Sydney -- Manly, Sydney Harbor, The Rocks and the Opera House (August 8, 2008)

On my second full day in Sydney, I got on the bus and headed back to Circular Quay in order to take a ferry across the harbor to Manly. Built in the 1920s as a resort, Manly (click on the link for photos) is the first of many beach towns on the north coast of Sydney and home to expensive, beachside residences located in a laid back, beach-y neighborhood – think a less developed Santa Monica.

I took a walk down the town’s main strip, the Corso, filled with small shops and cafes, and walked to Manly Beach, a beautiful, tree-lined, white-sand beach with a long, rolling break that is perfect for surfing. As I continued along the ocean-side pathway for 15 minutes, I reached Shelly Beach, a small cove nestled into protected parkland that is pretty but does not live up to its “shelly” name.

After riding the slightly turbulent ferry back to Sydney, I walked around the CBD to get a feel for downtown life. It’s difficult to explain how amazing and vibrant Sydney actually is. As I’ve said, Sydney is oftentimes compared to Los Angeles, but I’d say Sydney is more a blend of the best elements of New York (sophistication and energy), San Francisco (hills, harbor and bridges) and Los Angeles (weather and sunshine). It is, without doubt, one of the most stunning cities I have ever seen – simply magnificent.

From downtown, I walked over to “The Rocks,” (click the link for photos) Sydney’s original settlement, literally built into the rocks (hence the name) at Sydney Cove in 1788. After coming close to being demolished in the 1960s, The Rocks has experienced a resurgence and is now a mix of pubs, clubs and stores all housed within beautiful, historic brick buildings. I met up for drinks with Cara and Cristian at Argyle, a former wool store that is now a very cool indoor-outdoor bar and changed into more appropriate attire for our night at the symphony.

We left Argyle and walked to the Sydney Opera House (click the link for photos), stopping for a quick dinner at Opera Bar (delicious roast chicken and potatoes) before heading into one of the Opera House’s five auditoriums for a program of Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky. The Tchaikovsky piece was fantastic – a juxtaposition of symphony orchestra with piano played by famed pianist Yefim Bronfman. Maybe it was the late hour or exhaustion after a long day, but Stravinsky’s Firebird, despite the sheer size of the orchestra, failed to hold our interest. We were, however, highly amused by conductor and current Music Director of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, David Robertson, who took no less than THREE encores for EACH performance. So much for midwestern humility.

Following the performance, we drove back to Bondi Beach and sat on the couch to watch the always-esoteric opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games. After laughing at the clearly lip-synced performance of the adorable Chinese girl (there’s no way that was her voice), Cara and Cristian passed out on the couch and I headed to my bedroom for some much-needed rest.