JOANA MIRANDA STUDIO

On my first afternoon in Sydney, Australia, we made our way to the Sydney Opera House.

The view is majestic all around and I couldn’t help noticing the climbers across the bay atop the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

So I announced to my husband that I, too, was going to climb the Sydney Bridge in the next days.  However, upon doing a bit of research online, I discovered that the Sydney Harbor Bridge Climb was not only a bit out of my price range (think $150 starting cost), but also not as simple as I had imagined.  Each climber is outfitted in a bridge suit and tethered to the bridge.  No cameras are allowed and all jewelry, hair clips and other loose clothing must be left behind since the winds can be quite extreme.  Given that standing anywhere near the edge of our 30th floor balcony in our apartment in Sydney makes my knees go weak, I came to the realization that a climb like this was NOT something I’d enjoy.  Fortunately, the less daring adventurers like me have the more palatable option of walking across the bridge on the lower level…even better, this walk is FREE.

On Monday after walking my husband to work (did I mention that he’s a guest conductor with the Australian Ballet for a month of performances at the Sydney Opera House?)…

I climbed the grand staircase of the Opera House for a closer look.

There isn’t an uninteresting angle here, and the reflections from the Opera House windows are pretty neat, too!

Although I could have spent more time photographing, I decided it was time to make my way around the harbor to the bridge…

And so I did.

Finding the staircase which leads up to the Sydney Harbor Bridge in The Rocks neighborhood wasn’t hard, and up I went.

As I started my walk, the bridge climbers were just starting theirs…

And another group was on their way back down.

Speaking of, even from my vantage point on the lower level of the bridge, it felt like a LONG way down!

And I had to hold on to the railings every time I stopped to take photos (but as you can see, I didn’t let this hold me back.)

At the highest part of the bridge, in a show of support for Paris during the recent unfolding of tragic events, the French flag has been flying along with the Australian flag.  (The Opera House has also been bathed in red, white and blue lights at night.)

As I stopped to reflect and pay my respect, I imagine that the climbers standing high above me near the flag were doing the same.