Australia part 2 - Sydney

We left Hamilton Island to catch our flight to Sydney and on arrival we were taken to the ‘Park Royal Darling Harbour’ hotel. The location of the hotel is excellent – just a few minutes’ walk to Darling Harbour where there are numerous restaurants, a Cinema, Sydney Wildlife Park, Sydney Aquarium (one of the largest aquariums in the world), boat trips or a catamaran candle lit dinner plus you could try your hand in the Casino. Whatever your interests Sydney’s Darling Harbour has plenty to entertain everyone! For those looking for nice shops Sydney has everything from designer stores to quaint boutiques or you can wander over to China Town for a bargain. Sydney is a wonderful city with so much to see.

We enjoyed a fabulous trip around Sydney on a tour bus seeing all the sights and then continuing to Bondi beach for a short relaxation before heading back to Sydney. Bondi beach has plenty of restaurants and bars for a welcome drink set with the beach a short walk away.

In the evening we enjoyed a delicious meal courtesy of Wolfies Restaurant on Sydney Quay whilst enjoying the amazing views of the Harbour Bridge. Food in Wolfies is first class and choice is excellent, plus you can dine outdoors if you wish which is sheltered over the seating area with romantic low lighting, enabling you to relax and enjoy the atmosphere while fine dining.

We were off out at 7am today for a trip to the Blue Mountains, courtesy of Australian Eco Adventures. On the way we had a stopover at the ‘Featherdale Wildlife Park’ which was excellent! The park has a huge variety of wildlife with the opportunity to hold a Kuala, mix with Wallabies and hand feed Emu’s. There is everything from Crocodiles to Flying foxes (small red coloured bats) and it is one of the leading tourist attractions in Australia so a ‘must see’. Continuing our journey to the heart of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Region we experienced breathtaking views from mountain terrain, sandstone cliffs, and rock formations that tower above you and waterfalls that run between them, you'll even see water that flows the wrong way!

Continuing our journey we stopped over at the ‘Katoomba Golf Club’ who served us a delicious lunch before we head off to ‘Scenic World’, home of the world’s steepest incline railway where you have spectacular views of the ‘Three Sisters’ and a walk through the rainforest. Our last stop was at the Koomurri Aboriginal Centre where we enjoyed a ‘Corroboree’ where Aborigines interact through dance and music with costume. After enjoying time at leisure to look around the art and artefacts shops it was time to depart the Blue Mountains and return to the city and check in to the ‘Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel Sydney’.

The ‘Radisson Blu Plaza Sydney Hotel’ is close to the ‘Sydney Opera House’ and ‘Harbour Bridge’, the historical ‘Rocks’ area and the ‘Royal Botanic Gardens’ plus it is only a short stroll down to the Circular Quay area where you can catch a ferry to the Sydney Taronga Zoo, Luna Park, Watsons Bay or Manly Beach. Rooms in the hotel are of excellent standard and very comfortable for both business and leisure travellers. Each room has flat-screen televisions and extra deep bathtubs along with a desk/dressing table area. Breakfast was buffet style with plenty on offer for all tastes and the food was excellent.

After a tour around the Radisson Blu we set off to the Sydney Opera House for a guided tour which was extremely interesting – especially to learn that the architect Utzon who designed the Opera House left the project before it was finished. In 1965 a new Liberal government was elected in the State of NSW. The Minster of Works Davis Hughes began questioning Utzon's designs, schedules and cost estimates and eventually stopped payments to Utzon who was forced to withdraw as chief architect in February 1966. He never returned to see the finished Opera House. When Sydney Opera House was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on October 20, 1973, Utzon was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Institute of Architects Australia but was not present at the opening ceremony. A really interesting tour and a definite ‘must do’ if you are visiting Sydney!

After our tour we headed for Circular Quay to board ‘Sydney Harbour Cruise’ operated by ‘Captain Cook’ taking in the sights of Sydney Harbour, the Opera House, Sydney Bridge and all of the fabulous sights of the city whilst relaxing and enjoying a three course dinner and a glass of wine – another ‘must do’ on your trip to Sydney.

After enjoying our breakfast in the Radisson Blu we set off for Darling Harbour for a tour around the Wildlife Park and SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium. Being one of the largest in the world, SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium takes you on an underwater journey through Australia's unique freshwater and marine aquatic environments. You'll see some of the world's most incredible animals, including the beautiful dugongs - 2 of only 5 on display anywhere in the world - huge sharks, massive stingrays, turtles, jellyfish, platypuses, penguins, sea dragons, thousands of tropical fish and much more.

After enjoying the Park and Aquarium we headed for the airport to begin out trip to Singapore.