The sun is coming up brightly over the bay looking out to the main runway of Sydney Intl Airport.
It is exactly 6:52 at the moment and the sun came up about ten minutes ago. This is a sharp contrast from Maine and NYC where the sun-up times were a wee bit earlier.
We got into Sydney yesterday at just about exactly the scheduled time of 6:20 a.m., after a very long 15 hour flight. Ross did not sleep like a baby on the flight. By that I mean, he didn't cry and wet himself every three hours; in fact, normal for Ross, he probably slept 10 hours of the 15 hours flight time. He had on his new green Eddie Bauer rain jacket with the hood up and looked like a peacefully sleeping Eskimo for the most of the time I saw him. He was across the isle from me.
It took us about an hour to get through Customs and Immigration, with lots of poor service, broken machines, poor signage and confusion over the poor directions.
Then a fairly easy transfer to a cab and to the Novatel Brighton Beach Hotel.
Then we got lucky and we were able to get straight into our room after check-in at about 9 a.m.
We got a phone call from our friend Frank, who was going to pick us up and take us to lunch.
We hustled through the shower and got into fresh clean clothes. Frank was waiting down in the lobby.
Frank took us to Manley for brunch at about 10 a.m.
We had a delightful breakfast or brunch. We got all caught up with Frank and his travels and family situation as well as his health issues, which Ross and I could both identify with. Frank is older than Ross and I but has a new little girl about 22 months old or so. Frank looks great, so Holly, the new daughter obviously is keeping him young.
We did a walk around Manley after brunch and checked out the beach. There were lots of surfers and a few swimmers, as well as many runners along the beachfront. Manley Beach is one of the most famous beaches in the world, but not as good as Burleigh Beach, of course.
Frank and I checked out the Specialized Bikes at Manley Cycles while Ross shopped in a Lifeline Shop (sort of Salvation Army Used Clothes). Frank and I particularly liked then $10,500 mountain bike but didn't purchase it at this time.
After the tour of Manley, Frank drove Ross into town and dropped him off at the museum. Then he drove me back to the hotel, where I went out and got some groceries and laundry detergent and dollar coins. Then I did my laundry and finished yesterday's blog.
After these domestic duties, I got a call from Dave Collins and arranged a game of golf for Friday. Then I took a sleeping tablet and went to bed around 5 p.m. Also got a short "welcome Home" phone call from Barry Scott. Then I was taken by the land of nod and didn't wake up til midnight. Ross hadn't woken me when he came in after his evening in Sydney town.
I read for a bit and then was able to get back to sleep and woke again briefly a couple of times and then couldn't get back to sleep at just past 4 a.m.
I quietly got through the shower and shave, got into clean clothes and went down to the business center, where I unsuccessfully tried many times to on-line check-in with Virgin Australia. We will need to physically check-in at the airport.
After checking emails and Facebook, I headed upstairs to Level 3 to the restaurant for breakfast.
Buffet breakfast and coffee. Finished this here blog that you are reading. Now it is exactly 7:18 a.m. and I am about to head back to the room to see if Ross can be levered out of bed.
We need to grab a taxi to the airport by about 8:30 a.m. Check-in by 10 a.m. for our flight VA517 that leaves Sydney airport at 11:10 a.m.
Our good friend Graham Hopkins is picking us up at Coolangatta Airport at 12:30 p.m. Good on ya Graysie!
New photo of me in the fabulous and huge Golden Gate Park in Northeast San Francisco, near , what else, The Golden Gate Bridge. I am near a grove of very large Eucalypti Trees. Very huge and impressive.
That's my last Blog for this trip! Hope you enjoyed it. Ross and I certainly had fun on the trip and there are a lot of highlights but all recorded in these, what is it?, 45 blog posts?
Lance and Ross blogs over and out.
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