Mention that you've been to Australia for a holiday and you are immediately asked if you visited Melbourne, the Gold Coast or Sydney. I am happy to admit that I dared to be different and travelled to the remote Northern Territory, home of fascinating Aboriginal rock art sites, for the major part of my stay. But before making this final stop, I 'did' Sydney, where the names of train stations such as Paramatta seemed to roll off the tongue. I had prepared for the visit by reading an immensely enjoyable book on this diverse country by Bill Bryson. And I wasn't disappointed.
The cold weather in Sydney delighted me, coming as I did from a place where summer was peaking. My hosts were warm and welcoming and ensured I saw all the sights worth seeing such as the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge, the Olympic Park and a thoroughly enjoyable day at Taronga zoo. The journey to the zoo from the nearest train station entailed a ferry ride and then my first time in a cable car, affording us picturesque views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge from different angles. On arrival at our destination I caught my first glimpse of the Komodo dragon, the frill-necked lizard, the cuddly koala, the crocodile and last but not least the kangaroo. I had no idea that the last mentioned included a variety that perched on trees. So, it was a learning experience.
We happened to stumble across a bird show, almost by accident. For once I was in the right place at the right time. The commentator began with the history of birds according to the Aboriginal people and as he enumerated each type, a bird of that description would fly in on cue and perch itself as he continued with his narrative. Thinking about the time and effort involved in training these birds for such a show boggled the mind.
There is such a variety of insects, lizards and poisonous snakes and spiders in this one continent. A common sight was the ant with the bulbous emerald-green bottom half whose brilliant colouring caught my attention in particular. Later at a camping site in the Northern Territory, I had the painful experience of having some of them crawl on my arm while I was trying to look efficient and gather firewood. That's when I came to the conclusion that beauty has its sting. The limb in question soon developed a painful, itchy red rash which didn't subside for a couple of days.
No beginner's luck
Coming back to my stay in Sydney, I was keen to try my hand at the ubiquitous slot machines and found, to my dismay, that there was no such thing as beginner's luck. Spurred by tales (thinking back, they must have been 'tall' ones) of instant riches, I decided to have a flutter but all that fluttered was my heart as I saw the coins disappear with lightning speed.
A drive to the Blue Mountains on a cold, damp day did nothing to dampen the spirits. The Blue Mountains of New South Wales are sandstone structures around 48km west of Sydney. The mountains aren't really mountains but a plateau with rugged ridges, a major part of which is a world heritage site. The gorgeous views included a formation of three rocks known as the Three Sisters. Cameras clicked and memories were stored away for perusal later. Also heard the story of a recent murder and that the body had been disposed of in one of those ridges. A party of trekkers happened to come upon this during their climb.
There was also the heart-warming tale of policemen knocking on the door of my host one morning to inform her that her husband's car had been left parked at the train station with the windows down and perhaps she should do something about it. Cases of vandalism were rife in the area and the timely warning prevented anyone making off with the vehicle.
These vignettes of my stay in Sydney will stay fresh in my memory for a long, long while.
