Day 2 into Day 3 in Sydney

I left the last post in the late afternoon sitting at the Marriott and then went out on the street at Circular Quay to eat,,ended up going to McDonald’s as the crowds there so intrigued me. Probably 50 in the store ordering when I went in….ordering was real fast with about 10-12 cashiers, etc behind the counter working the orders. I had a never never Big Mac and the took it outside to sit and eat and watch the crowds starting to assemble for the Vivid Sydney laser light show……which is a laser light show where various art forms are flashed on the buildings. ….The Opera House, etc. Really spectacular and great for the family. I cut it short to go back to St Mary’s Cathedral for the organ concert by David Drury…and this was a 90 minute concert by one of the finest organists in the world. The organ is the largest in the Southern Hemisphere and the Cathedral is the largest in the South Pacific. Drury has performed all over the world but this is his home, so a lot of local family and friends and students…and he was really on. I have never seen feet move as fast as his…just an amazing concert. The church then had a wine and cheese refreshment reception for all in the audience, so I enjoyed talking with some folks for additional info on Mr. Drury and the Cathedral, etc. A wonderful evening for a lover of organ music in Cathedral……then headed back via the grain to stop by the sports bar near the hotel to watch both Rugby and Australian Rules Football….the first time I have seen this game and it is wild…a combination of soccer, rugby, and basketball. Really fun to watch once you figure out what they are trying to do. A full evening.

Today, which is day 3 in Sydney…I got up early so as to get the Bondi Tour again as I missed some of it yesterday….and it is such a beautiful area….and on the trip today we got some rain…but still well worth it. Got back at 11. And headed for Olympic Park…and to the rehearsal for the Rotary World Choir. I had some extra time so went into the House Of Friendship, which is where all of the work that Rotary does worldwide is displayed. Plus a huge food court and large entertainment areas ….very impressive….the to the choir rehearsal at 1 pm….which went well in view of the limited time to go over some music that needed more than 5 or 10 minutes to go over it. We did get it ready for the program in the am…Sunday morning Interfaith service that, in essence, opens the Convention. Another full day and I am off now to see the lights, walk the bridge, and view the light show on the Opera House. We start early on Sunday….having to be at the Park at 8 for the rehearsal leading up to the 9 am service……should be fun. Moew to come…

Day 1 in Sydney

The flight from San Francisco was long but very smooth and with the meals,o the movies, sleep time ,and my time to finish John Grisham’s The Associate…the time went by quickly. The Sydney Airport is an older “modern” airport in that it was built with a very modern open feeling but that was 30 years ago, Ver clean and well organized though and Host Organizing Committee members (HOC) met us as we came through Customs. I was directed to an info counter and again HOC directed me to where I could get thenShuttle to the downtown hotel. After about a 30 minutes wait we were led to a small van seating about 12 and pulling a covered trailer where all of the luggage went, and odd we went.

TFirst impressions….1. Palms and bright blue skies with few white clouds and about 60 degrees with a nice breeze. 2. Driving on the left but very orderly and not as busy and aggressive as in London. 3. A lot of building activity going up right I. The midst of the older buildings. But, the old is not London old as Australia is much younger. 4.A lot of folks on the street at the beginning of the work day so they must use public transport and very many taxis all relative newer ones with Mercedes,Volvos and Toyoyas…all clean and in good condition,,In about 20 minutes we got into the CBD which is also called The City,driving along beautiful tree linded streets with lots of parks. Very beautiful area,,,,,,
With more and more high rise office bldgs along with the older attractive buildings. We dropped off folks at very hotels and finally got to the Devere Hotel in Potts Points. This was the old Victoria area and the Potts area is now adjacent to the Kings the area Cross section….both bring very trendy and lots of small boutique shops reminding so much of SanFrancisco and some of the much smaller communities nd areas. Very active and colorful.l
5. The small boutique hotel is in the middle of the Potts Point area so is most convenient with lots of bars,shops,and small stores …aver attractive. I walked down to the Kings Cross train station to get the story a and found that their Metro is called a train and they run both above and below ground,,,and are very smooth and clean and easy to get around,
Below ground are some of the stations and some are like regular trains. Very nice looking and very well designed with a gretionaljIdea for seating of the crowds that ride the trains daily.
6. I rode the train to the Central Station where I was to get my HoP Hop bus for a prepaid city tour, and I finally found the right area and bus and off we went. Strongly recommended..too much to cover here but suffice it to say c
overs the entire downtown area with good explanation of all that you pass.
7. Summary of day 1…very clean …very London like ……very modern in places and very old next door. Very tropical setting and ver beautiful city and area.

Today I check out the Convention area etc and see more of Sydney ..a great first day. So glad to be hear and experience this vibrant and modern city,,and very,very international….which makes it doubly entertaining and interesting.

More to come…..

I am going to continue on into day 2….after a good night sleep of 8 hrs I got up to go to the hop on bus to get to Central ….in the middle of the morning rush hour. Again, lots of folks going to work and clearly among the best dressed I have seen in years. Predominantly Europeans and Indians….but few from Africa or the Middle East …or so it appears….Got to Central station and found the train to the Olympic Park. Central Station is built on European standards with a massive main hall and good access to the long distance trains as well as the local trains. 20 minutes to Olympic Park, which is renovated from the 2000 Olympics…and is now used for everything, not just conventions. The massive stadiums are used for Rigby world competition, etc. The track was holding a meet for high school kids….with a soccer meet in one of the other venues. I registered and got my volunteer assignments…..and I start tomorrow with the World Choir rehearsal in preparation for the opening interfaith service on Sunday. My primary assignments are for Sunday afternoon the the big sessions on Monday,Tuesday, and Wednesday. So, I am waiting for the train back to the central station. The trains here are very modern and impressive and certainly ones that we could learn from. The cars are all double decker so hold large numbers of riders. Very clean and quiet….and quite fast and on time…very impressive to say the least. Trains are used here, along with the city buses as the basic means of getting in, out, and around both Sydney and the outlying area.
My plans for today is to do t he Bondi hop on tour…then the Sydney Tower and then try to hear a service at St Mary Cathedral which is the largest catholic cathedral in the country. Tonight will be at Circle Quay with all of its activity…..so should be a full afternoon…
A couple of things about the convention….again, extremely well organized with lots of folks to help with directions etc…..all very helpful. The area of the Olympic Park is huge so a lot of help is really valuable as they are expecting 25000 attendees. The information that is given out at registration is very complete and more than you need but very useful. After I got checked in I went over and had a subway sandwich……and all of the fat foods are here….Burger King is called Hungry Jacks…..more to come…
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Day 1…leaving Redding

The morning was busy getting things all in line for the time away….and got to the Redding Airport early for the 2 pm flight……on time and into SFO on schedule. I got a pass to the United Club and am waiting for the 10 pm flight to Sydney. It is a 15 hour flight and I will arrive at 6.30 am on Thursday, Sydney time. Staying at the Devere Hotel which has its own website, etc……they have given me directions as to how to get to the hotel etc…..

My first day will be getting adjusted to the time change and then I have a ticket for the Hop On Hop Off bus tour in the afternoon. Friday will then be some sightseeing and Saturday the orientation for the sergeant at arms job along with the choir rehearsal will happen….so the day will be busy…..

All was fine at home when I left with Tyler and Curt doing the steer this am…..so the place will be very busy while I am gone. We are so fortunate to have the great neighbors….all kind of helping each other and all looking out for each other…..so our “neighborhood” will be very busy in anticipation of the upcoming fair….never a dull moment.

It will be most interesting to see Sydney and Australia again, I was first there when I took Carrie when she graduated from high school ……so a lot of changes in these 23 years I am sure. More to come……

First day in Georgia

After a very good flight from Sacramento to Salt Lake City then on to Atlanta I was met by Carrie who had been in New York City for a college visit and tour with Caroline. This was probably the final visit before she decides if this is the college for her. She will start her NYC experience when she moves there after Craig’s wedding the end of June. We got home from the airport about 1am….so day 1 started with a good sleep in the quiet of Williamson, Ga. This is a gorgeous area some 1 hour south of the Atlanta airport, and Carrie and Spence built a home on the Peach State Airpark right adjacent to a grass runway. Currently there are 6 homes and hangers at the Airpark plus a museum and Grill Restaurant and yesterday was a big reunion for the Delta pilots as they can fly in and out with their private and other small planes. After a late and relaxed morning, I took Sarah to her piano lesson, which is a very good time to see how much she has progressed over the years . At 14, she is an outstanding and gift pianist…..she is now starting to play at church and at different functions…..some for pay. The afternoon was spent with William playing catch..baseball ….he is quite a good pitcher and just completed his season as a 10 year old starting pitcher and SS. He is a natural, and really enjoys the game .Audy took the girls and went for nails, shopping, and etc…..and then we all had a good evening with Audy and Carrie watching the replay of Selfridges on PBS. Caroline and Sarah went to Youth Group at church….so then at 11pm I went to the airport to pick up Christy. A full day.

Mothers Day Morning

What a great day of music to celebrate Mothers Day. Started with Neighborhood Church with the Brass Quartet and played some of the great arrangements by John Schlenz….then on to Redding Christian Fellowship where the Brass Quintet played “Saints with the Hallelujah chorus thrown in” in a great arrangement…then accompanied their choir. I thought back to my mother who lived to the ripe old age of 99 yrs and 10 months…enjoying music right up to the end….and all of those practices and lessons that she took me to all over Southern California, as I progressed on the Trombone. Starting in the 4th grade, she always made my lessons and concerts a priority, and of course my easy going Dad was always there to drive and support Mom. What a fantastic memory I have of my mother…just a great lady.

Colts 45 Summer Baseball

This past week I had a chance to assist with the game sponsorships working with the sports director of KCNR radio in Redding, Nate Abaurrea. We had a great time presenting this summer baseball program and sold out each OD the 45 games to local businesses. This program brings college baseball players from all over the nation to Redding to be part of a league that includes teams from the north state and Oregon. All games will be at the re-furnished Tiger Field at Redding South City. Park and the season begins May 31. Nate will be doing a live game broadcast from each game, which will be a first for Redding and the north state. This is a family oriented program and ticket prices are only $5….so a great way to spend an evening in our great summer. See you there.

Rotary International Convention

Each year at about this time, Rotary International holds the annual convention for all clubs worldwide. It is clearly one of the best conventions that I have ever attended, for it not only has world class plenary speakers, but the breakout sessions cover all possible subjects that come up during the course of the Rotary Club year. Then, in addition, each of the plenary sessions has world class entertainment. Absolutely first class. This year, as I did last year, I will also sing in the Rotary World Choir for the opening convention religious service. The choir is really good as musicians come from all over the Rotary Club world to sing together. Very impressive. So ,more to come.

Upcoming trips…travels

At the end of May I will be traveling to the Rotary International Convention in Sydney, Australia….then on to Auckland, New Zealand, and then Singapore. I am really looking forward to this trip, as it has been 20 plus years since I was in Australia, and that was when I took daughter Carrie with me for her high school graduation trip. I never have been to New Zealand….and was in Singapore about 15 years ago…..all of this is to say things have changed over the years…so should be most interesting. This trip, as I have done in the past, I will try and record each day in this blog. Ronlargent.wordpress.com should keep you updated. Tune in….