The Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb

I realize I am a day or three late, but here are the pictures.  I saw a lot of great sunsets in Australia, this one was one of the better ones.

On the way to the top.

 On the way to the top, acting silly.

Overlooking the Opera House.

At the top of the bridge.

And the photo to prove it.

And me realizing we are 434 feet above the water's surface.

Sunset.

The whole group.

More pictures of the sunset.

Coming back down, overlooking the city as night falls.

Wee!

 No idea what either of us are doing here.

Or here.

It was the perfect ending to a great day.

Day 21.75 - Stop Me Before I Blog Again

As Rene and I met on Sunday, here are a few random thoughts as I went to bed June 1, that started at 6:00 a.m. in Perth, West Australia and ended in Maui some 36 hours later...

After about 1,000 kilometers of driving, some part of it actually on course, I got the hang of driving on the "other" side of the road on the "other" side of the car, and having the turn signals and wind screen wipers reversed.  My anecdotal evidence?  I rent the Jeep and return to the terminal to pick up Rene.  A little jet lagged, a little on auto pilot.  And the first street I turn on?  I got on the left side of the road.  Really.  Then, to signal my turn back to the correct lane, I promptly turn on the wind shield wipers. 

A tourist.  In his own country.

A funny thing happened on the way to re-patriating myself Saturday night as I was watching TV in my room in Perth Saturday night.  I wanted to check a sport other than Footy or the soccer team going to the World Cup, so I caught up on the NHL Western Conference Finals and the NBA Eastern Conference Finals with a timely and well done report from...

Al Jazeera TV.

We'll know if the NSA is reviewing everything if they review this blog and I get stopped by the TSA every time instead of about every other time I go through security.

I miss being in Australia already and am already planning when I return and where I'll go.

Random pictures with random comments.  I promise to post the pictures from the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb by June 13.  And then will take my seat and shut up.

I wish I had taken this picture of the aurora australis.  Tasmania is one of the places I plan to see when I go back.  This is taken from the Astronomy Picture of the Day website, May 31, 2014, my last full day in Australia.  So, for some reason, I think it is appropriate to include this picture.  You figure out why.  Anyway, you can see the Large Magellanic Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud (lower in the sky, nearer to the red aurora) to the right of the satellite station and get an idea of how bright the bulge of the Milky Way appeared out in Apollo Bay, Yulura, and Yallingup.

Sunrise over the winery at Cape Lodge, Yallingup, Western Australia.

Warming my feet in the Indian Ocean at Moses Rock, Yallingup, WA.

Sign on Hay Street in Perth, WA.  Maybe I wasn't all that far from home.

At the Blue Mountains.

The fearless leader/follower at the base of Uluru.

A drying waterfall at Uluru.

Tastes like...koala poo smells.

One ticked off cocoworry.

Always asking for spare change at the airports.  In Melbourne, it is for guide dogs.  Close enough to service dogs.  They got all of our change.

Not my favorite bar in Melbourne, guess which one that one was, but my second favorite sign next to Hells Upstairs.

Cheers!

Day 21 - You Don't Have to Go Home...

But you can't stay here.  Last day.  I can tell because all of the vouchers in our travel  book are gone.

My day to time travel.  Left my hotel in West Perth, made the easy drive to the airport to drop off the rental car.  The only thing, at least that I think anyway, that tips anyone off that I am a tourist from the US is I keep trying to get in the passenger side of the car to drive.

On the way to Maui.  I know Rene is excited.  I can tell.  She got to the airport Saturday morning for a flight that leaves Sunday.  You can't say I overlook my wife's mood.  Going halfway around the world and then going partway back will make you wonder what day it is.

Now, it's my turn.  Left Perth at 10:10 a.m. June 1, will fly 14 hours and be at our destination in Maui at 11:45 a.m. June 1.

The last few pictures of our great Australian adventure.  Not the best ones.  Just ones on the last day.  I will try to put together some pictures, different pictures, of each day.   

Looking over the Southern Ocean, headed from Perth to Sydney, at Spencer Gulf, just west of Adelaide. 

Little cloudy in Adelaide today.

Looking back to Sydney's CBD one last time.  The sun broke one last time, but I couldn't get the picture.

Thanks for reading.  We had a great time.  Looking forward to seeing Maui, but I can't wait to come back to Australia.  We'll post the Harbour Bridge Walk and other pictures later.     

I will miss this country a lot.

Cheers for the last time from Australia!