Sydney cheers as sea of white marches by

Central Sydney has been turned into a sea of white with almost 5,000 navy personnel
marching up George Street marking their Freedom of Entry into the city.
Saturday morning shoppers clapped and cheered, while store workers peered out from
their shops as the parade passed the historical Queen Victoria Building en route
from The Rocks to Liverpool Street in the biggest display of naval force in
Australia for 20 years.
Rear Admiral Nigel Coates, the commander of the Australian fleet, proudly joined in
the pomp and pageantry.
"It makes them feel 10 feet tall and bullet proof," Rear Admiral Coates said of the
attention afterwards while flashing a boyish smile.
At The Rocks, Governor-General Quentin Bryce inspected and chatted with several of
the 4,600 naval personnel before the march began, and fulfilled the Navy's annual
tradition of presenting its Gloucester Cup to the most outstanding ship in the
fleet.
This year, the honours went to HMAS Parramatta, which has recently returned to
Australia after a six-month deployment in the Arabian gulf.
The symbolic right to march through the streets was `won' after a brief challenge by
New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione and Lord Mayor Clover Moore.
A scroll was presented affirming the Navy's right to enter the City of Sydney and
the march began.
"It's very cool, there's nothing quite like military precision," Sandy Luke, on
business in Sydney from Washington DC, told AAP.
The parade continued past Town Hall and on to Liverpool Street before the marchers
dispersed in Sussex Street.
Jonathan Poulton and Greg Launder, from HMAS Albatros, said the occasion was a
chance to catch up with friends from other ships they had not seen for a few years.
Rear Admiral Coates hinted it would be less than 20 years before the next big naval
display.
"In 2011, it will be our 100th birthday," he said.
"So, we'll have a bit of a splash for that.
"It's not every day you turn 100."
Saturday's parade marked the end of a six-week naval training exercise.
"It's been a very great test of all our skills and training that we've been putting
them through over the last six weeks," Rear Admiral Coates said.