Royalty takes a sightseeing bus tour of Sydney, Australia!‏

When the King & I arrived in Sydney we booked a sightseeing bus tour for Thursday, March 27th. After we ate another hearty breakfast at the DeVere Hotel in Potts Point, we wound up taking a city bus to Circular Quay where we met up with the Sydney Explorer which is the official sightseeing tour of Sydney & Bondi. We decided to purchase a 24 hour ticket for $40. We passed up the other option that we were offered. That was a 48 hour ticket for $60. It turned out to be the right choice for us. In retrospect, we wound up using the bus tour as a reinforcement of what we saw on foot and/or by city bus over the time we were there earlier in the week. 

Sydney Explorer

We started at the first stop which was Circular Quay. That's where the Wharfs are at Sydney Harbour. We showed our receipt to the people who were there representing the company & we hopped on the double decker bus & we rode around ‎for a while. Since mother nature didn't cooperate for us, we decided to sit on the lower deck of the bus. They gave us a set of headphones so we could listen to a narrated version of the different stops & sights we would pass along the way. Once the rain let up a little, we decided to go upstairs so we could get a better view on the upper deck of the bus which was really cool despite the fact we did get wet. 

During the tour, we got to see Town Hall & Kings Cross aka the red light district as it's called especially at night when you have to turn a blind eye as the narrator said. ‎In addition, we went by Woolloomooloo Bay, Sydney Opera House & the Royal Botanical Gardens. Furthermore, we saw the Parliament House, NSW Library  & the Australian Museum before we hopped off the bus so we could take the other part of the sightseeing tour that covers Bondi. 

Harry's Cafe de Wheels in Bondi

Chubby Checker in 1995 & Elton John in 1986 eating there

Brooke Shields eating there in 1989

My Chips & Seafood Pie

We did have to wait a while for that bus to show up.‎ Once it did, we hopped aboard. When we got to Bondi Beach, we got off so we could see the beach again. Before we did so, I noticed another Harry's Cafe de Wheels there. The King said he had to go to the rest room. I waited for him. While I did, I decided it was a good time to get myself a pie. This time I got a seafood one that consisted of prawns, scallops, salmon, whitefish & a creamy white sauce. It was outrageous to say the least. It came with chips aka fries which the one in Woolloomooloo didn't have. It came made to order. With that being said, it was nice ‎& hot. The King came back after he lost him because there was an apparent misunderstanding. He wound up getting an order of fries along with a plain hot dog.

Bondi Pavilion

Bondi Beach

View of boats in the Harbour in Bondi on Sydney Explorer Bus

View of Sydney from Bondi on Sydney Explorer Bus

View of Sydney Harbour Bridge from Bondi on Sydney Explorer Bus

When we got done, we walked over to the beach. The King said wanted to dip his feet in the water so he did. I put my hand in. After we had our fun, we walked back to where the bus dropped us off. We waited for the next one to come then we continued our ride around Bondi. It was an amazing view as we got to see some more beautiful scenery out there as we rode around the surrounding area on the bus. 

Central Station

People walking through Central Station

 After we got back we got off at Central Station which is the other starting point for the Sydney Explorer bus. That's their version of Penn and/or Union Station here in the States. It's their main railway station‎ & it's the largest one in Australia. They had a Greyhound bus terminal there too. We wandered around there before we decided to take a walk to the Sydney Tower, which is the tallest building in Sydney so we could take a ride up to the observation deck. 

Sydney Tower

View of Sydney Harbour Bridge from observation deck

After walking for a while, we finally found it. We went up to the top so we could see an aerial view of Sydney before we left to go to Melbourne early Friday morning. It was nice to see all the different places we actually saw on foot and/or bus. 

When we got finished we went back to the hotel. We took a train ride from Circular Quay to Kings Cross. We then walked to the hotel from there. 

Stay tuned for a special post that will go into detail about the late dinner‎ I had before I went back to the room.

Thank you for reading ‎& following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty goes to visit the Beaches in Sydney, Australia!‏

After the weekend came & went while we were Down Under so did the baseball games that we saw. For those of you who thought our party was over because you thought we just flew 7,500 miles each way to see sporting events, think again. Just like we did when we went to Tokyo, Japan back in March 2000, we planned to get cultured as well. 

After getting a good night sleep Sunday night, the King & I decided to use our time wisely on Monday. First we cleaned ourselves up then we had a hearty breakfast at the DeVere Hotel where we stayed when we were in Sydney. When we finished, we left the hotel for the day to explore what Sydney had to offer. 

 

King Cross Train Station

We proceeded to walk over to nearby Kings Cross which is much different in the daytime. We went there because that's where the closest train station was to our hotel. It was only a 5-10 minute walk away. When we arrived at the train station, we decided to buy a one day pass for $23 which gave us unlimited rides on the buses, trains & ferries. It may seem like a lot of money for one day but when I did my research as I was planning out this trip it made perfect sense to invest in it. If you take a bus somewhere, you have to pay for each ride. They don't give you a free transfer either. That's $2.20 for each single ride. You can buy a 10 ride card which gives a ride for $1.84 each. In addition, what they charge per ride is based on distance on the trains so by my way of thinking those rides to go from place to place will add up fast. So with that being said, the one day pass was a no brainer for us.

Once we bought it, we hopped on the train. Unfortunately we got on the wrong one. We went in the opposite direction of where we wanted to go that being towards the ferries at Circular Quay. After we realized we were going the wrong way we got off the train after a handful of stops & we waited for the train to come from the other direction. After a short wait, we got back on the right track. It was a good learning experience. As a result, we got to see other areas of the Sydney suburbs. We had plenty of time on our hands for a change so it didn't really matter. When you couple that in with the fact that it was raining we needed to stay dry anyway. 

 

Manly Ferry

After taking a scenic route, we finally got to Circular Quay. We walked over to the ferry area. We saw that the next ferry to Manly Beach was five minutes away so we walked over to that wharf & we got on board. By the way, if we didn't wisely buy the one day pass like we did earlier, it would have cost us $16 each round trip to take that ferry ride to Manly Beach & back. More proof that we did the right thing. 

 

Sydney Opera House

Once we left Circular Quay, we passed by the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge on the left side of the ferry & the iconic Sydney Opera House on the right side. As we continued on, we passed by some amazing scenery along the way towards Manly. As we got further & further away, we saw the City of Sydney in the distance. We finally arrived at Manly about 40 minutes after we left the Circular Quay. 

 

Manly Wharf

Manly Local Guide

Manly Beach

We got off the ferry & we walked through the Wharf towards the beach. Along the way, we passed through an area where there were places to eat, drink & shop. Despite the less than ideal weather conditions we made the best of the situation. We wandered around by the beach area. We sat down & relaxed as we watched people who were swimming and/or surfing in the water. It was cool to watch the surfers took a beating as they fell off their surf boards as the waves came roaring in at them. After an hour or so, we decided to head back to the ferry area. Since the weather wasn't great, we decided to take the next ferry back to Cingular Quay.

 

Bus 333 to Bondi Beach

Bondi Beach

People getting ready to surf at Bondi Beach

When we got back there, we decided to take a train ride to Bondi Junction which was the last stop on the blue line. When we got there, we saw a sign for the 333 bus that went out to Bondi Beach which is the famous beach in the Sydney area. After waiting a short time, we hopped on the bus which we didn't have to pay for since we had our handy unlimited day pass. Since it was later in the afternoon, I think the bus was making limited stops. It was a pretty good ride to get there nonetheless. All of a sudden, we saw the beach so we got off the bus. We wound up walking around for a little while. Just like at Manly Beach, there were some people swimming and/or surfing there. We walked around & we took in the gorgeous scenery. It would have been better if the sun was shining on us. After we decided we had enough, we went back to the bus stop so we could catch a bus back to the train which took us back to Circular Quay.

 

Lord Nelson - Sydney's Oldest Hotel

Lord Nelson Brewery

We then decided to take another ferry ride. This time we went to the other Harbour which is known as Darling Harbour. Since we had the day pass we were able to go joy riding to pass some more time. While we were doing so, I was able to get WIFI for a short time. As a result, I got in contact with fellow ballpark chaser David Schaffer who was staying in a hotel in the Rocks. I told him that the King & I needed to eat dinner. He said he was planning to go out for some drinks at a bar near his hotel called the Lord Nelson. We arranged to meet him there around 8:30PM. With that being said, it worked out well for all of us. We got to see him again & we got to eat dinner while we all enjoyed some drinks. The King & I wound up having fish & chips. It was a decent meal. The King was a very satisfied customer. Being such a picky eater, that's saying a lot. I'm glad we found a place to his liking. 

As for David, he wasn't hungry so he just enjoyed a few adult beverages as he likes to call them. While we spoke he told us that he was hanging out earlier in the day at a Pub called Fortune of War. All of a sudden, fellow ballpark chaser Ken Liu popped in. It was raining & miserable outside so they both lucked out as they got to enjoy each other's company again. They wound up spending three hours together he said. They also met some ladies from San Diego while they were there. As a result,  it turned to be a great day for them too. 

After spending a few hours with David, we said our goodbyes & we wished each other a safe trip back home. David was going home on Wednesday. We asked him about the Taronga Zoo since he had gone there when he arrived in Sydney on Thursday. He said he spent a few hours there. He said it was worth our while to go there. I told him we planned to. We appreciated his input which gave us an idea of what to expect when we got there.

Stay tuned for another special post that will go into further detail about our visit to the Zoo on that Tuesday while we were still Down Under.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman

Royalty enjoys dinner on the barbie at Phillip's Foote Restaurant in Sydney, Australia!‏

View of  Famous Sydney Harbour Bridge

After the King & I finished watching the MLB Opening Series games at the Sydney Cricket Ground, we decided that we wanted to start taking in what else the City of Sydney had to offer. With that being said, we were starting to feel hungry. Thanks to a co-worker of mine, I was told that we had to go to the Rocks which is the neighborhood filled with Pubs right by the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge for dinner one night at a restaurant called Phillip's Foote. When he told me about it, I knew I would find a way to get there. Furthermore, I knew I was in for an Australian treat.

Circular Quay in Sydney Australia

After we took a bus to the CBD aka the Central Business District by the Sydney Harbour & the iconic Sydney Opera House which is also known as Circular Quay which is pronounced "key". That's where you can pick up ferries to go to different parts of Sydney & its surrounding areas. We decided to take a walk over to the Rocks which was only a stone's throw away. Once we walked over to George Street which is one of the major streets in the CBD. We made a right turn & we followed the numbers until we got to 101 which was where Phillip's Foote Restaurant was located. The window signage said fine wine, fine food so I was reassured that it was going to be all good too.

Phillip's Foote Restaurant in the Rocks

We walked inside & we were greeted by a fellow mate who showed us around. In the front of the restaurant they had the bar where you ordered your drinks from. As you walked further in they had a set up that resembled the Outback. It was really cool. We wound up going to the back of the restaurant where we placed our order for dinner. Our meal consisted of a choice of different steaks which came with potatoes, daily fresh made bread as well as a salad & fruit bar. It was an all inclusive meal for $33. 

The unique part of the meal was that we got to make our own steak on the barbie. That way if it wasn't cooked right, you could only blame yourself for messing it up. They had signs above the barbies to guide you along on how to cook it just right to fit your taste buds. 

T-Bone Steaks on the Barbie

As for the King & I, I did the cooking. We both chose to have T-Bone steaks which I cooked to perfection. Both of us were very satisfied customers. Initially when I told the King I had a nice barbecue place for us to go to, he had his doubts. He was thinking it was going to be a pit style joint like they have down South here in the States. Since he's so afraid to try new kinds of food, I wasn't surprised. I knew all along it was a place he was going to like since he likes to have steak dinners from time to time. Once we got settled in, he realized I didn't steer him wrong. It turned to be an excellent choice like I was told beforehand.

Victoria Bitter aka VB

We ate like royalty Down Under. In addition, we got to have some local beer there too. One of the popular beers there is called Victoria Bitter aka VB. I had one of those at the Light Brigade upon arrival so I knew I liked it. The King decided to try it. He enjoyed it as well.

After we relaxed & finished our food & drinks, we decided to walk all the way back to our hotel in Potts Point. It wound up being a long walk but we had plenty of time to do it so we didn't mind. By doing so, we got to take in more of the CBD on foot. It was an interesting stroll to say the least. 

Once we finally got back to our room, we got a good night sleep in anticipation of a very busy & fun filled week ahead while we were spending time Down Under. 

Stay tuned as I will continue to recap this amazing journey as it unfolded.

Thank you for reading & following along.

Yours truly,

Gary Herman