(...Contd from: "The Ocean and the Road")
3 days into our trip, we had covered quite a bit of the beautiful city of Melbourne, driven through the jaw-dropping Great Ocean Road, stuffed our faces with yummy homemade food at my relatives' place and given our vocal cords and facial muscles some serious workout.
And now, it was time for the two of us to venture out on our own - Sydney beckoned!
An early morning flight out of Melbourne got us to Sydney around 10 am, and in another half an hour, we were at Big Hostel -our crash pad in the city.
This was to be my first "hostel" experience ever - while the reviews on the net were very encouraging, i still had a tiny niggling doubt at the back of my mind about what I'd actually see. Check-in was quite quick, and the moment we stepped into the common lobby past the reception, I just loved the place!
A lovely cozy room with warm cushioned sofas, people lounging around watching TV, playing board games or animatedly exchanging their experiences with fellow travellers - the vibes were great.
Our "private double room" was more functional than cozy/welcoming, but that was kind of okay since we didn't intend to stay in too much.
However, there was this tiny problem - after effects of taking all that rain and chilly winds in the Great Ocean Road trip had started showing - I felt a raging fever coming on, with the familiar fuzzy feeling in my limbs, and a dull ache all over. We had only 2 days in Sydney, and a mile-long travel wish list. It felt like what this website called "foot on the ball time", and retiring hurt was just not an option. So in went a Wikoryl followed by a Saridon, and out went we - into a bright sunny day in Sydney!
A 15 min walk through sprightly streets and the bustling China Town got us to the much-heard-about Darling Harbour - a vibrant place teeming with people, sky high office buildings vying for space with the Maritime Museum, the Aquarium and even a Wild Life World thrown in for good measure!
Partha, at Darling Harbour:
We decided to visit the Wild Life World, and my first thought - "Hey! I get to strike the top 2 things off my agenda - kangaroos and koalas!!!"
The Wild Life World turned out to be an extremely entertaining place, what with we being startled by Rex, apparently the world's largest croc - one which had the reputation of gobbling up other crocs - menacingly gliding in the water, as soon as we'd stepped in! Any other crocodile/alligator I had ever seen in my life would probably look only slightly bigger than a garden lizard beside this monster!
Rex:
Keeping respectful distance, we made our way in - past colourful butterflies and cutesy birds, slithering reptiles and playful wallabies. We had reached the terrace, and there they were - 4 cuddly fur-balls, blissfully oblivious of the milling crowds, napping away to glory on treetops! They'd wake up and look around occasionally, decide there was nothing worth staying up for and promptly slip back into seemingly peaceful - if not deep - slumber! And I secretly wondered, what did they smoke?!
Having had my fill here, it was Kangaroo-time next! With visions of mommy kangaroos hopping about - joeys in pouch (Nat Geo style), we reached the kangaroos' enclosure.
But all that we got to see was this, Nat Geo be damned. :)
Clearly, it was not just the typical Bengali who relished his afternoon siesta!! I had half a mind to get this guy a pillow to rest his elbows on.
Anyways, back in the human world, we had a ferry to catch. It would take us to Circular Quay, and I could strike off the 3rd point in my "agenda" as well - The Sydney Opera House! :)
However, by this time the medicines popped in earlier had started wearing off....and all I could do to keep going was think of all the wonderful photos my facebook album would miss if I didn't, and hoping that my pics would get more comments than those of the husband! (Mark Zuckerberg, what an idea Sirji!!) :) :)
So there we were on the quay, the Opera House in full view - and well, I couldn't help but feel a little let down. It was an extremely elegant building for sure, but the tiles were darker and duller than I had expected, the structure way smaller that I had imagined. I wondered what the fuss was all about, and remembered how I had felt similarly on my first visit to the Taj Mahal.
Over-expectation is such a spoilsport! :(
With more than just a little disappointment, I turned my attention to the Harbour Bridge on the other side, watching the day melt away into darkness and the imposing bridge come aglow with neon lights, under a starry sky.
As the lights started coming on, we glanced back at the Opera House; and whoa! It was pure magic!
The building glittered in all its glory, its delicate outline shimmered against the night sky.
It was instant redemption, and by the time we finally left the Circular Quay, it was with a lasting impression of the understated, yet elegant beauty of the Opera House as it glowed into the night.
The rest of the evening was pretty uneventful, until I decided to order a spicy sea food soup to help clear my head. Oh well! Clear my head it did, but not with its spices. The realization that "sea food" was not just about shrimps and prawns struck (almost literally) with a specimen such as in the pic below making an unexpected appearance on my soup spoon - and while the husband put up a brave face as he poked and prodded around the tentacles for a while, I swore off any more experiments when it came to food! :)
Next: "Sydney Stories 2"
I had the same experience of seafood ..I do not remember exactly where but I believe it was somewhere in california and it did not go down well :P
ReplyDeletekoala is super cute... and the seafood experience, well, i've had my share too :)
ReplyDelete@anasuya and aditi...you bet! Partha tried telling me that the baby octopus did not taste a lot different from prawns, but it sounded more like he was trying to convince himself, rather than me. :) :)
ReplyDeleteThe soup was very tasty, though! :)