The reason for our trip to Sydney was
twofold. We had been invited to a wedding on the 30th of December,
and had tickets to Garden Island (Naval Base) for New Years Eve.
Good friends (Lauren & Ash) had to
bring their wedding forward due to a forthcoming extended trip to England. They
booked Pier One at the Sebel in Sydney.
The day was beautifully fine and warm, and Peter & Phyl came to
Sydney to babysit MacK for us. The venue is fantastic – sitting on the harbour
just under the Harbour Bridge. When we walked in we were surprised to see one
of the guys who I graduated RMC with. Really good to catch up!
The Bride & Groom looked fabulous, and
they are obviously, and completely made for each other. They were married at
the edge of the pier, and plenty of watercraft went past. A tall ship sailed
past, and the crew stood on the rail and applauded the wedding. This stately
procession was in stark contrast to the bogans who motored past, shirtless in
the blistering sun and shouted (beers in hand) ‘DON’T DO IT!’
The food and wine were lovely, and the view
hard to surpass. We were sat under the Harbour Bridge, with the floor to
ceiling windows open out on to the Harbour. It was a fantastic evening, and we wish Lauren
and Ash all the very best as they embark on their lives together.
At about three o’clock on New Years Eve we loaded up Leigh’s
trolley with a couple of eskies and started to make our way towards Kings
Cross. We walked down the hill from the Cross to Potts Point, and from there
through the marshaling area into the Naval Base. They had the area extremely
well set up, with plumbed in temporary toilet facilities every 100 metres or
so, and plenty of skip bins for rubbish. We would love to have had a food stall
at the site, and think we might have made a couple of dollars! This time round
we were there as spectators only.
We found a spot out of the wind with
excellent views of the bridge and Opera House, and were soon joined by the rest
of our party – we numbered close to fifty by the time all had arrived! The
entertainment for the afternoon was mostly aerial. There were a couple of
aircraft performing over the harbour. They were really impressive –
particularly with the way they were able to hold their formations together in
the fairly strong winds. There was also a solo flyer performing a wide range of
brilliant aerobatic stunts. The fireworks display for the evening was just…
spectacular.
It is hard to capture aircraft, but these guys deserve a picture. They were fabulous.
Our view. Not bad at all!
Jane and MacK ready for the afternoon's festivities
The beautiful Sydney skyline as the sun fades for the evening.
Photographs will never do the fireworks justice, but we had to put in a couple.
MacK, our wee party animal!
The walk out though Garden Island wasn’t
too bad. We were all impressed by the scale of the ships berthed, and
particularly the size of the dry dock. I don’t think any of us fancied having
to work 45 metres below sea level with only a couple of metres to the sea!
MacK surprised and delighted us by sleeping
until after ten on New Years Day. Such a good wee lad!
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