If you have a TV, you will have most likely seen Sydney Harbour Bridge. On either 31st Dec or 1st Jan, news programmes across the English speaking world always show the massive fireworks display that erupts from the Harbour Bridge! If you are not sure what I mean, you will then undoubtedly recognise the famous shells of the Sydney Opera House. So unique are they, that when the Danish architect who won the contract to design them, presented his design, he was laughed at and ridiculed and it was almost rejected entirely!

What most people don't know is that the other iconic feature of Sydney is not the bays, beaches, waters and secret little coves practically everywhere you look, but rather the rain! Despite the heat waves that Sydney experiences from time to time, rain is what makes Sydney famous. And it was heavy rain that obscured the Harbour Bridge and Opera House when we took the ferry to Sean and Dinah's place!

After weeks in a camper van, home comforts were a real treat. Look a bath! A double bed that you could walk around! Space to allow the bags to unpack themselves! So generous were Sean and Dinah, that their place seemed like home! But with old (Ed: figuratively, not literally of course!) best friends, is that hardly surprising? I can't remember the last time that we had laughed so hard at each other.....SHAWN! SHAWN (I know where you work!!)

Since Ing and I had been to Sydney before, we were in no rush to "see the sights". Here we just wanted to experience Sydneysider life and catch up with old friends. Sadly Camino Rupert and Harriet couldn't make it, but catching up with Will was fantastic too. Here is a man who could win the month of Mo'vember with ease! Tom Selleck best watch out!

Since Sean and Dinah are local, and we were "hanging with da locals" we saw a real insight into Sydney inner city life! Ferries to and from the city were short and pleasant, everything like a beach, waves and warm water were in every direction and no more than a 10 minute drive! If you don't like the outdoors or the water, then Sydney is not for you! Not poorly designed, badly maintained high rises here. Oh no, those that own the yachts anchored in the cove just wouldn't stand for it, darling!

But one thing that Ing and I had not seen, or experienced were the Blue Mountains and the famous Echo Point. Now was the time! To cut a long story short, the mountains are actually more like the Blue Ripples (after the Himalayas, anything smaller might seem puny after all!) and covered in blue gums! But even more surprisingly was the fact that Sydney had seemed to expand into these mountains! It seemed like there was no break in the city limits from the time we boarded the train in Central Sydney to the time we got off at Katoomba two hours later!

Unsurprisingly it rained non-stop either! Katoomba Friday nights have a lot to be desired because there is not a lot happening there and with a steady sheet of rain and rivers running down the street. Whatever action there was must have fizzled away in the downpour.

One night was enough. Especially since the Katoomba Mountain Lodge had the faded, but distinct feeling that it was the place that Jack Nicholson rehearsed for his role in The Shining! We expected the bedroom door to burst inwards with the Jack sticking his head through screaming, "Here comes Johnny!". Even the decor was perfect!

But Sydney is replete with cafes, restos and bars that make the water their focus point and after a Friday night in the rain in funny little Katoomba, the beers and pizza in the setting sun on a Manly beach were a remedy for any of The Shining blues!

It was with great sadness that we packed our bags, said our goodbyes and headed down to the ferry that would take us into town and off to the airport. Where we had come in rain and cloud, we left with the morning sun warm upon our faces and water as flat as a mill pond and the early morning rising city before us.

What an awesome Sydney send off.