We moved to Sydney on work purpose, just before new year. One thing that I constantly heard from people around me was about New Year celebrations in Sydney. I didn’t want to miss them at any cost and planned our travel accordingly, to start our new chapter with a bang!

Our first two days in Sydney went too hectic that I wondered if we would be able to plan anything for new year. Typically, people reach the best free viewing spots in the morning and spend their complete day there. So, it is very tough to find any good spot if we reach there in the night unless we spend a hefty amount on entry tickets to any hotel on the Harbor side. We were mentally prepared to just hear the fireworks, if not for the visuals. We changed our goal from visualizing new year celebrations to watching the euphoria around. That made us feel better 🙂

Australia is one of the first countries to welcome new year and the celebrations are considered very prestigious by the government. My husband’s friend suggested us a good spot (Observatory Hill Park) to witness the fireworks. We packed eatables, water, raincoat, jacket (what not, the weather here is unpredictable) and started our train journey from Pennant Hills to Sydney Town Hall. Though there was a good crowd in the trains compared to other days, it felt very decent for us in comparison with the crowd in India.

There are two displays here, one at 9pm (family fireworks) and the other at 12am (midnight fireworks). We managed to reach Circular Quay, near the Harbour, for family fireworks. We followed the crowd and wanted to try our luck for a good spot there.

Though our spot was very close to the Harbor, it was a bad one as the view was blocked by trees completely. As expected, we could hear only the sounds from the family fireworks, but not the display. We realized our mistake and quickly moved on to the Observatory Hill Park as it is located on a hill and felt that we could at the least get to see the fireworks in the sky, if not the harbor lights. After an hour long queue to enter the park, we managed to get a decent spot there and waited for the midnight fireworks.

We observed that people came very well prepared to sit on the grass and wait till the midnight. Some people who came in big groups entertained themselves by singing songs and playing games. Though it was peak summer time in Sydney, it felt cold that night due to showers. We waited eagerly the midnight fireworks. People started countdown as soon as the time came close and then the magic started. Fireworks were fantastic and it felt tough to take eyes off them. It was definitely worth the wait.

We were worried on how we have to come back after the event in the huge rush, but the trains were organized very well, once in 2mins and we happily reached our hotel without any issues.

This is the first new year eve that I was a part of, a great kick start to the new year. Wish you all a very happy new year 2019!