Sydney, Part 2

Here are the pictures from my last full day in Australia. The next morning I flew back to the U. S. of A., athough I did have to deal with a bus strike in Sydney! Luckily the ferries were still running.

My flight back was uneventful and short, just 12 hours, and I arrived before I left -- more fun with the International Date Line.
 

	The Manly Ferry station. Below is a picture of one of the ferry's, the Narrabeen.
	Example of pass for the ferry.
	An interesting rock formation that I would pass each time I traveled from Manly to Sydney.
	A picture of the Sydney Opera House from the northern side of the harbor.
	I took the ferry to the northern side of the harbor, but I walked back across the bridge. Here is a picture of traffic on the bridge coming from the north. (Remember, in Australia you drive on the left.)
	A picture of the harbor from the bridge.
	A picture of the ferry landing from the harbor side. The landing is known as Circular Quay and sits on Syndey Cove.
	The building is Government House and stands in the section of the Royal Botanic Gardens nearest the Sydney Opera House.
	A picture of guard house near the entrace to area around Government House.
	Don't bother the birds or their eggs when they are marked by these stakes. Government House can be seen in the background.
	A gate between two areas of the Gardens. The Gardens date from 1816 and sit on donated farm land.
	Umm, plants.
	A very rare Wollemi Pine, a truly ancient form of pine tree that dates from the time of the dinosaurs. This is just a sapling, protected by an iron fence.
	A greenhouse surrounded by crops that would have been grown in the early 1800's.
	The little specks in this tree are not big leaves, but bats. Many, many bats. It is interesting that both Sydney's and Melbourne's botanical gardens are home to bats.
	A picture of Tropical Centre (the pyramid in the foreground) and of the AMP Centerpoint Tower (in the background).
	We've got your marble lions here...
	Two of the pesky avian denizens of the Gardens: pigeons and some larger bird. The larger birds seem to think they are also pigeons, because they will hop onto the table where you are trying to eat. And they are much more intimidating than a pigeon.
	A picture of the entrance to the Circular Quay Railway Station from the city side. This is also the ferry landing.
	In the afternoon I took a harbor cruise by ferry. This cruise traveled all around the bay. This and the following pictures are from the tour. Here we see Woolloomooloo Bay just east of the Royal Botanic Gardens. (Yep, the bay's name is accurate.)
	I think these may have actually been members of an Olympic windsurfing team trying out the waters. The Syndey Olympics started one year after this picture was taken.
	Homes along the southern coast of the bay.
	A picture back towards the Harbour Bridge.
	Another picture leading up to turning north.
	The entrance to the bay, which leads to the Pacific Ocean.
	Pictures leading up to the northern branch of the bay -- Syndey is on the southern branch.
	Another picture.
	Another picture.
	A draw bridge that must passed through to get to the bay's northern branch. This bridge is opened only a few times a day, since it's also a major road.
	The gulls like to race the ferry.
	Another picture.
	Another picture.
	A rock outcroping with ruins of colonial structures.
	Lighthouse.
	Here we pass a riverboat. It is used for parties and tours.
	Northern Sydney hosts an amusement park.
	Across the street from the Circular Quay station is this building which houses a gift shop.
	A former lighthouse and fortification that one passes approaching Syndey from the east.
	Visiting Sydney means you must take in an opera. So my evening adventure was to dress formal and ferry over to Syndey to see the The Magic Flute by Mozart. This performance was an English translation and quite enjoyable.
	Here is a scan of the ticket for the show. Remember that's 145 Australian dollars.