While finding a Bar is our highest priority at this point, we are high on a hill and a good bit from town. Joan leads our group transversing the neighborhoods searching for the easiest path down. Sometimes the path goes down, but then we turn a corner and back up the hill we go. Fran turns and spies me in the rear of our expedition taking pictures along the way and Fran-tically tells me to stop as I am bleeding. By her reaction I expected to see blood gushing from severe wound, but it is only where I got poked and I have a trail of blood flowing down my arm like a snake slowly slithering downhill. She insists that we stop while she triages, cleans and dresses my mortal wound with AloeVera (good for more than a sunburn). There is a picture that I will update with when I can figure out how to download photos from Steve’s iPhone.
We did encounter a lovely pair of spiders with webs that covered part of a garage.
Eventually, as we are all about to collapse from the nearly one mile we have covered, parched like on a safari, we sight the town, and there we search ….not one, not two, but three restaurants till we find one with a full bar. Salvation!
Of course a Manly Gin and Tonic quenches the dry mouth.
When we took the ferry back to Sydney, what a mass of humanity was there. It was packed with passengers arriving by Boat, Train, cars, Buses, and walking from all the hotels nearby. It was 4:30pm and not enough time for the journey to go to the other end of the harbor. Add that to the list for next time. 
Back in the comfort of our Marriott hotel, we all recover from our day’s adventure and plan to reconvene about 7pm as I want to walk around and take some night shots. Joan lays down and I blog for a bit and prepare for our stroll. At 7 Steve and Fran decide to remain at the hotel but will meet us for night caps when we return so Joan and I head off across the rocks via Argyle street which takes you up to Observatory hill and then down to Barangaroo on the other side. I’ve got to get to the other side in order to face west and be able to hopefully find a sunset.
The sun is setting as we cross over the hill and we are looking for a place where we can get a vista. Joan notices this small street and at the bottom is an alleyway that has a picket fence is in a dilapadated condition. The key is there are about 4 or 5 slats totally missing and I should be able to shoot over the roof tops.
While taking the picture we are approached by a tall very thin man. As he walks up he says “Happy Chinese New Year.” and we begin a conversation. He has just arrived from China and like us is wandering around Sydney taking pictures. We talk about Arizona and the desert and where in the US it is located. He is from Shanghi and came to celebrate the New Year in Australia. Seems to be the thing to do in China. We told him about the celebration we witnesed last night and he said that the actual New Year is Monday and that today is New Years Eve. We parted wishing him a Happy Chinese New Year.
We walked down the alley and turned right toward the Darling Harbor where I was thinking we could catch a ferry back to Circular Quay. As we strolled down the street we came to a dead end and a sheer drop off of about 100 feet. Looking left there is a steep staircase that sepentines down the quarried wall to the harbor below. To the right the street goes down hill and then up hill towards a bridge that leads to the Barangaroo Park.
A tiny frail older woman approches us and asks in a very British accent if we are locals. We explain we are not and proceed to have a delightful chat with this woman who is in town preparing a walking tour for some of the Hill People from the Blue Mountains. She shares how beautiful the mountains are and how we could take public transportation and save a bundle from those bus tours. We talk about Saving Millers Point and learn a lot about local politics and how the government owns all the land to the North of where we are and that is where Millers point is. The Government want to open it up and build new buildings and housing but the residents are in public housing (Projects) and want to keep the charm, and the low rents they have now.
She highlights the beautiful walkway that we learn was just completed this past October and provides a safe walk around the edge of the harbor back to the Sydney Bridge. We say our goodbyes and head off down the street and then up again to the bridge that leads us over to Barangaroo Park and a fantastic walk. I of course stopped to take pictures along the way. Joan is very patient as I have become much more deliberate and have way more equipment than I used to. She wanders around while I set up, wait for the moment and ……… shoot.
As we walk around the end of the Rocks before we get to the Bridge, fireworks are shooting above the outline of the hill from the Chinese New Year festival on the other side.
Joan stops me and says to come over on a floating warf between two buildings and says look at the reflection of the city across the harbor. The colors are very cool. She is right.
And the amusement park across the way
Yep, I know…… I am infatuated with the Sydney Opera House. But it sure delights the eye.
When arrive back it is almost 11pm and decide its too late to call the Day’s and set into the hotel bar for a nightcap or two……or three…..
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