SUMMER VACATION has ended. Still, the hot weather remains unwavering. It has been like a sweet dream, flying away from the heat of Korea to the breeze of Sydney, Australia. August in Sydney was bright and sunny, yet the air was a bit chilly, unlike the warm image of Australia I had in mind. Everything from the landscape to the absence of a hot summer weather was completely different from those of Korea. Sydney is the gem of the southern hemisphere, the cradle of Mother Nature. The iron child majestically risen out of the city’s bleakest days, the Sydney Harbor Bridge soars high to overlook life in Sydney. Hold on for dear life as you scale its massive arches. Let it tower over you, as you find yourself bewitched by the trinkets in the Rocks Market. Tear your glance away, only to meet your inner child in Luna Park.

 

At the summit of the Harbor Bridge, the twilight casts a red glow over the Darling Harbor on the left. The bright yellow sand of the golden beaches below is covered in coal-black darkness. Everyday thrill-seekers climb the Harbor Bridge from the BridgeClimb center so as not to miss the opportunity to capture the scenic view of the harbor.

 

Under the Harbor Bridge, crowds of people buy and sell handmade goods or shop for charming design arts and organic products. The Rocks Market is open on George Street every Friday and on weekends: it is a place where we can go to look at the latest trends of Sydney and admire the witty craft ideas of street artists.

 

Across the Harbor Bridge, we can return to our childhood days. The Luna Park in North Sydney awakens the inner child deep inside our subconscious. Enjoying the present moment, people walk around, holding cloudlike cotton candies and taking photographs in front of the dazzling Ferris wheel.

   When dusk falls, the Harbor Bridge commands a view of the illuminated heart of South Sydney at night, revealing a different façade of the city not to be experienced from Circular Quay. Here, we get a panoptic view of the culture, the life, and the industry of Sydney. The Opera House represents its culture. In the daytime, it is a bustling tourist hotspot. Everywhere around the landmark, people are busy clicking away on their cameras. Outside the Opera House, banners for the musical Aida are lined up along the port. In the night time, it falls silent and glows elegantly, as if to emphasize its dignity as a prominent landmark.

   Beside the Opera House is the Circular Quay, full of ferries boarding and departing from the port. The ferry is a unique form of public transportation and represents the daily lives of Sydneysiders. At night, it is used as a shortcut for tourists who are too exhausted to cross the Harbor Bridge in returning to their accommodations in South Sydney.

   The skyscraper hotels lined up along the Circular Quay represent the tourism industry of Sydney. Up in the Pylon Observatory on the Harbor Bridge, the harbor is ablaze with neon signs of five-star hotels. Even after dusk, the Opera House, the ferries, the skyscraper hotels remain bright for the sleepless wanderers in Sydney.