Putting aside the headache it is to try and drive to this area and find parking during this crazy…read moreevent, Vivid was pretty damn cool. We went on the Starship Sydney, which despite the amount of people on board, still had plenty of space for great views of all lights. I'm especially impressed how Sydney coordinates all the different displays, especially the bridge which baffles my mind. Overall, it was just an awesome experience for a reasonable price. And loved having a couple drinks during the cruise as well.

Vivid is an annual arts festival in Sydney held yearly in late-May and through most of June. It was…read morestarted in 2009 so it is relatively new. I didn't know about this festival until I learned about it the week before I traveled it to Sydney. It is apparently one of the biggest festivals of the year there. The 2016 event was the most successful one to date as it drew over 2.3 million visitors. The festival is most known for its art installations around Sydney that are lighted up at night for the festival. It is like a Christmas lights festival in the middle of the year. The most popular landmark to see lighted up is the iconic Sydney Opera House. Other attractions like Darling Harbour and Sydney Harbour Bridge are also decked out in lights. There are also two other parts of the festival which are lesser known. There is a music festival component of local and international acts at numerous venues around Sydney which was headlined this year by Björk. The other part is an ideas/discussion symposium on an array of diverse topics. Since I had a limited time in Sydney, I only was able to make it to the lights portion of the festival. While the Vivid lights can be found around the city, the main location to visit is Circular Quay. The lights at the festival start around 6 pm, so you will want to get to the area before they turn on. The festival takes place at the end of fall/beginning of winter in Australia, so make sure to cover up if you go as it can get chilly in the evening. Based on the traffic in the area, it seems like public transportation is the best way to get there. I would recommend taking the train to Circular Quay Station if you can. Due to the crowds, you might be asked by the conductor to get off at an earlier station and walk over so the train can make room for people at Circular Quay trying to leave the area. If you don't want to deal with the crowds, another way to enjoy the festivities is by taking a Vivid cruise for a view of the lights from the water. When I arrived at Circular Quay, I found it to be full of people as it would be since it was a Saturday evening. The lights for the festival were just about everywhere. There was a lights show called "The Matter of Painting" being played on a building that was intriguing. And if you walked to the waterfront, you can see the Sydney Harbour Bridge lighted up. After mulling about in this area, I walked towards the Sydney Opera House to see the lights there. The ones there were my favorite of the festival. It was cool seeing this landmark decked out in different colors and patterns. While I didn't get a chance to see them, I would also recommend checking out the lights at the Royal Botanic Gardens which is adjacent to the Sydney Opera House. I walked through the gardens the next afternoon and see that they had a huge lights display there. Unfortunately, I couldn't stay into the evening to see them. Really enjoyed Vivid. While much of the music and ideas portions of the festival require admission, the lights festival is free and open to all. If you decide to visit Sydney next year when Vivid is on, I highly recommend checking out the light shows that this festival puts on around the city.

I timed my visit to Sydney for this event in November 2014 and I did not regret one bit of it…read more The coastal walk was simply awesome and as we actually started walking from Coogee to Bondi, we should be tired by the time we got to Tamarama but we were not. I did not realize Tamarama was considered the end of the exhibition but I felt it did not matter much which side you started from. The 2 km stretch of exhibits between Bondi and Taramara was over very quickly as you marveled at the sculptures. Set against the clear blue sea with frothing waves (at some parts) and beautiful blue sky dotted with some clouds, it was just quite breathtaking. Just take your time and bask in the beauty all around the place. No rush, no hurry and you will not feel like you are being hemmed in by the crowd. Some parts can be more packed but as long as you are not in a rush, people do give way or move on after a while. We went on a Friday afternoon so maybe it was not that crowded compared to the weekend.

We happened to be in Sydney during the last weekend of Sculpture by the Sea. The captain of our…read moreplane recommended checking it out and I'm so glad we did. This is a large public modern art exhibit along the water. The exhibit is completely free and it's filled with creative works. The only downside is that it is extremely crowded. But can you really blame the crowds for wanting to enjoy beautiful interactive art at such a magnificent setting?

You know peeps visiting Australia from Hawaii had to stop by here, even if we're not surfers. The…read moreplaque going along with the statute makes no mention of Duke's ties to Hawaii; almost like Australia wants to claim him as their native son lol. But gotta respect the honor they bestowed on him.

So why is there a statue of Hawaii's famous Olympic swimmer and legendary surfer in Australia and…read morewhy the heck is it at Sydney's Freshwater Beach? During the Australian summer of 1914-15 Duke Paoa Kahinu Mokoe Hulikohola Kahanamoku aka "The Duke", came out to Australia to race against Australia's finest and fastest swimmers in events around Sydney, Melbourne and Queensland. At the time Duke held numerous world swimming records. During his stay in Sydney he fashioned and shaped a surf board out of local timbers (modelled on his Hawaiian boards back home), and took to the surf at Freshwater Beach in January 1915 - the event is regraded as the day when surfing came to Australia. Before The Duke left Australia he gave his iconic board to teenager Claude West who became Australia's first surfboarding champion. Claude, in later life, donated Duke's board to the Freshwater Surf Life Saving Club where it is housed (and if you are polite and lucky you may just be able to be taken to the room where it is on display). There are two recent and excellent books about The Duke. The first is about his visit to Australia and is by Phil Jarratt and titled "That summer at Boomerang". It's a historic dramatisation of his visit and exploits in Australia and includes some interesting insights into his relationships he formed with Australian swimmers at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics), and the friendships he made here. The second account is a more general book by David Davis called "Waterman: The Life and Times of Duke Kahanamoku" which is also a good read into the life of this marvellous Hawaiian hero. So pay your respects next time you are at Freshwater and long live Duke!