Darling Harbour in Sydney

Today, after a quick breakfast with Chris, I headed down to Darling Harbour in Sydney.  This is a much smaller harbor adjacent to "Sydney Harbour" that everyone is familiar with because of the Opera House and Bridge.  And of course there is always something to force a change in the plans.

First, after going to the local 7-Eleven to purchase an all-day bus pass, the bus is half an hour late.  I did not say anything, but some of the other riders were not happy because they had to be places "on-time."  As for me, "no worries, mate."  So I arrived at the Parramatta Ferry Terminal with plenty of time to spare even enough time for a flat white.  Yum!  But within a couple minutes of the scheduled arrival of the ferry, an announcement is made that there is a work stoppage for the ferry and the ferry service (at least to Parramatta) would not be running until later in the afternoon.  Now the question is, do I return to North Rocks where Chris and I are staying, or attempt to make it to the train station for a long, slow (and somewhat confusing) ride into the CBD and Darling Harbour.  So I figure, what the heck ... Go for the train ride.

At the train station, I found a very helpful worker who gave me great directions.  So after arriving at the Town Hall, it is a fairly short walk down hill to Darling Harbour.  Once there (more than 2.5 hours after leaving our flat in North Rocks), it is a very pretty place.  It is quite touristy.  This is where the Sydney Convention Centre is located...

As well as the Sydney Aquarium and Wildlife Centre...

And the National Marine Museum...

One of things I did enjoy was the Monorail.  Sadly, it is in its last month of existence.  For a long time, the city was known for it but tourist have stopped using it.  In fact, the couple who shared a car with me were an elderly pair from Queensland AU who had never been on it and wanted to do it before they ended the service.  I did two laps around the CBD on it.

And after wandering around some more along the docks, it was time for me to head home.  Fortunately, the ferry service was up and running so I had (possibly) my last ride up the Parramatta River.  This is what a "river cat" looks like if you have not seen an earlier picture.   I think a couple of these on the Erie Canal would be great for tourism, and help cut down on the traffic in and out of Rochester.  ;-)

Here is a final photo of me heading up the Parramatta River for the last time.  You can see the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the background.

And after a series of meetings for Chris today (while I played), tonight we had a wonderful Chinese dinner with Trudy and a new friend, Breda.  (I certainly put the three of them -- Chris, Trudy, and Breda -- through the paces having: (1) Chris sign ASL to Breda and interpret back to Trudy and me in English, (2) Trudy sign Auslan to Breda and interpret back to Chris and me in English, and (3) have Breda flip back and forth between ASL and Auslan.  Too bad we did not get all of that on film.  :-)

Well ... that is it for another episode of "Chris and Rick 'Down Under."  Stay tuned ... as our return trip to Sydney is starting to wind down.  Rick