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Sydney

Sydney

Night 1
Between our delayed flight, trouble finding our driver (oh, I thought you were going to come down the other escalator ), and the room change, we only had time for a drinks at the Shangri-La's 26th floor bar (compliments of the Manager, merci) before heading out to Aria for dinner. Our first experience with Matt Moran was two great meals on SQ last year. Spectacular setting at Circular Quay, at the bottom of the hill before the Opera House. I wasn't as wow'd as I had expected... pleasant but unmemorable meal with service that seemed to drag on and on.

Sydney
Day 1
Taronga Zoo and Watsons Bay

After a great breakfast, we headed over to the Quay for our ferry to the zoo, on a beautiful Saturday morning.

We had a great time with some new friends...

Next we headed back to Circular Quay for our connecting ferry to Watsons Bay and lunch at Doyle's.

Despite the mixed reviews I'd read, Doyle's was a great experience and we all enjoyed the seafood and atmosphere...

And the great views...

Mrs. SFO decided to spend a quiet evening back at the hotel while the boys head out for some beer and a Rugby match at ANZ Stadium at Olympic Park. We figured we'd take the 55 minute 6:00P ferry to Olympic Park, which we mistakenly assumed to actually be in the same time zone as Olympic Park. Men can be so gullible at times. Also, easily distracted by an attractive woman. Anyway, this 30-something pilates instructor comes over and starts "chatting up" the younger of the two of us. He was so distracted, truth be told so was I, that we weren't paying attention to the sign board change (or the announcements) as we waited for the B pier to board while our ferry pulled away from the A pier.

Anyway, we shared a good laugh with a couple from New Zealand after he accurately opined "that's what happens when you are too busy chatting up the girl". After we got over the embarrassment and stopped laughing, we struck up a friendly conversation, while the two younger ones exchanged contact info and agreed to a date in April when she will be in the US for a wedding. Oh, to be young and single. 

We decided not to miss the 6:30P ferry. I enjoyed the outside scenery, while the younger ones continued to flirt and generally carry on inside until she disembarked three stops before ours.

As we arrived at the Olympic Park wharf, it became obvious that it is in the middle of nowhere and we weren't even close to anything that resembles a Stadium or a Park. But there were 8 others walking up the wharf and a bus waiting at the end of the wharf. The driver confirmed that yes, he is going right by the Stadium. We arrived just before that start, buy our general admission tickets and head for the entrance.

Taking in some scenery. I believe I like rugby already...

Only about 30,000 in attendance tonight. Not exactly a raucous Raiders type crowd but they did come to life when the Waratahs scored. There are a lot of similarities to American football and it didn't take long to understand the gist of the game. But wow these guys are tough, pounding the cr*p out of other without helmets or pads.

Entertaining half time show.

And apparently younger boys get to pose with the FxPro girls.

Not knowing how we were going to navigate the 4-5 miles to the ferry, and not having any skin in this game for that matter, we decided to leave early and check in with the bus dispatcher would had earlier promised the he would "work something out to get us back to the ferry". True to his word, we had our own private 50 seat bus to the wharf and the ferry which left right on time at 9:35P. Another beautiful night and we sat on the bow enjoying the fresh air and marveling at the precision of the captain at each stop. Photo time. If the ferry would stop vibrating or moving, these photos would have been even better.

Back at the Shangri-La, midnight fireworks at the harbour.

Sydney
Day 2
Sydney by Seaplane
Lunch at Cottage Point Inn Restaurant
tripadvisor.com rated #1 of 2,813 Sydney restaurants

Before visiting any new city, I always check with tripadvisor.com for popular activities and restaurants. When I read the reviews for Cottage Point Inn, it jumped to the top of the "must do" list. Combining it with a scenic seaplane ride made it the perfect day. Our taxi dropped us off at around 11:15AM at Rose Bay Marina. After some refreshments on the wharf at the Pier Restaurant, we boarded the shuttle for the quick 3 minute ride to our waiting plane. Owner and pilot Steve welcome us on board, and after the obligatory safety instructions, we were on our way for the 15 minute flight with spectacular scenery along the way.

We flew by Watsons Bay and Doyles, where we had lunch the day before...

Nice digs...

After a perfect landing on the Hawkesbury River, we pulled up to the pier at one of the most idyllic settings for any restaurant anywhere.

For the next three hours, we enjoyed one of the best meals in the past year, and vying with Yering Station for the best meal of our entire trip. Friendly, perfectly paced service with precise attention to detail. We were fortunate today to have a beautiful waterfront table.

The menu...
http://www.cottagepointinn.com.au/page/starters.html
http://www.cottagepointinn.com.au/page/main.html
http://www.cottagepointinn.com.au/page/dessert.html

My cauliflower, pea and Woodside Chevre Tart, Radicchio, Soubise and Asparagus was to die for.

The 2009 Craig Avon Pinot Noir was sensational...

Mrs. SFO enjoyed her Smoked trout starter...

While my Heirloom Tomatoes, Spanish Onion and Woodside Goat Curds, Aged Balsamic with Extra Virgin Alto Olive Oil was amazing...

My Master-stock Marinated Atlantic Salmon (from Tasmania), Spiced Eggplant Pickle, Coriander and Yoghurt was amazing.

Mrs. SFO enjoyed the Beef Tenderloin, Potato Fondant, Bresaola, Cured Beetroot, Black Olive Jus...

The raspberry souffle was exquisite...

One of the Inn's resident flock...

After nearly three hours and two bottles of the Craig Avon Pinot, Capt. Steve returned to pick us up. What an incredible experience that was one of the highlights of our trip.

More amazing sights on our return flight as we flew back towards Sydney and circled Sydney Harbour.

Sydney by Seaplane and The Cottage Point Inn Restaurant are absolute musts on any visit to Sydney.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...uth_Wales.html
http://www.cottagepointinn.com.au/index.html
http://www.sydneybyseaplane.com

Day 3
Sydney Bridge Climb and The Hyde Park Barracks

This morning the boys head (literally) down the street for one of the highlights of our trip, the 9:05AM Bridge Climb.

I've been on a lot of tours but this has to be one of the best organized activities I have experienced. As PETER01 noted in his excellent trip report, it takes about 45 minutes to prep for the climb, between introducing ourselves to our fellow climbers, signing the waivers, changing clothes, metal detector, donning harness, radio, glasses/cap tie downs, safety briefings, dummy stair climb test, potty and water break. Oh yeah, even breath-alizer test, which I was actually a little concerned about considering the amount of wine I had consumed the day before.

Our guide, Michael, was wonderful. Professional yet friendly, and a comedian to boot. He remember everyone's names and where we were from. The climb is leisurely and quite slow paced. There are numerous stops along the way for anecdotes and just allowing us to take in the scenery. As PETER01 noted, on some parts of the climb you are right under and then over the trains and cars. The only queasy part is indeed the cat-walks and steep stairs leading up to the main arches. Once on the solid and wide arches, any apprehension evaporated pretty quickly. Since they do not allow any cameras/iphones on the bridge, I've lifted some stock photos from the bridgeclimb.com website.

We were back at the hotel by 1PM and joined Mrs. SFO for lunch at the Shangri-La's Cafe Mix. I am generally skeptical about hotel buffet lunches, but this had to have been one of the best ever. Amazing selection of fresh and wonderfully prepared dishes, from salads to a wonderful variety of starters, mains and desserts including a rotating cone of chocolate to dip strawberries. OMG!

After lunch, we headed out for one last sightseeing trip. Since Mrs. SFO had been reading about the history of Australia, we went to the Hyde Park Barracks for a flavour of some of the early days when Australia was first settled as Britain's penal colony.

I can't pass up a food pic anywhere...

What a wonderful three days in a beautiful city. We will definitely return.
But what is with taxi drivers in Sydney? The first three we took literally mouthed off and complained about the short trip. It got to the point where before we got in a taxi, I just asked "We're going to the Shangri-La. Do you have a problem with that?" Once we established that, everything was fine.

As we prepared to check-out the next morning, a new visitor to Sydney harbour.