Dec 15 Sydney

We let the weather determine our schedule here in Sydney.  Friday dawned grey and cloudy.  No rain, but the threat lingered.  We decided that walking through the oldest section of Sydney would be the course today.

Our hotel is right at Circular Quay, a major transit hub in Sydney.  Ferries, trains and buses all converge at this one location.  Insignia was docked at Circular Quay during our two day stay in Sydney during the Around The World Cruise in 2016.  The Rocks, located just to the north of the Circular Quay, was the first area settled with the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788.  The rebellion in the American colonies had presented a problem for Great Britain -- where to transport their common criminals?  Australia was the answer, and the First Fleet was dispatched.  The Rocks is historical and on the side of a hill.  An interesting walk.

Breakfast at McDonalds -- Egg McMuffin is a standard.  This is the courtyard right next to Macs.

 Being Australian, the oldest section of Sydney must also have the oldest pub.

 The Rocks are right under the southern approach to the Harbour Bridge.  The Friday Market was taking place on the streets.

 Not sure what gets transported in this ambulance.

Climbing the bridge is a popular attraction.  You wear a jumpsuit to make sure nothing falls from your pockets on the cars below, no cameras (likewise), and a harness that clips you into cable along the pathway.  We didn't climb, although walking across the bridge is on our list of things to do in Sydney.

 Underneath the bridge at Dawes Point.

 One of the first public works projects in the new country was the Argyle Cut, making a road through the sandstone cliffs to the north of Sydney Cove (now the Circular Quay).  Lots of convict labor cut through the rock.

 The Australian Inn is another old pub and hotel in the Rocks, dating to 1914 when it was rebuilt after the orginal burned down.  It has outdoor seating and a request from the management.

 The Susannah Place Museum.  Built as four terrace houses in 1844 and was occupied until 1990.

Cadmans Cottage is the second oldest surviving residential building in Sydney, Australia, having been built in 1816 for the use of the governmental coxswains and their crews.

 Lunch was at the Rocks Cafe, right on George Street. 

After a morning of walking around the Rocks, we returned to the hotel for the afternoon.  We avoided napping, spending the time reading and creating yesterday's blog entry.

We don't normally post meal pictures, but this was a particularly good meal at City Extra, right on the waterfront at Circular Quay.  On a Friday afternoon/evening there is an amazing number of people arriving and departing on ferries and trains, passing right by our table.  Buskers set up shop just across the walkway.  Here's our Fish n Chips and Shepherd's Pie.

 I thought this was an innovative food truck idea.  Not sure about wurst as a product, but the truck is cool.