Now back to what we are seeing and not dwelling on what we can’t see. The virus isn’t the only thing cancelling stops, bad weather makes a big dent in our trip, too. Melbourne was scratched due to ‘really’ wild storms. So we went straight to Sydney and spent an additional day there. One of the consolation trips from Viking was a special behind-the-scenes tour of the Opera House, an Opera star singing for us and a special dinner at the Sydney Opera House. A surprise treat, beautiful and interesting. 

But first, more beautiful and colorful Australian animals.

A camel is a horse designed by committee.  ~  Sir Alec Issigonis, who designed the British Mini car.

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These dancing cranes are imitated by the Aborigines in their traditional dances. The picture below is from a performance on board ship in Brisbane (more pictures in the Brisbane post).

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The brolga, formerly known as the native companion, is a bird in the crane family. It has also been given the name Australian crane, a term coined in 1865 by well-known ornithological artist John Gould in his Birds of Australia.

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Australian pelicans are one of the largest flying birds in the world; they also have the longest bills of any living bird. With a wingspan of about eight feet, Australian pelicans can remain in the air for over 24 hours and travel hundreds of miles as they catch breezes to help them soar.

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Cassowaries are among the largest birds on the planet. The Southern Cassowary is the largest species, reaching 5.8 feet in height. Males weigh up to 121 pounds and females reach about 167 pounds (so what else is new!). They make excellent rainforest gardeners, dispersing more than 100 plant species by keeping the seeds intact. The extinction of this endangered animal would result in the loss of the only method of regrowth for many rainforest species.

The cassowary head comb, the casque, is dark-colored on the outside and protected by a dense bone layer resembling a horse hoof or tortoise shell, the inside is made up of fragile, spongy honeycomb tissue. They can sprint up to 30 miles per hour for short periods. Only the ostrich is heavier than the southern cassowary.

 

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Do you think I liked it? 🙂  BTW this was at the Featherdale Wildlife Park, Sydney.  John would not have been able to walk this park and he stayed home. I could hardly walk the next day myself, my feet and knees hurt that much, but I would have stayed a couple more hours if it was available, it was that nice.