Hasta la vista, Sydney

Saying goodbye to Sydney was not easy. The last day was quite a happening one. I use the term ‘happening’ for the lack of a better word. I took the ferry to Manly. The 30 minute ferry ride across the harbour offered beautiful views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge. But more beautiful was the breeze and the light spray when I was sitting outside on the lower deck of the ferry. Very calming indeed.

On reaching the Manly wharf, I made my way through Curso Street to the beach. But the sun started playing hide-n-seek and the wind was a little too cold to spread out myself on my beach. So I decided to take a walk through the town area, and reached Shelly Beach. Shelly is a quieter bay beach a little distance from the main Manly beach. Just behind Shelly beach starts a Nature reserve. Again, I spent some time in the sun, reading and listening to the waves, by the beach. I think my optimum holiday is a mixture of beaches and city life. I seem to enjoy both in equal quantities.

Sadly the watersports closed down after lunch, so I had to drop my jet-skiing and parasailing plans. Le sigh. I instead spent some time buying souvenirs for friends. I took the 4pm ferry back to Circular Quay, and made my way to Hyde Park. The mixture of fall colours and the evening sun was too inviting, so I settled down in the park to read some more. It has been long since I sat down in the grass to read. Finally, I forced myself to go back to the hotel.

Once all washed and cleaned up, and dressed up well, I headed for the Opera House to listen to Mariza, a Portuguese musical performance. I am so glad I did that! It is an awesome experience to see or hear an actual performance in one of the most famous concert halls of the world!

Finally, my last night in Sydney took me to the Three Wise Monkeys Pub on George Street, and over drinks, a live band and bits of conversations, I met some very interesting people. A fitting end to an awesome time in Sydney.

Sydney – a city of (beautiful and charming) villages, as they rightly call themselves.


(written on 9 March 07, in Melbourne)