Australia is a nation of icons, but none so prominent as the Sydney Opera House. In a city full of skyscrapers and architectural feats, the Opera House takes center stage (no pun intended). The layered eggshell-like roofs jut out in all directions like a burly man making room with his elbows in a crowd. From afar, they look as free and weightless as sails. On the abstract sketches of city logos, the whole thing is summed up in just a few curved lines. A silhouette makes it one of those polygons from math class. The visual simplicity of the Opera House deceives its complex design. The pure white color of the tops is achieved by millions of tiles, for example. It’s magnificent from all perspectives – from nearby Circular Quay, from a passing ferry, from right next to it, and from atop the Harbour Bridge. We treated ourselves to that last view by doing the Bridge Climb, a daring walk to the 440-foot summit of the city’s second most beloved icon.

Of course to see the Sydney Opera House we had to get to Sydney, which we did on a plane first thing yesterday morning. The weather wasn’t ideal, but our timing was – the day before Australia Day, the country’s biggest holiday. We checked into our hotel (the first place we had to pay for accommodation), and then wondered through Sydney’s diverse pockets: Darling Harbour and the bustling city center, Chinatown and Paddy’s Markets, Manly Beach and the upscale suburbs, and the scandalous red light district of Kings Cross. The bus tour we did today checked off more from our list, including Bondi Beach – famous for its surf culture, the Rocks – famous for the first convict settlements, and the Gap – famous for suicides.

Although public transportation made sightseeing incredibly convenient, we called it an early night to save energy for the national party.

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