SEEING ONE
they even cuter in real life!


ANOTHER ONE, JUST BECAUSE


ROO'S HAVING A BIT OF A TUSSLE


THE HARBOURSIDE SIDE OF DARLING HARBOUR


AGNES HAMMING IT UP ON PYRMONT BRIDGE

TARONGA ZOO




BABY ELEPHANT, LUK CHAI


THE GIRAFFE'S ENCLOSURE
WITH ONE OF THE BEST VIEWS OF THE HARBOUR


THE HARBOUR VIEW FROM THE 'GREAT SOUTHERN OCEANS'


NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD SEE A LEOPARD SEAL IN CAPTIVITY, LET ALONE ONE SO TAME AND SO TRAINABLE


REGRETABLY WE DID NOT MANAGE TO SEE A PLATYPUS AT ALL DURING OUR STAY.THE ONES AT TARONGA AND SYDNEY AQUARIUM REMAINED ELUSIVE TILL THE END.


AN ECHIDNA


A WALLABY


LEOPARD SEAL NAP TIME


FORT DENILSON


THE ENTRY TO LUNA PARK


MARITIME MUSEUM

WE WERE ALSO BLESSED TO BE ABLE TO CATCH A CHRISTMAS FIREWORKS SHOW




ON OUR WAY TO BONDI BEACH


ROSE BAY CONVENT


THE GAP PARK


BONDI BEACH


BEACH PATROL


SURF RESCUE SPONSORED BY DHL

overall was an enjoyable trip. but the food is expensive.but the servings are large. the best deal we got was at the Sydney Fish Market. the seafood was heavenly and super worth it. too bad we only managed to go there once. a good way to save is to share a single portion between us.

as for shopping, not much that you can't find in singapore, beside tourist souvenirs. the best shopping we had was at Paddy's Market, where stuff was cheap and a wide variety was available. the rest of the markets really had nothing to buy that we visited. although we did not get to go to all of them.

although we were there for nearly a week, we were not able to do all that we wanted to.if we ever go to sydney again, we will try to cover:

- Manly. a nice beach,market and an oceanarium.
- Paddington Market. purportedly the biggest market in sydney. we were unable to go as it was only on saturdays, and we went to the zoo that day.
- LG Imax Theatre- the biggest in the world. so close to us, yet we were not able to find the time for a movie,3-D or otherwise.
- Hyde Park- we did pass through a bit of it, but due to lack time did not fully explore it.
-Royal Botanic Gardens- another sight we skipped although we were in the vicinity
-Sydney Tower- although it is over-rated, it is still worth a look.
- King's Cross- we only passed through on the bus on the way to Bondi.
- other beaches- due to time we skipped Bronte and Coogee
- Woolloomooloo Bay
- Watson's Bay
- Sydney Harbour Bridge walk
- Whale Watching- a definite must do. we were a little late for the whale watching season
- Dolphin Watching
- Featherdale Wildlife Park- best place to experience the fauna, or so I heard
- Blue Mountains
- DFO- australia's premier factory outlet centre with over 80 retailers
- Glebe market
- more of Bondi
- Sydney Olympic Park
- see a platypus!!!

seems like 2 weeks worth of sightseeing!