Bridging The Weekday Gap
Posted by at 8:45 PM
So the blog is turning into more of a recap of our weekends, which isn't what I had intended - but that is when all the interesting adventures are taking place.
That being said, last Saturday we headed out to Darling Harbor to watch the Dragon Boat races as part of Sydney's Chinese New Year Festivities. It was fun to watch the dragon boats...but after one race, we kind of felt like we saw the whole event.
Afterwards, we decided to walk around the harbor and accidentally discovered the Pyrmont Bridge - the world's oldest electric swingspan bridge. I say accidentally, because we were taking pictures of the races on the bridge when we heard an announcement saying the bridge was closing. We wondered how the bridge could close as there were no gates and no one seemed to be moving off the bridge. As we looked around, we noticed a small section of the bridge (maybe a 1/4th of the overall length) start to close its gates (which were well hidden) and I dragged Jess closer to get a better view. The bridge section swiveled around its center and opened about 90degrees. I really can't explain the bridge in words, so hopefully this video makes more sense.
On Sunday, we went into Central Sydney to climb the Harbor Bridge. One of Jess' work colleagues was in town for meetings, and we decided to share this adventure with him. After a nice lunch at the Glenmore Hotel, we made our way to the base of the bridge for the climb. The climb basically takes a path along the outside arch the bridge and down the opposite arch. For safety reasons we were fitted with a special suit and harness and we couldn't take camera's (or most personal belongings) on the climb, which was disappointing but understandable (no one wants to drop a camera on the traffic below). After a small safety demonstration, we were on our way climbing to the top. Most of the climb is very minimal, with the worst section being 5 separate ladders to get the base of the arch. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the bridge (hence being a guide) and provided some interesting insight. For example 80% of the bridge is made out of British Steel, and the Australian government continued to pay on the bridge until the 1980s when the British decided that waive the remaining balance. The climb provided some of the most amazing views of Sydney I have seen, and I highly recommend this diversion for anyone planning to come visit.
That being said, last Saturday we headed out to Darling Harbor to watch the Dragon Boat races as part of Sydney's Chinese New Year Festivities. It was fun to watch the dragon boats...but after one race, we kind of felt like we saw the whole event.
Afterwards, we decided to walk around the harbor and accidentally discovered the Pyrmont Bridge - the world's oldest electric swingspan bridge. I say accidentally, because we were taking pictures of the races on the bridge when we heard an announcement saying the bridge was closing. We wondered how the bridge could close as there were no gates and no one seemed to be moving off the bridge. As we looked around, we noticed a small section of the bridge (maybe a 1/4th of the overall length) start to close its gates (which were well hidden) and I dragged Jess closer to get a better view. The bridge section swiveled around its center and opened about 90degrees. I really can't explain the bridge in words, so hopefully this video makes more sense.
On Sunday, we went into Central Sydney to climb the Harbor Bridge. One of Jess' work colleagues was in town for meetings, and we decided to share this adventure with him. After a nice lunch at the Glenmore Hotel, we made our way to the base of the bridge for the climb. The climb basically takes a path along the outside arch the bridge and down the opposite arch. For safety reasons we were fitted with a special suit and harness and we couldn't take camera's (or most personal belongings) on the climb, which was disappointing but understandable (no one wants to drop a camera on the traffic below). After a small safety demonstration, we were on our way climbing to the top. Most of the climb is very minimal, with the worst section being 5 separate ladders to get the base of the arch. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the bridge (hence being a guide) and provided some interesting insight. For example 80% of the bridge is made out of British Steel, and the Australian government continued to pay on the bridge until the 1980s when the British decided that waive the remaining balance. The climb provided some of the most amazing views of Sydney I have seen, and I highly recommend this diversion for anyone planning to come visit.
Labels: belated posts, darling harbor, harbor bridge, water
