As countdown to Olympics continues, Sydney is primed to party

The Sydney Harbour Bridge towers over Sydney's prized waters

By Shanon Cook
Special to CNN.com

SYDNEY, Australia (CNN) -- A little more than 200 years ago, a hulking, leaking boat, laden with hundreds of criminals weary from months at sea, sailed into a harbor on Australia's southeastern coast.

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It was their new home, and an uninviting one at that. A dumping ground for undesirables from Britain's overcrowding jails, Sydney Harbour in 1788 offered a rugged welcome to those first European settlers from so far away.

Now, the harbor, one of the showpieces of a city preparing to host the 2000 Olympic Games, turns a different face to the world.

Friends on yachts greet their weekend with glasses of champagne. Suit-clad commuters step on ferries that carry them away from the cluster of skyscrapers that make up a bustling city center. The one-time penal colony has become a temporary party central for the world.

On September 15, when spring is beginning to warm Australia, an estimated 8 million people are expected to visit central Sydney for three weeks while nations send their best to compete in the Olympic Games.

The Sydney Opera House, top and center, and Double Bay, one of Sydney Harbour's many bays

Painted, pretty and poised, Sydney is ready to party.

Visitors won't need a ticket to the sporting events to have a good time, said Sydney Lord Mayor Frank Sartor. The city will offer free entertainment from September 15 until October 1, he said.

"Indeed, we are organizing 18 days and nights of continuous entertainment which the world won't forget," he said.

The festivities are to revolve around six sites scattered throughout the city. Screens that measure 30 square meters (36 square yards) each will broadcast live games coverage throughout the day. At night, the sites will host parties of varying themes.

For example, a dance club will operate into the early hours at the live site at Martin Place. At the Domain, a medley of jazz, symphony and country music will feature performances by national artists such as Savage Garden and Yothy Yindi, an indigenous band. Circular Quay, on the harbor, will offer a circus theme.

The entertainment at the sites is set to kick off when the Olympic Torch arrives in the city center on Thursday, September 14, a day before the official Opening Ceremony. The torch's final leg will be broadcast on all live site screens around the city.

The Sydney 2000 Olympic Arts Festival also promises a range of cultural and entertainment events before and during the games. The six-week festival, scheduled to begin Friday, will offer dance, music and visual arts exhibitions from 4,000 international and Australian artists.

The Fruit Fly Circus, or the "Fruities," are expected to perform as part of the Sydney Olympic Arts Festival

A circus will be in town, too. Acrobatic stunts and spinning balls of fire will form part of the Flying Fruit Fly Circus - the "Fruities," as the act is popularly known. A group of young performers, the circus started more than 20 years ago as a school holiday workshop for kids in rural Australia, and has grown into a popular act that now tours the globe.

Another highlight promises to be the Bangarra Dance Theatre, an Australian ensemble performing at the Sydney Opera House Theatre. Bangarra combines the cultural traditions of aboriginals and islanders with contemporary dance moves. In "Skin," for example, Bangarra explores the lives of aboriginal desert women and the challenges faced by aboriginal men living in contemporary urban society.

The Domain, in Sydney's city center, will be transformed into an Olympic Live Site complete with a giant screen to broadcast sporting events

Olympics festivities aside, Sydney offers visitors all sorts of wonders and attractions. Bondi, Manly and Bronte beaches should satisfy even the most demanding sun seekers. A harbor cruise or sailing expedition is always a great way to see the city's many bays and inlets.

Those wanting to sample Sydney as a local should order fish and chips, and perhaps wash that down with a beer at a harborside pub at Watson's Bay.

Or the adventurous wanting to get a real look at the city might want to ascend to the arches of the Sydney Harbour Bridge - all 1,439 steps of it.

The Bangarra Dance Theatre

Spanning 1,149 meters (3,770 feet) and towering over Sydney's sparkling harbor, the bridge (nicknamed "the coathanger") has been open to climbers for two years through Bridgeclimb, an organized group. The climb, which does not require Olympic-caliber fitness, takes three hours to complete.

The view is "fantastic," says Sally Stoyles, a climb leader. "It's got to be the best view of Sydney. On most days you can see the Blue Mountains to the west and out to the Pacific Ocean to the east."

The Harbour Bridge, along with the Opera House, is expected to come into focus for the grand finale for the Games. After the Closing Ceremony at the Olympic Stadium, the harbor foreshore will stage a giant fireworks display.

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