Super Cool, Even If You Don't Like Opera

More grey skies so, since the beach remained out of the question (doh!), it seemed like the perfect day to use to check out more of downtown Sydney, particularly the world-famous harbor. I was so excited about getting to finally hang out somewhere that I have heard and read so much about over the years!

Moriah came with us today to play the official tour guide. It's always so nice when you have a local to show you around as know just where to go and, most importantly, where to get the best coffee.

We took a ferry in to the city this time, which was a very cool way to get the first glimpse of the harbor and the world-famous Sydney Opera House. I had the same surreal feeling as I did back at the Taj Mahal in India. When you have seen so many thousands of images of something throughout your lifetime, something so iconic and closely related with your whole preconceived image of a place, it's really, well, surreal when you actually find yourself face to face with it, live and in person.

We started off with some leisurely walking through the harbor area, going to one of the older neighborhoods in the city, The Rocks. Lots of indie shops and restaurants and coffee shops and old architecture. More wandering and then a light lunch at an outdoor restaurant on the harbor right next to the Opera House. Funny how such simple things can be so cool. I mean, really, to be sitting and dining on the water while looking at the Sydney Opera House... seriously cool. We saw guys playing the didgeridoo, we strolled through the Botanical Gardens and then....

... we just had to do it. Sarah and I ARE tourists, after all, and every once in a while we just can't help but give in to it. So we went on a full-fledged tour of the Opera House. We got to go inside and see some of the theaters and concert halls, we learned all about the trials and travails of building it and we learned more than I ever thought I would want to know about an Opera House. Go ahead and ask me anything you want to know about it, I am now an official expert. Really, go ahead and ask. I am a wealth of knowledge on the subject.

Okay, I can't help myself, I did find these facts to be particularly interesting:

* The Sydney Opera House has a recognition factor of well over 4,000,000,000 people. That means that 2 out of every 3 people on the planet can indentify a picture of it.

* The building project was supposed to take 3 years and cost 7 million dollars; it ended up taking 14 years and costing 102 million dollars. Oops.

* The architect of the building, due to a falling out with the powers that be, left the country and never came back to see the finished product.

Check me out, educating myself while on vacation. I don't usually do the "tour" thing but I really am glad we did it. One of the most famous buildings in the world... and I got to go inside of it!

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Dinner on the harbor, a little shopping, then home. I spent the day in downtown Sydney today. It was a very good day.