Manly (the place, not posturing!)

After ascertaining that the weather was going to be kind (why wouldn’t it be?) we walked via the Post Office, where we took out a second mortgage on stamps for postcards, to the library to use the internet. Downloading on free access is perfectly acceptable, but it seems that uploading is severely limited, because trying to put photos on the blog is incredibly frustrating, especially if you make a mistake and have to repeat an action. I had lots more prepared for posting but only managed to add 2 posts before it became too frustrating to stay indoors rather than sightseeing.

We eventually reached Circular Quays and caught the ferry to Manly, about a 35 minute ride, past the Bridge and the Opera House of course. We had contemplated returning to see if there were any tickets, at our price, available for an opera, but once we had got to Manly there was no more thought of it as we took a dip in the sea and had a long walk past some of Manly’s heritage sights.

Sydney is very fortunate to have so many places where beach activities are possible, and none of them seem particularly crowded, though we are midweek. Everywhere has a sandy beach and the only restraint on the type of bathing is whether there is a surf effect. Where we went in it was pretty light but even then it is difficult to take a prolonged swim because of the breakers, and the power in them followed by the undertow makes one realise how strong real surf is. I admit to being briefly tempted by the thought of wanting a small board just to try out surfing, but only briefly.

Beer and chips followed before the ferry ride back, and the first use of the train system rather than waiting an hour for the next ferry. Getting full value of our TravelPass is essential and we haven’t been to Bondi yet, which has to done by train and bus.