What I've learned in Sydney in six hours

Yes, the city is beautiful, warm, and sunny. And the people are friendly. But friendly doesn't mean reliable.

Lesson No. 1: I need to trust my own reading of a map more than the tourist info people at the airport.

Lesson No. 2: I have to realize that I have been to a lot of places. A "huge" attraction in one country may seem almost insignificant in another - and vice versa.

I don't mean to knock Sydney, but my trip from the airport to my hotel was a bumpy, slow 75 minutes in a crowded minibus because the info desk at the airport told me finding my hotel from where the 15-minute train stopped would be difficult. Right. The train station is one block from my hotel.

My other transportation snafu was when I asked the hotel concierge how to get to the Sydney Fishmarket. He said I should take a taxi. I asked about public transit. He said there was no way to get there by public transit. Imagine my surprise when I got to the Fishmarket, and the $20 taxi left me off adjacent to the Fishmarket light rail stop. At least the ride back toward downtown was easy. (I returned fairly quickly because the Fishmarket was somewhat disappointing. The wholesale activity is mostly behind the scenes, and although the retail fish looked great, it was nothing even remotely approaching the frenzy of Tsukiji market in Tokyo - or even the Fulton Fish Market in New York when I was little.)

Lots more sights, sounds and sensations to experience. Will share more when I can.

Posted via email from Doug's posterous