To Sydney, Australia

Friday 16th April
Our plane took off at 8.15am and we had beautiful views from the East across to the West Coast as we flew over the mountains. We had fantastic views of the glaciers and then said our farewells to NZ as we crossed over the West Coast to the Tasman sea that was covered in a blanket of fluffy white clouds, above which we could see miles through the clear blue. Different from what is going on in the UK with the Icelandic eruption!
We descended through cloud into a grey and misty Sydney but had great views of the harbour, the harbour bridge and the Opera House as we came in to land.
The airport exit was very long and tedious with each person having their bags checked and no proper queuing system which meant that people, frustratingly, pushed in ahead of others who had been waiting for ages.
Anyway... we eventually emerged to meet Jane and Wilf (8 yr old son) and then we were whisked through Sydney and over the Harbour Bridge up to the Northern Suburb of Balgowlah, just next to Manly on the Northern edge of Sydney harbour.
For those of you who don't know John, Jane and Wilf; I first met John about 25 years ago when he briefly dated my sister Katie at Uni, then later I rented a room in Brixton from John and his brother, and later Jane moved in; anyway we have been mates ever since. They have moved back here after 7 years in the UK; they lived here before when I lived in the 1990s, and they love it though they miss the UK too!
Our first iconic Aussie sighting was a Kookaburra on a neighbour's TV ariel, then
Jane took us on a tour of Manly, North Head and the beaches there; amazingly there are Water Dragons (a type of lizard) that live on the rocks which are separated from the sea by a walkway.
John got home from work around 6:30pm and we had a Pork Roast (something that Tris has had a craving for for months!), roast potatoes and all the trimmings. But the two hour time change and our early start to catch the flight soon caught up with us and we had to retire!

Sat 17th
Celso, Tris and I went to 'do' central Sydney. As we left the house we found a Blue Tongued Skink in the front garden and then took a 20 min walk along the waterfront down to Manly to catch the ferry. There were some amazing spiders, with very full larders, amazing views and exotic plants to grab the attention at every turn.
The ferry took us across the harbour past Sandy beaches, rocky peninsulas and virgin bush (reserves), then round a corner and views of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.
We wandered around Circular Quay for a while, there was an aboriginal group playing their music with a digeridoo, loads of people out and about (it is the last w/e of the holidays like in the UK), boats coming and going and views across the harbour. We took a look around the Sydney Opera House; I don't wish to spoil anybody's perception of the place but from close up; it looks a little grotty, rough cement surfaces and staining on the walls. However, from a distance it is a magnificent edifice and we took looks from all perspectives!
We found a free bus to take us along to Darling Harbour (who has ever heard of a free bus in the middle of a big city - but here there is one) and went to have some lunch overlooking more hustle and bustle and glistening, twinkling water. We pottered through the shops, watched a video about how one company makes hats from rabbit skin and found a shop selling English sweets and gladly tucked in to some Aniseed Balls that have been sorely missed!
As we returned to Manly on the ferry the sun was setting, casting a beautiful glow over the Opera House and the water - gorgeous.
In the evening a few of John and Jane's friends came round and we were treated to fab food and company and then we watched the footy; Man City v Man U, not that they are my team but I'd prefer the reds to win the title rather than those London Blues. Well done Tottenham!