sydney

this week we spent 4 days in sydney, seeing the sites, ben's old stomping grounds, and visiting grandma (anneanne). we were still slightly exhausted from the travel, but managed to pack in a lot before returning to brisbane on christmas eve:

city from above- you can see the opera house if you look closely

anneanne's house!
in true anneanne fashion, food was cooking when we arrived. traditional turkish pureed eggplant, served with lamb and pumpkin soup. and stuffed grapeleaves. and salad. she fed us well!
and of course, eating was the first matter of business when we arrived.

neighbors iva and sam immigrated to australia from macedonia. they watched ben grow up, and still live next door to anneanne!

strolling in the mall with anneanne
dinner out at the rocks
opera house at night

cruising down the parramatta river, heading into sydney for a day of sightseeing. we spotted a lot of electric eels poking their heads out of the water, but unfortunately they were too quick for me to capture with the camera.

approaching the harbour
city skyline
luna park
city skyline with the opera house, enroute to the taronga park zoo

kookaburra sits in the old gum tree...
hanging with patrick, the prettiest and friendliest bird ever
chilling with our koala bear friend and her joey
little joey!

baby spider... this one will get a whooole lot bigger by the end of summer. think baseball mit. yikes!
this little friend loved getting a good scratch and kept coming back for more
ever wondered what you would feed an emu... if you needed to?
harbour bridge
didgeridoo
lunch with an amazing view
traditional fish & chips
chinese gardens, in the midst of downtown sydney, provide a beautiful oasis
darling harbour christmas tree- please note the kangaroos