Up the Rainbow Bridge to Asgard . . .
The Harbour Bridge is not guarded by Heimdal, nor does it connect Sydney to Valhalla, but as you ascend the arch, you are right up at the very height of heaven seemingly, so Thor's theme song seems appropriate to head this post with, prefatory to extolling the virtues of this very expensive tourism activity. I'm actually thinking of making it a requirement of all overseas visitors that they fork out the dough and scale the Coat Hanger with me. That way I'd get to do it more often. It's that good. Groups of a dozen at a time are sent up with a guide, everyone dressed in identical jumpsuits and a harness that clips onto a safety cable and from which everything else you wear depends, including a standard-issue hat, eyeglass thong, radio and headset. Everything that might snag or fall off is left behind in a locker (and the key goes on a cord around your neck, tucked inside the jumpsuit). From check-in to setting off takes about a half-hour, mostly because of the safety lecture and practice run. But once you're on your way, there's no turning back. It only takes about two hours to do the whole climb, stopping along the way, moving fairly slowly to get the most from the views. Pictures are snapped for you at the top, and you get to take one of them home "free," the others being available as prints or CD-ROM, two or more in a set, at a variety of exorbitant prices. Pictures, however, aren't the point. Even the views aren't really the point. Climbing the Bridge is an experience like no other I've had, and I've stood on some of the highest structures built. The only thing I can compare it to is standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon. For those Sydney-siders who would scoff and deride the climb as a tourist trap, I would argue that many New Yorkers have felt the same of going up the Empire State Building - but only until they've done it.