Sydney Opera House and Bondi Beach

June 28, 2009
The Sydney Opera House is an impressive piece of architecture with a rich history. The design was chosen from the “rejected” pile at the last minute. It was suppose to take 3 yrs and 7 million dollars and took more like 16 yrs and tens of millions of dollars. The outside is one design, and independent of the interior buildings – The concert halls are amazing, each with a view of the water in the foyer. They have over 2000 events per year! After a scenic picture from a park, we toured the building and learned the amazing story of how it was built.
A trip 30 minutes out, and we arrive at Bondi Beach (pronounced Bond-eye) A beautiful while sandy beach in the suburbs of Sydney, Bondi is the home of the very surf club and the home of beach lifeguarding. We divided into groups, got into wetsuits and headed to the beach with instructors to learn how to ride the waves. Some of us actually managed to stand up after several wipe-outs – some were content to Knee the board all the way and all of us got use to the salty taste of the water. The sky was perfect with big clouds and the water cold but not too bad. We received a lesson in the history of lifeguarding, watched a simulated water rescue and had lunch at the members only club! What an awesome day!
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped for an hour’s worth of shopping at the 2nd largest China Town in the world (next to San Fran). It’s surprising how much you can spend in such a short time - sorry parents!
This evening we went back down to the harbor for dinner at Meat and Wine- where BBQ ribs, burgers and pasta filled us for the night. No one complained that the curfew was 9:30 – some even turned in early because of our 5:30 wake-up call for our last segment of the amazing journey. We head to Cairns tomorrow! Now sure about Internet for the next couple of days – will try to log in and tell you about the amazing weather we are having. Love to all back home