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Thursday, January 22, 2004
Neri: Sydney Scenes
By Nelia G. Neri
Clear blue skies and a gentle summer wind greeted us when our PAL flight touched down in Sydney on the final leg of the Worldwide Travel/PAL Familiarization Tour. Giving us a warm welcome was a representative of SD Tours who was tasked by general manager John Emsermann to be our guide throughout our stay.
Our home in Sydney was the Goldsbrough Apartments on Darling Harbour, a charming old building with spacious, fully furnished residences. We were all billeted on the same floor, so there was so much flitting about from one apartment to the other...be it to share food, borrow things, or compare buys.
Especially great fun was the night in Zenaida Chua’s apartment when she and Baby Dy whipped up a marvelous dinner of pork asado and fresh seafood with stir-fried asparagus on the side. Oh yes, the expert cooks took the trouble of going to Market City with PAL’s Chris Lebumfacil and Travel Saver’s Dandy Ching as “cargadors!”
*****
To welcome our famtour group to Sydney, the deluxe Swissôtel Sydney hosted a sumptuous buffet lunch that had the craved-for Australian delights on the menu ...fresh oysters, crabs, prawns, salmon, scallops, shrimps, steak, ham, and all kinds of calorific desserts. Our hosts were front office manager Kevin Yung and Sandra Holtom, reservations and communications manager.
Formerly called the Merchant Court Hotel, Swissôtel Sydney is managed by Raffles International. The 359-room hotel is located in the midst of shops and entertainment venues in the city centre, and to top it all, its rooms have a panoramic view of the city and Darling Harbour.
*****
We spent an entire afternoon at the Sydney Aquarium, Australia’s No. 1 attraction. With over 11,00 aquatic animals, it is definitely one of the world’s most spectacular aquariums. Not only that, the Sydney Aquarium in Darling Harbour showcases the largest Great Barrier Reef exhibit in the world and has one of the first known natural Seal Sanctuaries. Most impressive was the Open Ocean Floating Oceanarium where we walked in underwater glass tunnels, surrounded by the world’s greatest collection of sharks in captivity.
*****
Sydney has been described as sparkling, spectacular and spellbinding....and I wholeheartedly agree. It was my third visit, nevertheless the sight of the beautiful city and its fabulous harbour overwhelmed me once more. And the Jacaranda trees bursting with lilac blooms were astounding!
The next day’s tour brought us to The Rocks on the harbour’s edge where Sydney’s history began. The stately old buildings in the area were constructed from sandstone rock carved by convicts from England a long time ago. Today The Rocks is a favorite haunt of Sydneysiders and vistors alike with its more than 70 restaurants and cafes, chic boutiques and art galleries.
It was drizzling when we reached Mrs. Macquarie’s Chair, the site that offers a magnificent view of the Sydney Harbour, its famous bridge, and the incomparable Sydney Opera House. The place is so called because it is said that in the days of yore, devoted wife Mrs. Macquarie used to sit in this area looking out for the ship of her husband.
We continued our drive around city and saw the Royal Botanic Gardens, St. Mary’s Cathedral where I had heard mass on a previous visit, Parliament House, Hyde Park, Paddington, Chinatown, and all the other landmarks. On our way to Bondi Beach (Australia’s most famous surf beach) we passed million dollar homes (one of them belonging to actress Nicole Kidman) in exclusive Double Bay and Vaucluse. We went back to Circular Quay for a Sydney Harbour cruise, and caught sight of Russel Crowe’s harbourside home.
Most of the afternoon was spent going to different hotels...Southern Cross Suites, Royal Garden Hotel, Avillon Hotel, Carlton Crest Hotel and Shangri-La Sydney. And then it was shopping time.
Of course we had to stop at the classy Queen Victoria Building to check out its upscale boutiques.
Not to be missed is a visit to the Sydney Tower Restaurant which not only presents a breathaking 360 degree view of Sydney and its famed harbour, but also offers the best buffet spread imaginable. We were luncheon guests of Tourism New South Wales with Barbara de Rome of Tourism Sydney acting as host.
A very enriching experience came after lunch when we went to the Skytour Sydney section and experienced a journey around Australia through multimedia and motion stimulators.
We also enjoyed a restful cruise along the Parramata River on our way to the Koala Park Sanctuary. At the park we got a chance to see more of Australian wildlife.
Our fondest memories of Sydney were the nights spent strolling along Darling Harbour. There is something about the place that spells M-A-G-I-C. Lined with pubs, cafes, restaurants and boutiques, Darling Harbour bubbles with a life all its own. Curious about its name, we were told that Darling was the surname of one of the early governors who developed the place. That put an end to our romantic speculations, but even then we couldn’t seem to get enough of the place.
When we are not walking around the harbour, dreamily looking at the glistening waters surrounded by buildings all lit up with a warm glow, we were at our bedroom window, savoring all that beauty from our 11th floor perch. How privileged we felt to have such a fantastic scenery before us!
Our week-long stay in Australia was one glorious interlude packed with experiences we will long remember, thanks to Worldwide Travel and Tours and Philippine Airlines.
PAL flies to Melbourne from Manila 3x a week (Tues., Fri. and Sat.), with a continuing flight to Sydney. One may call PAL-Cebu for convenient connecting flights from Cebu.
(January 22, 2004 issue)
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