So much for a quiet night in. One good thing about living in a shared house with other interns is that you get to share ideas, have other people to go and see the sights with, and if you're lucky have someone else who shares your hobbies.

We fell lucky. One of our housemates also likes taking photos (our new found hobby it has to be said) and given that he only had a week to go before leaving Sydney we agreed to go with him to take some final shots of the city. We all seem to have the 'normal' daytime shots, but this was an opportunity to get some of the city at night, and it does look amazing at night.

We started off at Darling Harbour, with hoards of other people who were out enjoying themselves, partying the night away but we were there on a mission; to take the ultimate night time snap. So we headed away from the party and onto some of the walkways that overlook the harbour. It was absolutely freezing up there - the wind goes right through you. Night time is about the only time you can really believe it's winter here. What we needed was a nice hot drink, and in true style there was a Starbucks right behind us. Coincidence or not?

Darling harbour is a beautiful place, but there are only so many photos you can take, and we took them all. All the pieces of street art, the water features and captured the general atmosphere. So it was time to move on.

Our next stop was Circular Quay to capture Harbour bridge and the infamous Opera House. You just can't leave Sydney without both. How to get there was the problem; too cold to walk so we opted to get a water taxi - it would have been a first for all of us except a glance at our watches told us we were too late. The water taxis stop running at 9pm, and it was almost 11:30! As they say time flies when you're having fun! We really had no idea we'd already spent almost 2 hours just taking photos, but with that new piece of knowledge we then couldn't believe how busy everywhere still was. Not just people out at the clubs and bars, but people just taking a stroll too. Sydney never sleeps.

We jumped in a taxi (with the meter already reading $2.50, which the driver said was standard)and made our slow journey to Circular Quay. We honestly thought it could have been quicker walking, but we didn't want to be chilled to our bones. The journey cost us almost $15 - not a mistake we'd make again.

Circular Quay was almost as busy at almost midnight as it is at lunchtime. The one thing that really surprised us was that it wasn't just full of drunken people - people had been out for a drink but obviously in moderation. Just a happy atmosphere - and most of it in McDonalds (yes - we broke our golden rule again, but what else can you do at that time of night?)We made a conscious effort to get something different though - and an McAussie was the obvious way to go - after all where else in the world would you find that? Unfortunately it wasn't kangaroo or any other Aussie delicacy but a regular Mc... with extra salad (a huge slab of beetroot was the obvious addition). All fuelled up again it was time for some serious photography.

We snapped all around the harbour, looking out to the bridge all lit up, watched the last ferries of the day come and go and enjoyed the relative tranquility of the harbour at night. During the day you can barely move for people, but we were almost the only ones there, and it was even more the case down by the Opera House. Empty. The only time we've been able to see all of the steps. Bliss. Perfect opportunity.

Then we headed round to the other side of the Quay for another angle - only to be told they were locking the gates to the waters edge. Guess our time was up. Things just weren't going our way after that - we'd spot a perfect picture and the lights would go out, the gates would be locking or something else would happen. It was a sign to say enough.

With our lesson learnt about not catching taxis across the city (although there was far less traffic now - it was 3am) we decided to take a (brisk - it was cold)walk to Town Hall and catch the night bus home. What an ingenious system the night bus is. After all, the regular buses have stopped, the stations are closed and it seems Sydney central still teems with life at all hours. Nothing like other capital cities we've been in - people are still relatively sober, there's not even a bad vibe you feel in some cities at night. And there was no chance of anyone being sick on the bus. That was a big bonus. The only danger there was on the bus was falling asleep and missing your stop - which would have been a really bad plan as they don't stop everywhere, and they only run 2 per hour.

We timed it just right for our next bus, and made it home to our comfy, warm beds for 4am (after a cuppa of course - we are real English tea fanatics!)