Blue Planet Journey

Taking a half day trip to Manly was a treat.  We went on a Friday, and since the weather was ideal for being outside, the crowds obliged. Our trip involved a walk to Circular Quay, then a ferry ride to Manly ($7.35 AUD, one way).  As we left on the ferry, we passed the Royal Caribbean ship, Ovation of the Seas . This ship was in the news this month because of a norovirus outbreak that affected 195 passengers.  Caroline once was on a cruise ship with a norovirus  outbreak, and she has a tale of a long line of passengers outside the medical offices, all in bathrobes and carrying barf bags.  Since this gastrointestinal virus doesn’t develop spontaneously on a boat, but is brought in with passengers and crew, the combination of hundreds or thousands of people confined in a small space, with drinking and late night events stressing the body makes cruise boats particularly susceptible to rapid outbreaks.  Good to know just before I embark on a cruise ...

I think it’s fair to say that all visitors to Sydney go through Circular Quay.  Here you have the Harbour ferry terminals to a variety of locations, including the Toronga Zoo.  There is the Sydney Opera House, the Royal Botanic Gardens, The Rocks area, and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.  There are cafes, restaurants, street entertainers, and CROWDS.  Yes, I suspect that for most residents of Sydney, this area is one to avoid if possible, like residents of Oahu avoiding Waikiki. As far as we can tell, there is no ferry from Darling Harbour to Circular Quay , so we’ve hoofed it on multiple occasions.  It’s about a 2 mile walk from our apartment to CIrcular Quay (pronounced “key”). Today was a Sydney Opera House day, with a tour, lunch, and a show.  Then, a different route back, with a stop for a 6-pack of White Rabbit dark ale (“fermentation with imagination”).  Total mileage?  Seven miles.  Caroline and I ran to the Royal Botanic ...

I’ve done some exploring these past 2 days.  Yesterday, we walked around Darling Harbour and the Barangaroo Reserve , in addition to taking a 2 hour Harbour cruise.  Today, we challenged ourselves taking the city bus back to Bondi Beach, and being hammered by rather large waves. The Sydney Harbour cruise was a blast.  We got seats on the front of the ferry, so we had a great view of the Harbour Bridge from all angles... front, back, and bottom.  We had heard that you can even walk on the top span of the bridge, and we could see groups of brave souls trekking the ironworks.  Of course, we also had the best view of the Sydney Opera House, with the sun and blue sky framing that distinctive structure.  One highlight of this cruise was that we invited ourselves (we knocked on the pilot house door), to visit with the captain.  He was very gracious, and chatted with us for about 10 minutes.  As we were about to leave, he asked, “do you want to sit ...