Manly...

     Another day of rain...this is our last day in Sydney so we decided to take the ferry to Manly anyway, there is so much to do here and we just don't have any time. The Cruise will take us up the east coast of OZ for 11 days...many stops and lots to see...you just can't see it all.
     Manly was a funky So. Cal type of beach town. Great beach, small cafes and unusual businesses. The ferry was relatively inexpensive ($13 RT) and took about 30 minutes. We had originally planned to go over late in the afternoon, have dinner and then return after dark so we could see the city lights coming in from Manly...but the weather killed that idea.
     After visiting 5terre and Positano in Italy it's amazing to see the differences of those areas compared to this...you most certainly would start with the architecture, the Italians have a real unusual and appealing style, because of the materials used the buildings stand for centuries and show that charm. In OZ everything is new...remember this place wasn't even settled by europeans until the late 18th century. OZ is much like the USA and has a home feel to us. English (sort of) is spoken and I feel like I've got much better control over situations...examples - train and ferry travel very simple, can't say the same for Italy.

hanging out we even had music

effective, cheap advertising!

very cool scene

the day was so dreary this photo looka black and white because there is no color

rain shrouded central business district

this view across darling harbor

we love the sea

just a touch to cold for this...

i've become a big fan of round buildings...very cool

variation in color is outstanding in this photo

this shirt is gone replaced by a el duderino T shirt

love this

coming into manly wharf

down to the left there were maybe 50 surfers

beautiful water color and beach...look at those clouds

this scene you'd find in any california beach town

retro so cal feel

     We are having a hard time shedding the bon giorno, grazie and dove il Banjo but in another 2 weeks I'm sure we'll be more of G'day mate, thanks and where's the head. We also happily tossed some of our wardrobe so if you look careful you'll see us in new clothing...we are very excited about this. This morning we pack up, get a little something to eat and walk over to Circular Quay to find our ship...we can checkin as early as 11:30 even though we don't leave port until 6:30pm...we are off...bon voyage!