Aerial Views of Sydney

For his 30th birthday, Anneliese bought Martin a voucher for a helicopter flight over Sydney. Martin finally got around to taking the flight in February 2001. The weather on the day wasn't brilliant - a bit cloudy, and pretty windy which meant the little helicopter got thrown around a lot - but Martin got some good photos, some of which are shown below.

	This is a photo taken shortly after taking off from Sydney Airport. It shows the Lakes Golf course, where the Greg Norman International tournament was held in 2001.
	After taking off, the helicopter flew out to the coast. Here's a shot of the coastline showing Coogee Beach.
	Continuing north, the next major bay is the famous Bondi. This photo shows the large expanse of sand.
	Just before Bondi, we flew over Mackenzies Point, and this photo shows the waves breaking on the coast. It was quite a windy day!
	After passing over Bondi, we continued north towards the Heads, which guard the entrance to Sydney Harbour. The photo shows South head, with North Head in the distance. It also shows Watsons Bay, a popular place for tourists to visit. Many go to try the fish and chips at Doyles restaurant.
	After reaching the heads, we turned westwards and flew over the northern side of the harbour. This photo shows Manly, on a narrow spit of land jutting out into the harbour. On the far side of the peninsula you can just see the famous surf beach.
	We then continued over Middle Harbour. This photo shows Balmoral Beach, which we have visited several times, including at dawn on New Years Day 2000.
	Just up the coast from Balmoral is Chinamans Beach. We've spent both of the last 2 Christmas Days here. The reserve behind the beach is a great place to have a picnic or BBQ.
	We also flew over Taronga Zoo. The line going up the centre of the photo is the cable car which runs from down near the wharf up to the top gate.
	Next we flew over Mosman, which is a suburb on the north shore where several of our friends live.
	The next photo shows the whole of Neutral Bay, which is the suburb where we live. In fact we've been able to spot our house and this is highlighted. You can see the ferry wharf where Anneliese gets the ferry to work every day, and North Sydney which is where Martin's office is.
	This is a closer photo of Neutral Bay, with our house right in the centre.
	The view of the city and the harbour from the air is spectacular. It was surprising just how much you could see. This photo is a panorama of the city, showing the major landmarks including the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.
	And this is a slightly closer shot of the Bridge and the Opera House.
	Talking of the Opera House, here's a great aerial view of one of Sydney's most famous landmarks.
	This is a view of the city looking south across the eastern suburbs. You can see the football stadium, where a lot of the Olympics soccer games were played. Also, you can just see the edge of the naval dockyards at Woolloomooloo.
	As we flew over the naval dockyards, I spotted this frigate in dry-dock.
	We then headed down the harbour and over the Bridge. Just before the Bridge and just next to the Opera House is Circular Quay, the hub for all the ferries. You can also see the top of the apartment block known as the Toaster.
	Our flight then continued southwards over the city towards the airport. In this photo you can see Darling Harbour, as well as the skyscrapers of the central business district. the ANA Hotel has a great cocktail bar with a wonderful view of the harbour.
	The final photo is an aerial shot of Central Station, the hub for all the trains in Sydney.