-- Sydney, Lane Cove River Tourist Park

The road tracklog 
Sydney
from 2010/05/31 to 2010/06/06 

The first day in Sydney was devoted to administrative steps: to go to seek a parcel of spare parts at the GPO Poste Restante which had not arrived yet, to go to the consulate of France for obtaining a new passport, the current one having no more virgin page, to go to the Immigration service for obtaining of an extension of the current visa with two entries, impossible and to go to the consulates of the future countries to visit. I walked several times George Street in the CBD. On the move between two breaks of gusts I took some pictures. Modern buildings without grace are next to buildings of the 19th century, the Town Hall emerges with difficulty between glass towers, Queen Victoria Building -QVB- throne in majesty in the centre of the CBD of which Pierre Cardin would have said: The most beautiful shopping centre in the world!

The day after I returned to the GPO with the evidence of the sent and the arrival of the parcel. After investigations, the personnel realized that my name had been badly spelled and that the tracking number had been truncated. It was thus impossible to find it in the information system. I began the visit of Sydney at the lunch time at St Martins Place crushed by the imposing building of the Post Office and others of Victorian style built at the end of the 19th century.

I went up at the Summit of Sydney Tower to have a bird's eye view over the city, it was stunning at this sunny beginning of afternoon. The very wide town of Sydney has many parks I walked other streets to see Victorian constructions enchased in modern buildings.

Two monuments held my attention in Hyde Park, Archibald Fountain to commemorate the association of Australia and France during the First World War and the bronze statue in Anzac Memorial, a body lengthened on a shield and crucified on a sword symbol of the sacrifice of soldiers of Australia and New Zealand during the Second World War.

I finished the day by strolling in Australian Museum exposing the impossible to circumvent aboriginal culture and many other exhibits such the rooms of minerals, dinosaurs and a setting in dazing scenes of skeletons.

On Thursday June 04 the day was announced under happy auspices, the sun was appeared of good morning. I visited the Chinese Distric, without common measurement with that in Singapore or in Kuala Lumpur. But in Darling Harbour a Chinese Garden was created by architects of Canton, sister city of Sydney, in 1984. All symbols of the Chinese culture were gathered there. It is a harbour of peace but not of silence, the noise of the city is omnipresent.

In the late morning, weather being always beautiful I decided to seize this advisability to climb the Harbour Bridge. By walking there I met a resplendent of happiness Asian bride. And not far away I took the first picture of the icon of Australia, the Opera House.

The climb of Harbour Bridge built at the beginning between from 1924 and 1932 is not an adventure like a climb of  6,000 meters in the Himalayas. It is necessary to make a test of blood alcohol content, to dress a jumpsuit, to girdle a harness with a snap hook attached to a cable throughout the walk, no risk, nothing is not left randomly. Belongings are locked up in a made safe trunk, no camera, pictures are sold at the end of the walk which lasts approximately 3h30 dressing up and off included. The cost is of A$198 and CD of four pictures A$55,95. It is Big Business. The bird's eye view from the top of the arch over Sydney's bay is unforgettable, dramatic.

The following day was a day copiously sprinkled by spray coming from the sea by gusts. Hardly some breaks to animate the pictures; the sky was constantly covered with black clouds. Courageously I returned to Darling Harbour to visit the Australian Maritime Museum. I discovered some interesting items, for example, a small aboriginal fishing boat which precedes the board of surfing and cock-a-doodle-doo a whole window dedicated to French Connection from La Pérouse in 1785 disappeared in sea in 1788 to Bruni d'Entrecasteaux in 1791 and to Baudin in 1801 died of typhus in sea. These voyages were only with scientific target as I had the occasion to write it at the time of my trip in Tasmania.

In the early afternoon I strolled Macquarie Street exposing some beautiful specimens of Victorian art, for example, the State Library of NSW, the Parliament House and the Barracks of Georgian style. By walking on from arcade to arcade I went to Wynyard Station to return to the camp-site under a water flood.

On Friday June 04 it was a non-stop pouring rainy day during which I went in the early morning to SDV to launch the study of the maritime transport of my truck towards the next destinations. This French forwarding agent is of course located close to the goods harbour. From the campsite the trip represents for only outward a way of approximately two hours on foot, by train then by bus. During the meeting, the met person dealt with only the first transport. As usual it was impossible to obtain an overall project, it is always step by step. A trip round the world requires to devote much time to the next countries to visit, it is necessary to take its dash what is very difficult with the service providers because a private traveller is an occasional customer generating no business. At the beginning of afternoon before the closing of the consulate of France at 1p.m. I took delivery of the new CPD. Finally I went shopping of terrestrial food before returning to the campsite where I arrived around 3h30 always in the torrential rain.

On Saturdays the Sydney CBD is devoted to tourists and curiously the majority of luxury good shops are closed but department stores and supermarkets are open. After some shopping in a department store I noted that the sky had been cleared and that the sun appeared. I decided to benefit from it to take some pictures of the Opera House by going to Circular Quay the ferry departure to Sydney Bay.

Nearly The Rocks preserves specimens of buildings of first settlers and convicts. Thus Cadman's cottage built in 1816 is the oldest building and was the residence of the coxswains of the government of whom John Cadman ex-released convict. On the other side of Harbour Bridge Garrison Church was the first military church.

At the top of a hill the Observatory was built in 1850. A custom wanted that at 1 p.m. a ball falls from the top to give the exact hour and at the same moment a blow of canon fires at Fort Denison.

By walking I seized some street scenes.

Due to its localization the Opera House was not easy to photograph, it is necessary to take much distance and height. Consequently I climbed the staircase of a Harbour Bridge's pylon whose exhibit tells the construction of the bridge and I crossed Cahill Promenade along its roadway up to Milsons Point in the north of the CBD.

The Sunday morning under a chilly sun I walked from Cockle Bay, Darling Harbour, up to Millers Point then from Walsh Bay with wharves transformed into apartments, in restaurants, a theatre and a wealthy marina up to Dawes Point, then from Sydney Cove with Sky Line in Circular Quay where I stopped weather getting covered dangerously. Exploration of Jackson Port now named Sydney is infinite,  each walk is a discovery of city's new aspects.

Previous page

Next page