Naturally, my first trip into central Sydney took me across the Harbour Bridge and towards the Opera House – one of the city’s great icons and a source of immense local pride.
Along the way, I was greeted by Sydney’s welcoming committee: a couple of cockatoos screeching away as if they were trying to tell me something. I couldn’t quite understand what they were saying, though. Perhaps I’m still getting used to the rather distinctive accent down here.
There is something special about standing on the other side of the world, looking at one of the most famous buildings on the planet rising above Sydney Harbour – and knowing that it all began as an idea on a Danish drawing board.
Jørn Utzon’s Opera House somehow feels completely Australian and, at the same time, just a little bit Danish. Perhaps it is the setting by the water, the simplicity of its lines, or the way the building seems almost to grow out of the harbour itself.
For me, it creates a lovely connection between my old home and my new one. A small piece of Denmark in the heart of Sydney – created by a Dane who dared to imagine something the world had never seen before.
