Day 70 (15 August): Wandering the City
I actually made it around to exploring the city of Sydney today after avoiding it thus far for suburbs. I started out in an area called the Rocks that is akin to its Old Town as that's where some of the first settlers lived. From there I took a walk across the harbor bridge and got another view of the Opera House (as I had the day earlier on a quick drive through the city to the Eastern suburbs.) Around mid-day I jumped in a Jet Boat for a very quick spin (including some random 360 degree turns for fun) around the harbor in a boat that went ultra fast.
In the afternoon I went to the 'Maritime Museum' which had a lot that appealed to me as it had section on both rowing and surfing in Australia. It also had section on the 'discovery' of Sydney, sailing, and Aboriginal maritime culture. Before heading home for the day I also made it to the Aquarium where I got to see a real, live Platypus (which only exist in Australia), some penguins (which apparently live in Sydney Harbor and don't need cold weather, but do need to be in the Southern Hemisphere), and some sharks. To top it off, the aquarium also had my previous day's lunch on display, so I got to see what a Balmain Bug looks like (prehistoric) and a Baramundi too.
Observations:
1) Birds in Australia. They are really different than anywhere else in the world, but I guess the native animals are too, you just don't see kangaroos hopping down the street in Sydney though.
2) It is the law that you must use turn signals when changing lanes in Australia not just a courtesy. Apparently you can get ticketed and fined for not doing so.
3) Telecommunications subsidies in Australia are huge. They are intended to keep the rural areas prices in line with the city prices, which makes the city prices very high. This is a result of the way the government and electoral process is set up.
4) Tunnels and roads in Sydney are frequently operated on toll paying basis where one 'smart chip' on a car works with them all even though each tends to be operated by a different privately owned company.
5) Aborigines. On several occasions so far I've heard people talking about how aborigines are another speices. They get attributed for a lot of the crime as well, but you don't see any or at least I haven't yet.
In the afternoon I went to the 'Maritime Museum' which had a lot that appealed to me as it had section on both rowing and surfing in Australia. It also had section on the 'discovery' of Sydney, sailing, and Aboriginal maritime culture. Before heading home for the day I also made it to the Aquarium where I got to see a real, live Platypus (which only exist in Australia), some penguins (which apparently live in Sydney Harbor and don't need cold weather, but do need to be in the Southern Hemisphere), and some sharks. To top it off, the aquarium also had my previous day's lunch on display, so I got to see what a Balmain Bug looks like (prehistoric) and a Baramundi too.
Observations:
1) Birds in Australia. They are really different than anywhere else in the world, but I guess the native animals are too, you just don't see kangaroos hopping down the street in Sydney though.
2) It is the law that you must use turn signals when changing lanes in Australia not just a courtesy. Apparently you can get ticketed and fined for not doing so.
3) Telecommunications subsidies in Australia are huge. They are intended to keep the rural areas prices in line with the city prices, which makes the city prices very high. This is a result of the way the government and electoral process is set up.
4) Tunnels and roads in Sydney are frequently operated on toll paying basis where one 'smart chip' on a car works with them all even though each tends to be operated by a different privately owned company.
5) Aborigines. On several occasions so far I've heard people talking about how aborigines are another speices. They get attributed for a lot of the crime as well, but you don't see any or at least I haven't yet.
posted by Traveling Brian at 2:52 AM
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