12-06-10 - Day 3

On the third day I decided to see some of the most famous sights, namely the Sydney Opera House and other nearby attractions such as the observatory and Royal Botanical Gardens. To get there I took a bus then a train. Before I went up to the observatory I stopped at this very cool specialized bookstore that only carried books related to cars and motorcycles. They had all sorts of workshop manuals as well as history books and technical books. I got a new two stroke tuning book, which the shop owner said is the next step up from Graham Bell's tuning book.



Ok so on to the tourist attractions. First I walked up to the observatory and checked out the view from there, then saw some neat old telescopes inside. From there I took the Cahill walk which connect with the quays to get to the opera house. On the way there I got to hear some Didgeridoo music. I saw the opera house, and the harbor bridge, and considered taking a tour but ultimately decided I'd rather just walk around the botanical garden. By the opera house some military guys were setting up small artillery to fire off for the Queen's birthday. The botanical gardens are huge, I could only walk through about 1/3 of the park. I saw some of the huge bats called "flying foxes," they are about the size of a hawk. And I saw some massive trees and other unique plants. I have been doing so much walking here, I'd estimate about 8 km today, that my legs should be in good shape at the end of the trip. Alright here are the pics:

The inside of the dome reminds me of the game Myst.

The harbor bridge:

Opera House:

View of the city from the opera house:

Flying Foxes!

For the Queen!