2004-2005 Australia Trip, part 15
It's now New Years Eve Day and downtown is hopping! We grab a ride on a train over to Paddy's Market; which is now much further from our hotel. It's time for us to get new hats, additional goodies to take home, and to shop for produce. The produce market is going big time now and we see a wide array of items we are not familiar with. We pick up some lychees, since we tasted them on Christmas, along with other fruits and veggies. We also stopped at the grocery store near the hotel and got a bargain on ready to eat lasagna.
After a quick stop for lunch we head to the Rocks area of Sydney with its numerous shops. I was still looking for a new didge and Barb shopped again for opals. She did well and got a necklace and pendant. We also found our didge performer, from the Northern Territories Center, working at a store called "Spirit of Downunder". Again we talk of boomerangs and didges; then the store owner challenges my knowledge of boomerangs. Surely a "Yank" can't know more than the average Aussie about boomerangs. To prove my worth, I cut a flicker boomerang from a business card and flick it off the back of my hand, catching it on return. This starts a scene outside the store were everyone wants a chance at playing with the flicker rang. Barb and I do a little shopping there and bought tablecloths from fabric with aboriginal artwork and a boomerang. We wandered around the area a bit more, stopping in several aboriginal art galleries. We were rather amazed at the number of stores in the area that not only sold aboriginal art, but also loads of boomerangs (not sure how many actually worked) and didgeridoos. It seemed like there was a major boom/didge shop every block.
We headed back to the hotel to eat supper; then it was back to the harbor to see the fireworks at 9pm. We walk into the harbor area and find a sea of people. We continue to try and get a better vantage point and at a certain point all forward progress stops. It is here were we make or stand and wait for the show to start. The people around us were very nice but as soon as the fireworks start, Barb discovers that a very tall person is directly in front of her view. To top that off, everyone is holding their digital cameras over their heads, trying to get fireworks photos. We do manage to see most of the show and it was exciting to see the fireworks burst over the opera house. As soon as the show is over, a lot of the people head home, only to be replaced by the crowd coming in for the 12 show. We walk back to the hotel and proceed to snack and have sparkling wine, as we watch the midnight fireworks on TV. It was interesting, as we were just a few blocks form the harbor. We opened the doors to the patio and could hear the fireworks from our room, although this was a few seconds after seeing them on TV.
Phot: Flicker rangs outside the Spirit of Downunder Shop
After a quick stop for lunch we head to the Rocks area of Sydney with its numerous shops. I was still looking for a new didge and Barb shopped again for opals. She did well and got a necklace and pendant. We also found our didge performer, from the Northern Territories Center, working at a store called "Spirit of Downunder". Again we talk of boomerangs and didges; then the store owner challenges my knowledge of boomerangs. Surely a "Yank" can't know more than the average Aussie about boomerangs. To prove my worth, I cut a flicker boomerang from a business card and flick it off the back of my hand, catching it on return. This starts a scene outside the store were everyone wants a chance at playing with the flicker rang. Barb and I do a little shopping there and bought tablecloths from fabric with aboriginal artwork and a boomerang. We wandered around the area a bit more, stopping in several aboriginal art galleries. We were rather amazed at the number of stores in the area that not only sold aboriginal art, but also loads of boomerangs (not sure how many actually worked) and didgeridoos. It seemed like there was a major boom/didge shop every block.
We headed back to the hotel to eat supper; then it was back to the harbor to see the fireworks at 9pm. We walk into the harbor area and find a sea of people. We continue to try and get a better vantage point and at a certain point all forward progress stops. It is here were we make or stand and wait for the show to start. The people around us were very nice but as soon as the fireworks start, Barb discovers that a very tall person is directly in front of her view. To top that off, everyone is holding their digital cameras over their heads, trying to get fireworks photos. We do manage to see most of the show and it was exciting to see the fireworks burst over the opera house. As soon as the show is over, a lot of the people head home, only to be replaced by the crowd coming in for the 12 show. We walk back to the hotel and proceed to snack and have sparkling wine, as we watch the midnight fireworks on TV. It was interesting, as we were just a few blocks form the harbor. We opened the doors to the patio and could hear the fireworks from our room, although this was a few seconds after seeing them on TV.
Phot: Flicker rangs outside the Spirit of Downunder Shop
Added on September 06, 2006 by bvdrangs
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