New Year's Eve in Sydney!

One of the most exciting things that worked out about visiting Sydney this time of year is that it coincided with New Year's Eve! Sydney is one of the most popular places in the world to ring in the new year, so we couldn't wait to be one of the first in the world to turn over a new year.

For breakfast we'd been eating yogurt and fruit in our room the past couple days, so this morning we were in the mood for brunch. Plus, while we were out last night deciding where to eat dinner we saw a restaurant named Bloody Mary's. We knew we had to brunch at a place with a name like that! And their food looked delicious, too. So after a morning of sleeping in a bit we made our way down the street for brunch. I had a salmon bagel with avocado and Will had an open face salmon sandwich with egg. It was one of the best meals we've had so far. We also, of course, had their signature bloody marys.

Will obviously asked for extra hot sauce for his!

We went back to the hotel to pack up our things and get ready for New Year's Eve! While we were in the room there was a knock at the door, and it was a worker from the hotel. He had brought us a bottle of champagne and some information about New Year's Eve in Sydney. He thanked us for being valued guests and wished us a happy new year! How sweet! We never got around to drinking the champagne, but I packed it up and brought it home so we'll have it when Will gets home!

Since we'd spent the last couple days at the beach it was time to soak up the culture of the city. We walked through Hyde Park, which has a beautiful war memorial. There is even a plan for renovation and updates so it's only going to be more beautiful!

We hadn't made it over to Darling Harbour so that was our next destination. On our walk we passed grand historic buildings.

City Hall

Queen Victoria Building

We got to Darling Harbour, and after all that walking we were in need of a rest. Will really wanted to find a pub with some rugby on, but all we could find were American sports! That tells you how touristy this area was. It was good to see, and we checked it off the list, but we quickly left and went back to the more historical part of the city.

We did a self-guided walking tour through The Rocks neighborhood with the help of an app I downloaded on my phone. It gave the stories of old buildings and showed what things used to look like. This area was the first European Settlement in Australia so history is deep from convicts to sailors. It's also home to Australia's oldest pubs, several of which we visited a couple nights ago.

The area was getting really, really busy at this point (it was about 4pm) with people setting up their viewing spots for the fireworks. A little back story is that there are about a million people who come to Sydney each year to see the fireworks. Many of the area's parks and venues charge a fee to enter, which can run up to $400 per person and includes a mediocre box lunch at best. Free areas are subject to park closer once a certain capacity is reached, which can happen as early as noon or shortly there after. Will and I didn't want to spend our day sitting waiting for the fireworks, nor did we want to spend hundreds of dollars for a ticket to a viewing spot. What I was able to find was a park just to the West of the Harbour Bridge that opened at 6pm and only cost about 30 Australian dollars per person. This would allow us to spend the day exploring but still have a great place to view the fireworks. Another note is that I bought these tickets in the middle of October! Things sell out quickly and advance planning is a must.

There was going to be food and drink available within the park, but we wanted to have a late lunch/early dinner before we went in. We ended up at The Orient Hotel, which was established back in 1844! We shared fish and chips (I didn't quite get enough yesterday!) and a piece of local fish and mashed potatoes. It was a delish dinner for NYE.

Then we were on our way to our viewing spot! We walked through more historic streets. The architecture is just unbelievable. Including the tunnel that clearly required a good amount of dynamite!

As we were walking something caught Will's eye. Can you blame him? Look how cool it is?

It was The Lord Nelson, Australia's oldest brewery, and to this day they still brew beer right on site. So one more stop before the fireworks! Will was so cute; like a kid in a candy shop! There was a picture on the wall of the pub long ago, and it still looks just the same!

Around 6:30pm, after an awesome beer at Lord Nelson, we made our way to Barangaroo to set up for the fireworks. We found our wonderful spot and hunkered down. We talked story with the people around us, read the newspaper, and did a lot of people watching.

Sydney even treats its residents and visitors to two fireworks shows. One at 9pm for families, and of course the midnight show. We didn't have the best view of the 9pm show because the tree was right in front of the barge area, but it was still a good show.

Then it was time for the big show! Happy New Year! (I understand pictures of fireworks can be a little silly, but I had to snap a couple! It's Sydney, Australia on New Year's Eve!)

As soon as the show was over people started dumping out onto the streets! We didn't even bother trying to get an uber or taking a bus. Most of the roads were closed off in the area, anyway. It did take us quite a while to walk home, but at long last we found ourselves back in our neighborhood, stopping at the Pizza Hut across the street from our hotel for a late night snack to take back to our room. How American in Sydney is that?!

Happy New Year!