Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 19.4. Sydney Opera House
Sydney is Australia's largest city, with a population of over 4.5 million. The city and
its suburbs fan out into a sprawl covering more than 4,800 square miles. Strung between
the Blue Mountains in the west and the Atlantic in the east, Sydney may be approaching
the limits of its geographic expansion. And as might be expected, traffic is dense and often
snarled. It is a city of neighborhoods and suburbs, but no matter how far inland the city ex-
tends, at heart Sydney is a waterside city. Cars and buses carry leisure-time crowds to wa-
terside restaurants and shopping malls, and swimmers and surfboarders to the beach. Bondi
Beach (pronounced bon die, in honor of a yachtsman) is almost always crowded with sun-
bathers and surfers.
For the shipboard traveler, Sydney is defined by two landmarks: Bridge and opera
house. Sydney Harbor Bridge connects Rocks and Milson's Point and resembles a quarter-
circle lying on its side. Its arch rises to nearly 450 feet. All steel and trusses, the bridge pro-
claims the technology of its period (it was completed in 1932) and is affectionately called
the “Coat Hangar.” The opera house is Sydney's architectural masterpiece. Like the Statue
of Liberty in New York Harbor and Christ the Redeemer of Rio Harbor, the opera house
is Sydney's icon. In profile, it looks like a series of gaping, elongated half-shells. Another
description sees it as white sails, lofting and billowing, ready to lift the building beneath
off its base and send it floating across the harbor. However described, it is audacious in
design and construction. The huge roof shells are sheathed with ceramic tiles and rise to
almost 225 feet. Beneath the shells is an enterprise of theaters and concert halls along with
restaurants and a recording studio.
Search WWH ::




Custom Search