Day 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13


in

Gotta be at the hotel lobby by 7:30am.

Our concierge, Hidetaka, had reserved a day tour for us yesterday.
Arigato, Tanaka-san.

 

So we thought we'd grab a quick brekky across the street at Cafe Cozy.

Except we were too early.

We had to wait a few minutes, while they prep'd the cafe, before they took our order... then we found out the chef was running late.
No worries, as I'm sippin' away my Macchiato.

One shot of it, that is.

Ok. Now I'm worried.

The chef finally showed up, but we had to have our brekky take away.

Stasha and I ate at the lobby while we waited to get picked up for the Dolphin Tour.

Stasha had the Oatmeal (above left).
Too much for her to finish though.

I had the Avacado on Toast w/ Lime Mayonaise (center).
Together with the Macchiato = A$8. Not bad.
Never liked lime, but I love avacados, and this was pretty good.

* * * * *

Plenty of time to finish our brekky as the driver never showed up.
Apparently, he went to the wrong hotel. :(

TAXI!

And whoa, was the taxi clean!
A$13 for a 10-15 minute ride.

We were dropped off at the Star City Casino. Downstairs at the Star City Coach Terminal was where we checked in for the Dolphin Tour. A$147 per person.

Bus was a little late, but we (small group of 12 or so) finally got moving at 8:50am.

We passed through a toll booth to cross the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Couldn't get any good shots of the bridge this time... but no worries... I took 872 pictures on the trip... there's bound to be a picture on this website!

We drove north on HW #1, which goes up to Queensland, but we didn't go that far.

We head through North City, and through Chatswood, two of many business districts around Sydney.

This gas station looks familar.

Our guide tells us

Soon we get to Brooklynn -- a township and last suburb outside of Sydney. Some commuters travel by boat.



10:10am - we take a quick stop at Reptile Park.

First to greet us was a boa constrictor.

Then a baby alligator made it's appearance.

American alligator (as there are no alligators in Oz; only crocodiles).
More 'gators lurked in the water.

Max with a one-year-old koala.
Inside the spider house, a researcher demonstrates how they milk a funnel-web spider to secrete its venom. (I dunno, but the spider seemed a bit irritated.)

The venom is then used to produce anti-venom for human spider bites.

Few other spiders were on display.

Back outside, kangaroos... everywhere!

Quite friendly too.

Or maybe just really hungry.

Finally, we got to meet one of the stars of the Reptile Park ---
50-year-old Eric the crocodile.

Glad they put that sign up.

11:20am - Back onto HW #1.

12:15am - HW #1 ends and we head east towards the coast...

...raced with a coal train...
...drove over Hunter River....

(kangroo & koala
crossing signs
along the way)

1:00pm - Arrive at Port Stephens, Nelson Bay.

Immediately, we notice two important facilities,

but we wait 'til later.

 

Gotta get on board the boat!

As we enter, lunch was served. Small buffet - choice of fish or steak with fries - and salads; fruits and cookies in the far corner.

And away we go.

Max ordered a Toohley at the bar, then we headed outside.

Sippy sip says tastes like other beers... not my flavor.
Yet pretty soon, I was starting to see dophins.

Really.

Do you see them?

Caught them on a vew video... Check this out:

and watch them spout:

(Can't watch the videos? Try downloading QuickTime .)

Towards the end of the journey, a net was extended out the rear of the boat.

Max got in on the fun.

3:00pm - back on shore.

Had some time to walk along the port and grab a few snacks for the long road back.

3:40pm, we boarded the bus and headed back to Grace.

After freshening up at the Grace, we headed out in search of The Wharf. We found this restaurant in a book that Max picked up.

Didn't take us long to walk to Walsh Bay.

Looking up and to the right, we saw the beautiful Sydney Harbour Bridge.

And across the bay, we could see Luna Park.

Along the streets, Max found her ride.
And I found mine. :)
   
Didn't need the ride, though -
since we were there.
Walking through the corridor, we could still see Luna Park and the Sydney Harbour Bridge through the windows.

At the end of the corridor was the restaurant.

There so happened to be a performance as quite a few people lined up to head upstairs into a theatre.

We were also a bit early. The host and waitress needed a few more minutes to set up our table, so we waited out on the deck and enjoyed the lovely view of the city.

(Sorry... hands are a little shaky!)
For dinner, I ordered the Seared Barramundi with Pearl Onions & Oyster Chervil Sauce. A$33.50.

Delicious. So good I forgot to have my Koppamurra Riesling with it (Eden Valley SA 2004 - A$9.50 per glass).
Max ordered a side of the French green beans with her meal. They're huge!

For dessert, we all shared the peach sorbet and the pavlova. Sorbet was pretty good. Refreshing. Pavlova was different... very soft.

After dinner, we caught a glimpse of the Opera House....

... as we headed back into downtown.

 

 

Six hours on a bus today... I don't need to flatten my bottom any more than it is already.
Back at the hotel, we had our concierge postpone tomorrow's Blue Mountain trip 'til the next day.

Day three across the beaches....

 

Day: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13