Live - Standing Ovation from the Land Down Under - New Zealand, 11 Nights Feb. 2, 2020

[Bailey & Sophie]

Clarification please...

Is the colorful wall hanging wool or wood. 

Thanks.

[twangster]

28 minutes ago, Bailey & Sophie said:

Clarification please...

Is the colorful wall hanging wool or wood. 

Thanks.

 

Wool tapestry.  It's an original piece designed by Jørn Utzon himself and created at the Victorian Tapestry Workshop.  The heavy wool dampens sounds which reduces echo making the room ideal for chamber music.

[twangster]

Our next stop was the main opera theater.  On our way we were able to see the inside of the iconic shapes we have all seen on the outside.

 

Our first glimpse up the stairs.

 

 

Originally called simply the Opera Theater in 2012 it was renamed after a famous Australian opera singer and is now called the Joan Sutherland Theatre.

 

 

Looking up...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The stage was being prepared for an event so no photography of the stage area.

 

 

 

Edited February 2, 2020 by twangster

[twangster]

The outside of the buildings are purposely not white but a creme color to minimize reflection and glare.

 

 

 

 

 

It was interesting being able to get up close and touch it.

 

 

[twangster]

The tour lasted one hour then we were free to explore the open public areas on our own. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This smaller building is a restaurant.

 

 

Edited February 2, 2020 by twangster

[twangster]

Over on this side of Circular Quay I was able to see the bridge from another angle.

 

I saw some little ants climbing the bridge.

 

 

By this time it's close to noon and getting hotter.  Amazing views from up there and a glorious day to take it all in but it's gotta be hot, hot, hot in those jumpsuits.

 

[twangster]

Up early and now facing the heat of the day it was time to head back to my hotel and seek the comfort of air conditioning (and take a nap).

 

The Year of the Rat.

 

 

 

 

Something or two to help me sleep.

 

[twangster]

I wanted to catch up on some sleep so I could venture out tonight to take some night pictures.  After a few hours of sleep my stomach woke me up asking to be fed.

 

 

The area right behind my hotel had some street vendors set up.

 

 

This BBQ was appealing.

 

 

 

 

Emu on the left and Kangaroo on the right.  Very good.

 

 

 

The pizza vendor had some nice options so I opted for a Supreme pizza to take back to my room.  

 

 

Grabbing a Victoria Bitter beer at the hotel lobby bar made for a complete dinner experience.

[BSocial]

So enjoying your photos!

 

(But trying to forget the BBQ kangaroo pic 😱)

Edited February 2, 2020 by BSocial
Added

[vpat48]

What a superb start. Looking forward to more.

[twangster]

I always enjoy exploring a city at night and taking a few pictures after dark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I loved seeing the exposed beams within this old building.  Located right across from the Overseas Passenger Terminal I imagine this used to be an important building in shipping commerce back in the day.

 

 

With the HAL ship departed the pier was opened to the public.

 

 

 

[twangster]

The Lunar Lanterns marking the animal signs of the lunar zodiac located around Circular Quay.

 

 

The tongue is animated, moving up and down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There were also some dragons running around.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 3, 2020 by twangster

[twangster]

Near the Circular Quay train station is a street car station.

 

 

 

Some of these street cars are surprisingly long.  

 

 

Circular Quay is also the hub of a lot of ferry traffic.

 

 

 

The Rooster:

 

 

 

The venues near the Sydney Opera House were surprisingly busy.

 

 

Walking out to the end of the Opera House yields a nearly side on view of the bridge.

 

 

With that it was getting late and time to head back towards my hotel.

 

 

 

I wanted to get some sleep so I could be out on the bridge hoping for another brilliant sunrise and the arrival of Ovation early in the morning.

[twangster]

Before bed I wanted to see what the rooftop pool area of my hotel would look like at night.  Not bad.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mcgore83]

The pictures are too awesome for words!  Thank you for taking the time to post.

[seadog67]

Absolutely amazing photos! Thanks for sharing and have an amazing cruise!

[M-H-B]

Getting a bit proud of my pretty city thanks to your gorgeous photos.

[TPCRUISER2]

Glad it is you again! Awesome pictures!

[twangster]

Day 1

 

IT'S CRUISE DAY!!!

 

But first, I need a ship... and some breakfast.

 

I had been watching the weather forecast and it didn't look as promising as my time in Sydney has been up to this point.  The morning looked okay but with increased cloud cover.  Possibly some rain later in the day. 

 

My internal body clock is still mostly on eastern time so I didn't need an alarm to wake up earlier than I needed to.  Might as well head out...

 

 

 

 

When it's o-dark hundred and you're hungry in The Rocks, there's always Pancakes on the Rocks.  It's open 24 hours.

 

 

 

 

This is the quick menu, the full menu is much bigger.

 

 

Time for an Aussie Sunrise.

 

 

Now I can waddle up the hill to the bridge and wait for another Aussie sunrise.

[twangster]

Looking back towards my breakfast venue and hotel in the distance.

 

 

Looking down the street towards the cruise terminal in the far distance.

 

 

A short walk in the other direction leads to this staircase.  It's early but other than some security here and there it's just me other than that shady character in the bottom left of this picture.

 

 

Up the stairs and over to the next staircase where the bridge stairs are found across the road.  Did I mention I exceeded my stair count on this cruise and it's only day 1 of the cruise?  Pro tip:  Bring comfortable walking shoes.

 

 

Looking back towards my hotel and the city behind it.

 

 

That teenie weenie character through the pylon is security so it seems to be safe even at this early hour.

 

 

 

Well lit walkway across the bridge even at night.

 

 

A hint of sunrise starting to appear in the sky.

 

 

Looking promising but not quite the same as the morning before.  

 

 

That's when I realized that faint scent was becoming stronger.  I couldn't place it before, now it's unmistakably the smell of bushfire in the air.

 

 

Soon enough I spotted a ship coming into view.

 

 

I was hoping for a repeat of yesterday's sunrise but given the circumstances this will do just fine.

 

[twangster]

While not as stunning as the sunrise yesterday, this will do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Security walking the bridge.

 

 

My ship has arrived.  Phew.

 

 

 

Distinct haze in the air today that wasn't present yesterday or the day before.

 

 

 

That haze isn't clouds or smog.  It's that smokey.

 

 

 

You can't see it in this picture as well as you can see it live but there is a haze in the air and the distinct smell of bushfires that grew stronger as the morning came to life.

 

[twangster]

The time in my last picture coming off the bridge was 6:28am so I have lots of time.  My plan was to walk back to my hotel, finish packing, go through these pictures and post some pictures from previous days and get ready to check out.  

 

I had my complimentary Pylon Climb ticket that came with the Bridge Climb so I thought I'd drop my bags at the port then walk back up the bridge once again and check out the Pylon Climb around 10am when it opened.  

[Oceansaway17]

Enjoying photos and even better the story to go along with them.

 

I will look for that Pancake place as I booked the Four Seasons hotel for my Nov trip. The room does not include breakfast.

So did you eat those strange skewers of meat at the vendor stands?

[banzaii]

Mate - you should hit up Sydney tourism for a grant to supplement your cruise funds.  Great job!

[twangster]

1 hour ago, Oceansaway17 said:

So did you eat those strange skewers of meat at the vendor stands?

I did.  Quite tasty and very tender.