It was great to arrive in Sydney and be met at the airport by Katharine Kelley. It took us a little longer than expected to clear Immigration as our Aussie Visas didn't show our middle names! Note to STA. It was interesting to see how the Immigraton Officers' attitude differs so much from that of their American counterparts. We are finding Australians so friendly and welcoming.
We had booked the Sebel Hotel at Pier One on Jim Kirk's (my host in Brisbane)advice and what a great recommendation it was... located literally under the Bridge! The views of both the Bridge and Opera House were breathtaking.
We climbed this amazing feat of engineering within a couple of hours of our arrival. It takes three hours to do the climb, 1.5 of which is spent being suited up and going over the safety aspects of the walk. The views as we made our way up and over the arch were even more spectacular. We had both been excited at the prospect of of the climb and the experience exceeded all our expectations... a truly memorable one.