A Day at Manly

Today was our first Saturday here.  We got up and had McDonald's breakfast which was a huge hit!  Then got some Starbuck's which was a hit for me!  And headed to circular quay, the main Sydney harbour, where we caught a ferry over to Manly, a northern suburb of Sydney.  It was a beautiful 30 minute ferry ride, going by the opera house and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

  Manly was a wonderful little town.  It is a laid back beach town, home of  Manly Beach, one of the most famous beaches in Sydney.  Today there was a jazz festival there along the beach and it was very crowded.  The kids quickly changed into their swimsuits and went out to try the water.  It was very cold, but somehow they managed to swim a bit.  Brady mostly built a large sand fort while Luke and Elise played in the water and sand for over an hour.  It was a sunny warm beautiful day.

 After the beach, we went a couple blocks inland and found a little place to have lunch.  Then we took the advice of one of the visitor center guides and followed a path around the peninsula called the "Manly Scenic Walkway" which went through Manly Beach, Sydney Harbour National Park, and North Head.  It was about a 2 hour hike!  Those of us who had worn flip flops got a little more than we had bargained for but we had some great views and took lots of pictures. 

We rode the ferry home right at sunset, and of course got some more pictures of the opera house and bridge at dusk.  I'd say this day was quite a hit and probably our best day here so far.