I woke up realizing the previous two days were pretty close to perfect, peak experiences. Sailing into Sydney Harbor under clear skies was spectacular, our initial orientation tour of Sydney was efficiently comprehensive and it was fun for me to wander a bit more around Sydney on my own for a few hours; our final evening on the ship was quiet and low-stress. Getting off the ship, checking into our Four Seasons room with its jaw-dropping view, touring the Sydney Opera House and learning more about the history of the city and the Opera House on a whim at the Museum of Sydney, followed by a simple but tasty meal at The Rocks Cafe made for a great day as well. It would be hard to sustain that level of indulgence and good luck but I was grateful for those two days making the trip worth the expense and trouble.
Once we opened the windows, we saw a big Carnival cruise ship had docked. I wondered if we would see a new ship every day. This ship was the Carnival Splendor, completing a loop from Sydney to New Zealand (with a day in the Fjordlands National Park, by the way). It would be heading out later in the day for a brief 4-day run to the Great Barrier Reef.
We took our time getting out of bed and to our first buffet breakfast at the Club 32 lounge. We had, between us, pretty much the same indulgent breakfasts that we did on the boat. For me, a cholesterol-busting omelet accompanied by bacon, sausage, and often a plate of cheese, charcuterie, salmon and maybe, just maybe, a bit of fruit. For Barb an even more eclectic mix of bacon, salmon, cheese, mushrooms, a small omelet, pastries, tea, and I’m not sure what else.
We managed to waddle out of the hotel around 10:30am heading for the ferry to Taronga Zoo. We figured it was a good day to see some Antipodean wildlife as the weather was cooperatively mild and partly cloudy. We just missed one ferry but that gave us time to sort out how to buy a zoo ticket online and save a few bucks. We got the next ferry and were treated to some great views as we pulled out of Circular Quay.
The quick ferry ride was followed by a short, crowded bus ride up the hill to the main entrance of the zoo. We elected to focus mostly on Australian animals, skipping most of the non-native lions, tigers and bears, etc. We were quickly rewarded with sightings of a Red Kangaroo, freshly arrived at the zoo, just like us.
We passed some emus then hit the koala area. We took many shots of the sleepy koalas hanging out in the trees, looking somewhat like Manny.
We saw a few more kangaroos before winding back into koala territory.
We finally got our fill of koalas and moved onward past a couple of very hot and tired dingoes.
We managed to see a tiny platypus (named Matilda, we learned). I tried taking a couple of photos but it was so dark Matilda just came out as a blur. Then I saw a couple of young girls filming her in video mode. Thanks kids! That worked much better.
I went into an aviary area and saw (and heard) lots of birds but it was tough getting any decent photos. Barb waited outside the aviary for me to finish. There was not a chance she was going in there.
We saw some more emu before finding the echidna. What a funny looking bundle of spines.
We saw a wombat sleeping in an undignified pose. It was a little embarrassing even taking a photo. I saw one other wombat but it was just a dark ball of fur and I didn’t even take a photo.
We passed some gray kangaroo who gave us a wary eye.
We found the quokka pen and waited a while for one to appear. One finally did, but just for a moment before making a U-turn and heading back to it’s little quokka house to hide out in peace. I was lucky to get the shot that I did.
The zoo spills down a hillside and occasionally provides wonderful views of Sydney Harbor. From our on the ferry or in the harbor you can hardly tell the zoo is there. It’s pretty remarkable.
I spent a nice couple of minutes with a pair of very imposing Australian Pelicans. They were much larger and a little more frightening than the Florida kind I was used to. Barb steered clear.
We found our way to the shops and refreshments in the central part of the zoo and watched a trainer talk about the Asian elephants. While the trainer was talking, the two elephants worked on iceball snacks made of straw, nuts and other goodies. It was entertaining watching the elephants repeatedly lift the balls of ice with their trunks and hurl them to the ground, then scoop up and eat the debris.
On our way out of the zoo we saw seals and penguins before exiting back to the ferry.
The ferry ride home was equally quick. I snapped a few shots of Barb enjoying the ride.
On the way back to the hotel we shopped for opals for a few minutes. Any of these rings winners for Allie?
We got back to the room and decompressed for a bit. The Carnival Splendor left around 4pm.
We took it easy until 6pm when the Viking Orion left its dock and came through the harbor, departing on its way to Bali. We texted with Karen as we wished them a bon voyage.
Finally, it was time for dinner at Rockpool. I had heard great things about this steakhouse (#8 of the world’s top 10 steakhouses), though it turned out not to be the one I’d seen on TV with Basque/Argentinian wood fired grills that raised and lowered for the right heat (I haven’t figured out which one that was…I thought it was near Bondi but I struck out trying to find it). We had an amuse bouche of mini Rueben sandwiches along with bread and an excellent local butter. I had a grilled squid appetizer while Barb tackled a cucumber salad side order that was effectively her entree order as well. We shared a 60-month dry aged ribeye from Tasmania along with some really nice duck fat fried potatoes with garlic and rosemary – super duper Tater Tots. The beef was excellent, very well seasoned and nicely cooked. Between us, we finished every bite. Our waitress, a super-efficient clone of Annie Lennox, may have wished we ordered more but was very good to us. Barb enjoyed wandering around the restaurant and watching the open kitchen at work. It was an entertaining, filling evening. We made it back to the room in one piece, in time for some Midsomer Murders.
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