Sydney Tower

This experience was a letdown for us.  First off, we had a hard time finding the entrance.  It's in a mall and not well marked. When we got to the top observation area, people were sitting in the seating that backed up to the windows, so it was hard to even get a look out.  They were talking and playing on their phones.  Don't know why they bothered to come up the tower or why they stayed so long.  We circled the observation area then left.  Another disappointment was in the lack of information.... there wasn't any.  Nothing on the dimensions of the tower, its construction or its purpose.  Nothing.  Rain dotted the windows, and another shower was headed in so we didn't get very good photos.

So off to Wikipedia to get some information.  Sydney Tower is the tallest structure in Sydney, Australia, and the second-tallest observation tower in the Southern Hemisphere. It has also been known as Centrepoint Tower, AMP Tower, and colloquially as Flower Tower, Glower Tower, and Big Poke.

Those buildings are interesting.  The tower stands 309 m (1,014 ft) above the Sydney central business district.

So, from this angle you might think this is a river winding through town.  It's actually Sydney harbor, an inlet of the Tasman Sea.  The Parramatta River does flow into the harbor upstream from Sydney proper.  From the base of the tower, any direction except south will land you in Sydney Harbour.  I think this photo was looking off to the west. 

This is the ANZAC Memorial, a national war memorial featuring a small museum & pink granite exterior with sculptures & reliefs.  ANZAC, is the abbreviation for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.  This combined corps served with distinction in World War I.

St Mary's Cathedral from way up high.

You can barely make out the Sydney Harbour Bridge in this photo.  Look over the top of the nearest building.  The sun set while we were in the tower, as we had planned, so we walked back to the YHA in the dark... well as dark as active downtown city streets are.