Sydney Things to Do Tips by b1bob

Everybody got a wake-up call at 7.00 on 3 July, but it was better than the 5.30 which Mr. Rath wanted. We took a nice hot breakfast at Bersen's restaurant. It was a real breakfast, rather than the continental ones I was used to in Europe. They served eggs of whatever style (you know I like mine fried well done), Canadian bacon, toast with butter and jelly, and tomato garnish. It was a cool 64° (18°C) but not cold. The winters in Sydney are much like those in Jacksonville or Savannah. We got on the bus to see the important sights around Sydney. First, we visited Mrs. McQuarie's Chair (she was the wife of the first English governor of Australia) from which there is a good view of Sydney. Maybe after my successful career in Congress, they will commemorate my easy chair that way! Second, we visited a neighbourhood called "The Rocks" that was a rough area during the colonial era. If they turn bad neighbourhoods into tourist traps, within 50-100 years, Anacostia in Washington and Oregon Hill in Richmond will be must-see stops for foreign tourists.

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The next stop was Katoomba, a small town round about an hour west of Sydney where there is a forest with a waterfall. Furthermore, there is a scenic railroad which descends a steep incline, with a vertical drop of over 800 feet (244 m.), at its steepest point, it goes down at a 52° angle, with a 250 foot (76 m.) long natural tunnel, that ends up at the bottom of a deep gorge. On queuing up to get on, we were on a stairway, the leader of the New York group (the same one that tried to push me in Tahiti) pushed me again on the stairway. I grabbed her and said if she ever pushed me, called me "John Boy" or anything other than my given name, she would be in a world of hurt.

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Directions: The Blue Mountains are located about an hour by coach or car west of Sydney.

The history of Sydney from 1825 until the 1860s is that of a prison slowly evolving into a society where free settlers and emancipated convicts worked together. The turning point occurred in May 1851 when Edward Hargraves brought 120 grams of gold to Sydney triggering the goldrushes. Overnight workers in Sydney downed tools and headed for the goldfields. Miners and prospectors from all over the world passed through Sydney eager to try their luck in the goldfields. The memorial (Monument) was erected by the Sisters of Mercy in dedication to the sick, injured or dead miners who helped shape the city. I took this picture in 1991 only because it stood out like a fly on a wedding cake.

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