The rain must have arrived sometime during the evening because our veranda was soaked when we woke up around 6am. It was cooler with the temperature at 68 degrees with 88% humidity. The winds were blowing 20 mph hour, bringing light rain showers with them. We went off to breakfast with the hope that the showers would stop during the rest of the day.
We left the ship around 10am and joined a waiting shuttle bus…this time the buses were larger with more knee room. And to be sure, we packed the umbrellas with us just in case. The skies were heavily overcast, so we had no doubt the rain would fall.
Dropped off at the Hilton Sydney Hotel once again, we noticed the streets were not full of people hustling here and there. Probably because it was Sunday, the pedestrian and car traffic was far less. Being that we had covered so much ground yesterday in the Central Business District, we decided to head downhill to the Darling Harbor area. Following Market Street, we made our way to the Cockle Bay waterfront of Darling Harbor. This is where we have always been dropped off in the last 6 or 7 years, not in downtown.
Staying on the Cockle Bay Wharf, we passed by a series of restaurants, most of which were not opened yet. There are decent large restrooms along this path just in case anyone needs to know these things. At the end of the bay was the IMAX Theater which has been recently remodeled. It happens to be the 3rd largest one in the world. It attracts families among many others, so there is a convenient park for kids close by called Tumbalong Park. There is a series of small eateries here with McDonalds being the center focus for sure. They are opened early serving breakfast food, so there seems to always be a crowd there.
The opposite side of Darling Harbor had a shopping mall with a Hard Rock Caf?. This whole complex seems to have been leveled, and there are towers of residences going up. Besides hotels, there must be a huge demand for city living these days.
A bit further down the walkway was a huge field cordoned off for a special event called HOLI. Gosh that sounded familiar, but we did not figure it out right away. There were white tents set up in a circle around the fencing with the center field empty. We would discover what this was all about on our way back later. Actually the posters surrounding the fencing advertising basmati rice should have given it away.
Continuing on, we came upon the Chinese Garden of Friendship. It is a serene oasis within this bustling city with trees, ponds, and hanging Chinese lanterns. Large koi carp were swimming in the meandering pond, but if you wanted to enter the small garden, there was a fee. There were more eateries up this way, but most would be opening for lunch at noontime
Continuing on, we made our way to Chinatown filed with Lunar New Year lanterns and decorated for the Year of the Horse. This is one of the best animals for a New Year we think. In this area, there were many types of Asian food including Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and Korean. Pictures of their plates were posted with the prices. Still early, there were very few people there, mostly buying from the bakeries.
Directly across the street was the Hay Street Market, Market City, and Paddy's Market. We soon discovered that this was where all of the locals were hanging out. The Hay Street Market is Sydney's foodie playground with 48 traders, and 25 cuisines under one roof. Going up an escalator from the street, we found fresh bakeries, delis, bars, produce and fresh flowers . On the third level were the eateries and a food court where eight restaurants serve over-the-counter cuisine. This venue was full of hungry customers dining on Asia noodles, dim sum, and pot stickers with Peking duck and more.
Asking the info person if they had a paper map of this complex, he said no, they had the QR code for the cell phones. Guess we were out of luck for that one. Just by luck, we found the Cotton On store which turned out to be more of an outlet. There were piles of sale items, but sizes were limited. Some of the sizes of their shorts and skirts were so short, they did nothing to cover the girls. On the other hand, the long jeans were made like tents with overly-wide legs. This had to be the most crowded clothing store in the complex. Prices were right. We did make a stop at a pharmacy for a few small things we needed.
Finding nothing suitable, we went down escalators and an elevator to the ground level. Right next to this mall was Paddy's Market, Sydney's oldest iconic marketplace where you feel you have entered a treasure hunt. There are 400 stalls that sell Aussie souvenirs, art, fashion clothing, jewelry, toys, electronics, and cosmetics. At the far end are their produce tables and meat and fish market. The fish market is not huge, but it is closed in and cool as well as clean. The variety of seafood is sold by the weight and wrapped to take home. The smaller section has the poultry, pork, and meat department.
We passed by all of the stalls, but it had become so crowded, we made our way back outside. It is a fun place to take photos and we really did not need anything. It was time to head back to Darling Harbor with the hopes the rain would not start. This time we looked closer into the HOLI field and discovered it was the Celebration of the Holi in India, or the Feast of the Colors. Passing some teenage kids on the way here, we noticed they were wearing what appeared to be tie-dyed t-shirts. Their faces matched the shirts. Then we watched the field where people, mostly kids, were throwing the colored powder at each other. And all of this activity was being filmed and projected onto gigantic screens at one end of the field. The first time we saw this was in Mumbai, and it was crazy. No one was immune from being dusted. Time to depart this area before we get hit.
Going back to where we started, we found that all of the restaurants were filling up with customers. Our destination was Casa Restaurante Italiano, a bit further up towards Barangaroo. There were a few outside tables available, and we took one. Just in time too, because the rain had began to fall. Beers of the day were Heineken drafts. We ordered a BBQ chicken pizza, and it came sizzling hot right from the wood-fired oven. Pizza heaven again.. We did add a dessert we enjoyed last year which was a Nutella calzone with ice cream on the side. It was about the same size as the lunch pizza, only sweet. Needless to say, we were full. Good thing we had a long walk uphill to get back to the bus stop. Right when we left, here came Martha & Bob who had spent their time in the Aquarium. We have gone there at least twice over the years and liked it too. We recommended the Casa for lunch and they went there but had calamari and oysters, another fine specialty of the day.
Before we boarded the bus, we ducked into the Queen Victoria Building or QVB as they call it here. Originally constructed in 1898, this beloved building was used as a produce and meat and fish market. The tiled floors are tilted so they could be hosed off after a day of butchery. It is a must-see for us, although tempting, their little bakeries sold some pretty nice-looking treats. Pricey for sure. These days the building holds many upscale boutiques, also pricey. Every little caf? was full of customers this afternnon, who were staying out of the showers.
By the time we made our way back to the bus, the rain began, only heavier. We had lucked out once again. The driver jumped in after the bus was half-filled and we were back to the terminal before 4pm. At 4:30pm, Captain Rens came on the speakers announcing the muster drill for the newly embarked guests…all 400 of them. We recently did the big drill, so we were exempt. Relaxing with ice cold sodas, we worked on photos and research until dinnertime. We had walked so much in the last couple of days, we did not feel like moving. Not even to attend the complimentary wine and cheese party, scheduled to happen at the Seaview Pool deck. No way Jose, it was raining, so the event had to move to the Lido Poolside.
There was no sail away at 6pm, because the Captain announced that the pilot was not onboard yet. It wasn't until after 6:30pm before the ropes were dropped and the gangway removed. One nice thing was that the rain had slowed down and the clouds were breaking up enough to see some blue sky. It helped to add some color to an otherwise dreary day. The Captain also added that we were going to encounter some inclement seas and winds as we got outside the harbor. Going north, we will have 1113 nautical miles to reach Townsville our next port of call.
Staying on our veranda, we did get some nice photos as we exited White Bay and heading under the Bridge. Much to our surprise, Captain Rens laid on the horn for the entire time it took to sail under it. Holy cow.. We had been under the impression there was no outside commentary allowed in Sydney Harbor, let alone blowing the loud ship's horn. But what do we know? We stayed outside all the way to the headlands where the waves and wind got much stronger. The pilot boat was having a difficult time keeping up with the ship in the turbulent seas. At times, the boat was almost lost in the deep waves. Once outside the mainland, they turned the ship to find a calmer spot for the pilot to get off safely.
We were glued to the spot watching this, and ended up going to dinner a bit later. Dinner was light for the most part. We had salads and shrimp with mains of parmesan-crusted turkey and a grilled pork chop that had sounded good, but was tough as shoe leather. Sometimes it works, and other times maybe not so much. One scoop of ice cream was enough to make us happy.
A singer was onstage tonight with more British style songs, but the movie in the Wajang was Koko: a Red Dog Story….well worth seeing. But if we watched it again, it would be on our TV instead.
Looking forward to 2 sea days, but we do expect rocking and rolling as it had already begun.
Bill & Mary Ann
