And after you have toured the city, flown in an airplane and sailed in a sloop, head for the hills. Many unexpected thrills await you, including a stay in a charming and cosy farmhouse.

I have always seen Sydney on foot or by car. And this was how I visited the Rocks Market, Sydney Harbour, the Opera House, the Sydney Fish Market as well as climbed the 134m Sydney Harbour Bridge.

One new activity during a recent stay was to take a flight on board a Beaver amphibious plane operated by Sydney Seaplanes (www.seaplanes.com.au). Taking off from Rose Bay for the 15-minute flight, the sight of Sydney and its urban sprawl as well as several coves crowded with a variety of pleasure boats was like that in a picture postcard.

Sydney Seaplanes also has trips to Hunter Valley 30 minutes away by air and it has tied up with hotels in the area for a package which includes vineyard visits, wine tasting, golf and spa visits.

After this, I was off to another new adventure — a city tour and trip to Bondi Beach riding pillion on a 1,450cc Harley-Davidson (www.bluethunderdownunder.com.au).

Sightseeing from a motorbike is vastly different from seeing things from a car or bus. On a bike, you are not just looking at the scenery — you are part of it. You enjoy a palpable nearness to everything you pass.

Much of Sydney and other parts of New South Wales can be enjoyed without burning a hole in your pocket. One is to take a stroll in the Sydney Harbour area.

Buses and ferry rides are also low-cost. You can buy a Day Tripper Ticket for A$16 (S$21) for unlimited travel until 4am the next day on all regular Sydney Ferry services and CityRail trains and buses. Trains and buses also go to inland resorts such as the Blue Mountains.

Still in Sydney, I headed for the sea the next day. I boarded the Salt Shaker, a sloop (www.eastsail.com.au). Skipper Eric, a young man but an old salt, explained the intricacies of hoisting the main sail and the jib to harness the wind. He got all hands on board to help. We were literally learning the ropes.

Elsewhere around us, tourists were screaming in high-powered boats as these twin-propeller vessels (www.oceanextreme.com.au) sliced through the waters at speeds of up to 50 knots or 100 kmh, churning up showers of frothy seawater.

Sydney has all sorts of cultural and musical shows throughout the year. For example, if you are there between March 20 and April 2, you can catch the Sydney Royal Easter Show featuring the country’s diverse cultural and rural heritage (www.eastershow.com.au).

I began the next day by enjoying the spectacular view of Sydney Harbour from the window of my room in the recently refurbished Shangri-La Hotel in Cumberland Street. Soon I was off to the Blue Mountains, 48km west of Sydney. This national heritage site is a plateau with rugged gorges of up to 760m in depth.

I took a ride in a cable car with a glass floor as it moved across a yawning chasm called Jamison Valley, and afterwards rode on the world’s steepest railway with a 52-degree incline. Other activities included a 2.5km boardwalk stroll through a temperate rainforest. For details of other attractions, including exploring the Jenolan limestone caves, visit www.scenicworld.com.au.

But it was an overnight stay at an old dairy farm near Leura, a quaint little town in the area, that was the most memorable. What surprised me were the five-star furnishings in this old building, known as Old Leura Dairy (www.oldleuradairy.com). It had five large rooms with huge beds. In its two courtyards were short plum trees laden with ripe fruits. There are also other lodgings of various sizes in this one-acre idyllic getaway.

I returned to Sydney late the next day and ended my visit with that inevitable pilgrimage to Chinatown, where I had dinner at the famed Golden Century Restaurant. I was off on a Qantas flight to Adelaide in South Australia the next morning.

For more information on Sydney, visit www.sydney.com and