We packed all of our bags and headed out to the airport. After checking into our flight to Sydney we met Jason’s father. We poked about in some duty free shops and changed our New Zealand currency into Australian dollars. We had lunch in a restaurant before going to the departure lounge.
Auckland was as windy as when we arrived. This huge flag is at the entrance to the airport
The flight to Sydney was uneventful although on arrival there was the same customs rigmarole as in Auckland. I had bought my mum a packet of New Zealand flax seeds and the Food & Agriculture chap checked the Latin name on the packet to make sure it wasn’t on his prohibited list. It was fine and we were soon on our way to the hotel in a taxi. There is toll expressway that runs from the airport right into Sydney, passing under the city centre in a tunnel which emerges not far from our hotel.
We were staying in the Menzies Hotel, really conveniently located in the middle of Sydney. Booking in was a lengthy process as their paper reservation system had two rooms for us but their computer disagreed. The hotel was full over the New Year so they had to make sure that we were given the correct ones. My friends had already been to Sydney and wanted a rest before dinner so I headed out for a brief walk around in the sunshine by myself. The centre of Sydney isn’t big, only a couple of kilometres square, so all of the popular tourist destinations are within walking distance.
South of the hotel we were staying in is Martin Place, a pedestrianised precinct. Outside the Commonwealth Bank offices is the Sydney Cenotaph, a memorial to those serviceman killed in the First World War
The Sydney Tower. At 305 meters tall it’s a bit shorter than the Auckland Skytower
St Mary’s Cathedral
At the south end of Hyde park is the ANZAC Memorial and Pool of Reflection
I headed back to the hotel to rejoin my friends for dinner. We ambled north to the Circular Quay, past the railway station and ferry terminus and on towards the Opera House. From near there you get a great view of the Harbour bridge from the quayside.
The Harbour Bridge, opened in 1931
We sat and watched the sun go down behind the office towers of the central business district
We went round to the western side of the Circular Quay to get a better view of the Opera House
We had dinner in a Chinese restaurant in The Rocks area to the west of the Circular Quay. As we had a big day and a long night ahead of us tomorrow we had an early night.