Sydney icons

We had been in Sydney nearly two days before we saw them. But it was worth the wait. 

Another scorcher, so another day of air conditioning. First, a taxi to the Museum of Contemporary Art for a good lunch and some viewing - the usual (for me) combination of appealing or affecting, and baffling or ridiculous. But we managed to avoid Jemima touching anything (we were discreetly stalked by security in each room, just in case); she enjoyed the colours, shapes and video installations; and a couple of pieces were really good: a giant mantelpiece clock set to tick an 18 hour day which made me feel genuinely stressed; a collection of driftwood pinned to a grey wall where each piece looked like an animal; and our favourite, a giant shimmering sequin sunset that reflected like water on the floor. So a definite success.

Then our harbour boat trip, a present from our travel agents - also air-conditioned. Kevin nabbed us prime seats at the front of the top indoor deck, and from there we whiled away a lovely afternoon cruising Sydney harbour surrounded by sailing boats of all shapes and sizes.

And I saw what all the fuss was about. The harbour was beautiful, much bigger and more varied than I'd expected with little beaches, rocky cliffs, posh suburbs, wharves, and gardens all bordering the water. And, of course, there was the famous Bridge, also bigger than I expected, and a great feat of engineering. And finally, there it was, the Opera House: smaller in this case, but more striking, and actually really exciting to see in the flesh (or rather glass, brick and tile). And that was the point of Sydney: not the fun urban jungle we've seen up to now, but the water and what's around it. It is the Harbour City after all.

And that's it for Sydney for now; but we get to explore some more after our motorhome trip (when hopefully they're not having an unprecedented heatwave - it was 41 degrees this afternoon). Off to the interior tomorrow for an encounter with Ayers Rock.