Saying Goodbye in Style!

Although we aren't leaving until Monday, Thursday was the only day Ben and Fahm could get a babysitter and was therefore the day that we all went out for a 'goodbye' meal. This was very generously funded by Ruth and Andrew, not often they get to take Ben and Fahm out for dinner and this gave them an opportunity! We headed over on the ferry at about 6ish, just after dark, and as we rounded the corner of Cremorne Point to see the most famous part of the harbour lots of fireworks started. It was as if they were there especially for us to send us off. They were fabulous and you can see how New Years Eve would be so beautiful here. They carried on until we were just about to turn so we couldn't see them and then they stopped. They were made just for us!!

To continue our fancy evening (we were dressed up all posh too!) we went to the ECQ bar in Circular Quay and drank bubbly whilst overlooking the bridge. At 8pm we found our way to one of Sydney's best restaurants, Aria, where the others were waiting. As you walk through to the tables you are greeted with an amazing view of the harbour through the floor to ceiling glass windows. The menu here was excellent and among some of the best food we have ever tasted. The portion sizes were not so small that you could hardly see them but not so big that you feel horrible afterwards, perfect!

On Friday, we had decided to have a late lunch/early dinner at the Phillips Foote restaurant. This was recommended to us by someone telling Dad. I don't know who it was but it was a great call. Here you can cook your own steak on the BBQ, however you like it. All the steaks looked fabulous and were all local, we both had 'Sydney Cut' steaks which were tasty and cooked to near perfection (if I do say so myself!). After lunch we went to the 'Pylon Lookout' on the Harbour Bridge and used free vouchers we got when we did the BridgeClimb. There was a lot of history of the bridge and lots of info about building it too which was really interesting. There were lots of random facts dotted about the place and I thought the best and most accurate one was how much it cost to build; 10,057,170 pounds, 7 shillings and 9 pence! From the top there are some good views but unfortunately a load of clouds came over just as we got to the top!


We then walked across the bridge (quite a good experience in itself) across to 'Luna Park', the amusement park in North Sydney. This was fun and fairly immature, we got an unlimited rides pass and went on pretty much everything there including the carousel (which we had to go on separately so we could take photos of each other!).


Early this morning Zeena took us kayaking on the Harbour, leaving from the Spit we paddled all the way down to Balmoral and back. It was a great morning for it, nice and sunny, and good exercise! Megan and I were in separate single kayaks and it was quite lucky as if we were in a double whoever was at the back would have got pretty wet! We weren't that great and kept splashing, I managed to get pretty wet just by myself, the technique definitely needs improvement!

The afternoon saw us go to Taronga Zoo, the zoo with a view, from which you can see across the harbour and into the city. This was nice but not as good as Australia Zoo and definitely not worth the $39 admission price (luckily we got in as students for $23!). We saw lots of animals but I was happy to stroke an Echidna and see a Duck-Billed Platypus. These are two animals in the most unique group of animals in the world. Found only in Australia, the monotremes are the only mammals to lay eggs. There really are some amazing animals that come from being so isolated for so long!