Australia Adventure: Adored
We loved everywhere we went in Australia. The people are remarkable: polite, gracious, willing to help, cheerful. Even the TSA-equivalent personnel said, “Good morning, welcome to Sydney Airport,” as we moved toward the security check.
Sydney, the largest and probably most well-known of Australia’s cities, is also the capital of the state of New South Wales. Like the rest of the places we visited, we loved it! Stunning–from the iconic Harbour and Opera House to Bondi and other beaches. The CBD, in addition to skyscrapers, has a number of well-done conversions of old buildings into elegant and functional spaces. And the shopping…we tried to save that for Sydney as our last stop for packing and schlepping reasons. And, yes, we bought stuffed kangaroos for Mirah and Rivah.
We also met my cousin, Anthony Igra, of the umbrella branch, and had a lot of fun with him–from brunch to a walking tour of CBD to a drive along the eastern suburban areas with lush residential areas and nearby commercial villages. Note: umbrella caper coming soon.
Back to Beijing
After a flight to Hong Kong and an overnight in an airport hotel, we flew back to Beijing the morning of my 75th birthday. These two were the highlights of our family celebration that night.
Scenes From Sydney
My cousin Anthony Igra
Jewish Museum, mainly a Holocaust museum, but with an interesting exhibit on Australian Jewish military history
Approaching the harbour from a ferry stop near the eastern beaches
Queen Victoria Building, a gorgeous shopping and restaurant destination.
Sydney War Memorial
Outside the Great Synagogue, only open on Shabbat and holidays, across Hyde Park (yes, there’s one in Sydney, too) from a huge cathedral.
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