March 9--"Ladies, You Must Get Off"

Love is like infinity: You can't have more or less infinity, and you can't compare two things to see if they're "equally infinite." Infinity just is, and that's the way I think love is, too.  --Fred Rogers

   Today was a "free day," which I spent sweating. Sweating is my super-power and I've been outdoing myself. 

    I chatted with our guide and confirmed our plans to go to Manly. We walked down to Circular Quay (pronounced 'key') and just made the ferry to Manly. That offered us outstanding views of Sydney and the harbour. A North Head hike had been recommended to us, so we took the #161 bus there and walked the nature loop which gave us outstanding views of the coastline and city.

At North Head

    We caught the bus back to town, but stopped off at a cafe for a beer. While we were there, we got caught in a shower, but soon the sun was back out and we reboarded a bus for Manly Wharf. The bus stopped at the Wharf, but Lanie and I did not realize it, so we sat on the bus waiting for it to go. Finally the bus driver came back and very kindly said, "Ladies, you must get off. This is the end of the line." So now we can add being kicked off a bus to our adventures. 

Manly Beach

    We walked from the Wharf to Manly Beach, where we took a seat on a bench and soaked in the beauty, and watched folks strolling by, surfers and beach volleyball. We walked over a mile down the beach and decided our next move was to return to the Ben and Jerry's store we saw at the beginning of our walk. We enjoyed two scoops (you have to eat ice cream FAST here) and then returned to the Wharf to catch the ferry back to Circular Quay. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, and had we been counting sailboats, I'm betting we would have been up to at least 60. 

    From the Quay, we hiked back up to our hotel to cool off and rest. Another recommendation we had was for Chat Thai at the Quay, and I was able to get us dinner reservations. It was a mixed experience. There was a large party right behind me that was incredibly loud. Many of the dishes I would have liked either had shrimp (yuck) or were very spicy hot. So I had crab fried rice. It was bland, and I only identified a few bits of crab. Oh well, the shiraz wine was good. We picked up some chocolate treats at the convenience store across from our hotel and went joyfully to the hotel and showers. 

    Goodbye, Sydney. Tomorrow we fly to New Zealand. 

         Leta

A nice way to 
end our time in Sydney