Arriving in Sydney

Once again we flew with Singapore Airlines, this time on the new Airbus 380, a huge double-decker. And once again, we were pleasantly surprised by the space in cattle class, the food was good, and overall it was an enjoyable flight, although the landing is a bit noisy in the A380. We both feel that cattle class with Singapore Airlines is better than the Premium Economy with Virgin for which we paid extra.

Sydney appears very laid back. There is a harmonious mixture of old and new buildings, and the pace of life is much slower than in London. Even in the rush hour the traffic moves smoothly. The shoreline makes all the difference to the character of the city. The people are very friendly and helpful, although the direct bluntness of most Australians takes some getting used to. One thing that has surprised us is the very high proportion of people we meet for whom English is quite obviously not their first language.

We have bought a new camera, and we’ll have to look after this one because we can’t afford a third. We did very little the first day since we were both tired after the flight. And Peter has caught a cold on one of the flights, and has lost his voice. Before we left, Peter was most scathing about the idea of taking Lemsips and Strepsils with us (“Waste of space, never get a cold in the tropics.”), and he is now washing his medicine down with a large helping of humble pie. But my cold cannot last for long in a hot country like Australia, can it?

In the evening we met up with a friend from Farnham, Frances Denny, along with her boyfriend Simon, and her mother Zena. We had a private water taxi to take us across the harbour, and we had a fine meal in a restaurant directly under the Harbour Bridge, facing the Opera House. Most romantic. And the tuna was delicious.

So far so good. Off to the Blue Mountains tomorrow.