First days in Sydney

SYDNEY

After a 4 hour flight from Darwin, we arrived at Sydney to a temperature of 11 degrees – over 20 degrees cooler than in Darwin!!

We had arranged to stay in Frenchs Forest which is about 30 minutes north of Sydney city in our first house swap of the trip. We had to pick up the keys from the lady next door and it was dark when we arrived so couldn’t really see the house or the area. The house was very nice and had a welcoming/cosy feel. We were really feeling the cold after Darwin and we were very grateful to find that the house had a heating system!

 We woke up to glorious sunshine and about 20 degrees. As we had plenty of time in Sydney (just short of 3 weeks), over the next couple of days we decided to get our bearings, do a food shop and settle in before venturing into central Sydney.

We drove into Manly which was about 10 minutes from the house, a very nice area of Sydney and generally when visiting Sydney, Manly by ferry is a must. There were loads of surfers which we were astounded at seeing as its winter here and cold to be in the sea!

We had a drive to have a look at some of the northern beaches of Sydney of which there are 16! This is a really picturesque coastline and the more north you go, the more exclusive the area to live.

SYDNEY ITSELF! – Sunday 15^th May

We had planned to arrive in Sydney by ferry from Manly and what a way to arrive! The slower ferry takes around 30 minutes and is a lovely journey through Sydney Harbour National Park. The anticipation was building as we got closer to the Sydney skyline to see that famous view of the Opera House and Bridge for the first time. As we rounded the headland into the harbour, the view was stunning and we couldn’t quite believe we were actually here! Then, just to add to the moment, a couple of dolphins were swimming alongside the ferry – idyllic!

 the approach around the headland

that famous view!

We didn’t have a particular plan for today and just decided to take it all in, instead of rushing to see it all at once. After arriving at Circular Quay, we wandered slowly over towards the Opera House.

We then decided we would go to have some lunch so we doubled back and went to The Rocks area of the city. This is the area where the first Europeans settled and was a pretty grim area in the 1700’s! Now, it’s a very trendy area with numerous bars and eateries. There was a market on, which sold art and craft type things so we had a browse around here. 

We were near the bridge at this point so decided to go and check out The Bridge Climb. You can actually walk along a pathway at the side of the bridge which we decided to do. It was sunset and there were some nice views of the harbour and opera house from here.






After soaking in the atmosphere along the harbour, and having an ice cream, we caught the ferry back to Manly. We sat outside in the ferry until the view of the harbour at night disappeared from view, it still felt very surreal that we were here!

Overall a great first time in Sydney, great weather, views and dolphins, who could ask for more!