I sometimes wonder why tourists, when they prepare their must-do list, include a city's and a country's most popular attractions when those sights are struggling with over-tourism. When I’ve stopped over in Sydney, I’ve found it's easier to take care of the must-do iconic attractions from the plane window rather than tootling around the city for a few days. On my last visit to Sydney, I spent a few days wandering around Barangaroo, enjoying fish and chips at Watsons Bay, gazing in awe at the wood escalator sculpture at Wynard Railway Station, and eating roast vegetables at the David Jones Food Hall. Inspired by the spirit of adventure, I decided to go on a 2-hour Saturday night dusk Haunted History Tour of Cockatoo Island. Cockatoo Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Sydney Harbour and is a short ferry ride from the CBD. The island is a source of intrigue and inspiration because of its convict history and heritage buildings. As the Sydney settlement grew from a colony into a city, its convict prison built became an industrial school and reformatory for girls, and later a prison barracks. Over the years, the islands sandstone foreshores were blasted with gunpowder to construct a dry dock for shipbuilding and repair and then a naval shipyard. A perfect setting for a Haunted History Tour. It seemed as if the noisy island glamping campers wandering about exploring their overnight island and the One Electric Day festival spooked the ghosts because our tour group didn't have any paranormal experiences.

<p>This episode is also available as a blog at <a href="https://drinkingwithflies.wordpress.com/">drinkingwithflies.wordpress.com</a></p>