Super Sydney

Hello Again! Most of today was spent preparing for and then being in, Sydney. We had to check out of the Hyatt this morning... and I can honestly say... if it would've been time to leave and come back to the states after just our 3 nights in Coolum, I would have been ok. In my eyes, our vacation as a whole has been that lovely thus far and I could have said goodbye if that was it. Lucky for me, it's not.

It's just a short cab ride from the Sydney airport to our hotel, the Crown Plaza at Darling Harbor. We unloaded here (it was a tough call, but I ended up bringing 5 pairs of shoes and didn't have enough room to even bring Cassandra. What a shame!) and then went to take a walk. The whole place is just beautiful. Jimmy says it reminds him of Baltimore Harbor, which I've never seen. It's just a huge "Navy Pier" in-Chicago-like experience. The whole boardwalk is surrounded by little shops and big stores, and little cafes and big restaurants. Then, directly behind the shops and restaurants are all of these huge sky-rise hotels and sky scraper office buildings. It's an amazing contrast and causes the entire place to "buzz". We ate at a little place tonight with a great view of the whole thing. We walked a lot - but it's so beautiful, you just don't mind. Plus, it was a little bit cooler today, so we were glad to spend some time outside.

Sydney is everything you think it is. An extremely cosmopolitan city and Jimmy just read something that says almost half of the city's population is between 20 and 35 years old. It seems like no matter where you're from, coming to Sydney is a big deal. I can't tell you how many different languages we've heard - and how just with the few people we've spoken to (cashiers, wait staff) nobody turns their head to try and understand your "American accent" here. A bunch of people were "all gussied up" tonight, getting ready for a big night on the town... and a bunch of people were just touring the place. All kinds of nationalities, all races, and all of us, taking pictures! I'm guessing there are a few cities in the world, where everyone in the world, thinks it's a big deal to go there.... New York, Paris, London, Hong Kong, and I'd say Sydney. We all seem to be mesmerized by her beauty.

Coming here, I've realized what a lucky girl I am. Before, I could have seen things similar to what we've seen by hanging out near Southern California, or a beach in Mexico... But Sydney is a whole different deal. Not many people get here - and it stands alone as one of the world's great cities.

Tomorrow I think we're going to try to make a Harbor Cruise to all of the fun sights... the Opera House, The Bridge, The Rocks... and hopefully take out some time to enjoy the weekend markets. Of course, I don't have any room in my suitcase to bring anything home... so I guess we'll have to keep it light.

Ciao - crl