Yesterday we celebrated our first Australia Day! Sydney puts on quite a show for the occasion. We watched ferries race across the harbor. We ate corn on sticks and waved Aussie flags. We saw a concert in a park and came home for a barbecue. The girls even stayed up to see their very first fireworks. We watched them from a park across the street from us. We could only glimpse the ones that came up over the buildings but it was a lovely warm night and still worth doing.
Australia Day reminds me of the 4th of July in its nationalist sentiment and Labor Day in that it marks the end of summer and the start of school. Brian pointed out an important difference. In the US we celebrate the departure of the British. Here, Australia Day celebrates the arrival of the British in 1788. Australians remained British subjects through 1984. The union jack still features prominently on the Aussie flag.
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| Watching the ferries race across the Harbour. |
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| A fire boat leads the way with an impressive spout of water. |
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| The Harbour was packed with boats. |
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| Brian covets this awesome police boat. |
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| Check out this paramedic's ride! |
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| Mmm. Corn on a stick. |
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And we can tell you aren't in the U.S. because the food on a stick isn't deep-fried.
ReplyDeleteAnd B and I were eating really yummy Malaysian street noodles.
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