Sydney, Australia

When a family member names their daughter after a city, one has high expectations of the place. We were not disappointed by Sydney. Staying at the B&B Sydney Harbour, in the Rocks, near Circular Quay, we got provisions at a local bakery and walked for miles around the harbour. We admired the bridge, the opera house and the skyline from every angle. We strolled the Botanical Gardens, awed by the grand fig trees and sat a long while observing the flying fox colony. These supposedly nocturnal creatures make quite a racket all day long, fussing over who gets to hang upside down on which branch. Some take flight unexpectedly to change trees.

Thank you Mary H. for introducing us to wonderful Jen and her delightful children. We spent a fun- filled day with them at the Taronga Zoo. The highlight was the free- flight bird show, hands down. We skipped Manly and Bondi Beach in favor of a smaller north shore beach near Mosman with amazing rock formations. All five girls and their parents spent hours in the tide pools finding snails, sea stars, crabs and other treasures. Then our generous new friends gave us the best gift. Maya and Skylar stayed at their house to have dinner and watch a movie while Jeff and Michelle had a date (as in alone, without the children). We enjoyed our night out at a local pub trying to discern the rules of rugby and cricket. We were struck by how slow moving and convoluted is cricket, the polar opposite of rugby and laughed at Bill Bryson's description of the sports. "It has always seemed to me that cricket is much too restrained for the rough and tumble Australian temperament....I am quite certain that if the development of cricket was left in Australian hands, within a generation the players would be using the bats to hit each other."

We ended the day, riding a ferry across Sydney Harbour under a full moon. It was a perfect day and made us understand how one could be moved to name their child after this enchanting place.

For photos of Taronga Zoo click here.

For photos of Sydney click here.