First post from Australia! We landed in Sydney at around 12:30pm last Tuesday. The flight was pretty smooth and after our insane day running around Hong Kong, we were quite ready to not be moving. Of course we had to go through customs and immigration which went quite smoothly. Considering our lack of visas less than 48 hours prior, this was a definite relief. We made our way through immigration, and then through customs, where we had to tell them that Sam’s kayak paddle had been in lakes and rivers in Hungary. I had never done that before, so I thought they’d have to take it out and inspect it or something, but the man just asked a few questions and sent us on our way! We were greeted by Ross, a friend of both my mom’s and Sam’s parents from QMC (where they went to college). Apparently this trip could be titled “Around the World with QMC.” It’s great fun though! Ross gave us the option of heading back to the house or going over to the famous Bondi Beach for a walk around and some lunch. I voted for the second option because I knew if we went back I would fall asleep immediately and never be able to function on the time change. So off to Bondi we went. It was so warm. And sunny. And I couldn’t believe I was there. Ross took us on the Bondi to Bronte walk along the coast. It was amazing to be out and moving the legs around. The coast was beautiful; I think coastal geology is my favorite. As an added bonus, the annual event called Sculpture by the Sea was being set up on the walk. Sculpture by the Sea is the world’s largest free to the public sculpture exhibition and this year they have 105 artists from 18 different countries. It was really cool to see before the throngs of people come for the opening weekend and even cooler to see how to put them together. The one I found the most interesting was being built up while we were there. You can see a photo of it here! It is cleaner bottles that are sculpted to look as though they are moving like birds. The people setting it up were digging around the bases and I was trying to figure out why, but that’s when I realized they had hoses; they were making the cleaners be able to actually squirt water! It was a pretty cool idea. We had lunch halfway through our walk while were are Bronte Beach and I had a marra (fish) burger. So fresh, so good. I definitely think that Bondi is worth a visit if you’re in Sydney, but it is packed with tourists on the weekends so maybe go during the week. This is true for the Bondi to Bronte walk as well. Don’t worry, there are plenty of other amazing beaches to see as well that won’t be quite as touristy. After the walk back from Bronte, we walked to the length of Bondi to take it all in before we headed back to the house. Plus, it was getting windy and looked as though it might rain. Which it did, once we were safe in the car. Getting the bags out was a little bit of an adventure though. We had dinner with the family that night and it feels so nice to be a part of normal life again. Wednesday was spent with Ross’ twin daughters, Morgan and Lauren. They gave us a little tour of Paddington, which is where Morgan works at a boutique. We went to Jackie’s Cafe for lunch, where I had some great sushi. It’s so nice to have some fresh fish, now that we’re not landlocked! Sydney, in general, has a great scene for foodies. There’s almost a never ending variety, just about every type of cuisine possible, and there’s something different around every corner. You really can’t go wrong. Perhaps broke, but not wrong. After lunch we walked around Paddington and did a bit of shopping. Well, window shopping for me because student loans, but that’s fine. There were a lot of little clothing boutiques, but according to Morgan there used to be a lot more in the area but now people have started doing their shopping at the malls instead. It’s a shame; the shops around Paddington are more quaint and unique than the alternative. From there we went to Potts Point, which is where Lauren works at a salon. She is a hairdresser and makeup artist, and she is very good. We walked around a bit before Lauren had to go to work, and then the remaining three of us headed over to Rose Bay, where Sam was meeting a friend of her dad’s that has a surfski that he said she could train on. All the places I’ve named so far (Paddington, Potts Point, Rose Bay) are all suburbs of Sydney. As a city, Sydney is pretty spread out, but the public transportation system is expansive and easy to use. After Sam’s paddle, we picked up dinner on the way home and then took off for Gelato Messina for desert. The rave reviews we were given were not disappointed. It was very good. And I officially need to stop eating dessert. Thursday was a good day! We took the ferry into Circular Quay, which puts us right near The Rocks, which is one of the oldest places in Australia. The Rocks was built in Sydney Cove shortly after Australia’s first European settlement in 1788, and it sits across Sydney Cove from the Sydney Opera House and directly south of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was surreal being on the ferry when BAM casual Sydney Opera House to your left. I’ve had a few “wow, I’m really here” moments on this trip and that was one of them. Especially when you look around at the commuters sitting near you who don’t even glance up (Um man in suit looking at iphone excuse me can’t you see that marvelous piece of architecture over there why is no one else as excited as I am literally no one this is insane is this my real life). Once we were off the ferry, we went in the direction of the Harbour Bridge because we had booked to do the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb! It’s a tad in the expensive side, so it might be a miss for intense budget travelers, but even in that case I think it would be worth it to do and be tighter with your money elsewhere. I won’t give you step by step details because I think that’s all in the experience, but the jumpsuits were fab. My only fear was that it would rain while we were up there, which would have been a bit of a bummer. We would have still gone because the company will not cancel a climb for anything less than lightning and/or hurricane force winds, but it wouldn’t have been as enjoyable. Luckily, my fear was for naught. Our climb was cloudy and gray but no rain! We learned some interesting things about the bridge while we were on the climb:
Pretty cool, right?! And a great example as to why I think bridges are ultra fascinating. From engineering, historical and storytelling perspectives. We walked around afterwards, taking photos of the bridge and the Opera House. However, it started raining pretty much right as we got off the bridge, so it was short lived before we ran back to catch the ferry to go home. The next day was pretty full. Tanya, Ross’ wife, took us into the Blue Mountains, which is about a 2 hour drive from their house in Sydney. The mountains are named so for the blue hue that they seem to don when looking from a distance. This happens because they are blanketed by large forests of eucalypts, which discharge a light mist of oil from their leaves when hit by the sun. The resulting mist then refracts the sunlight, which makes the mountains look blue. We stopped at Echo Point Lookout to take in one of the Blue Mountains most famous features, the Three Sisters. This sandstone rock formation was built by erosion, but of course that’s no fun so I’ll tell you the Aboriginal story behind them. The legend goes that there were three sisters who lived in Jamison Valley (which is below where the Three Sisters rock formation sits) that were members of the Katoomba tribe who conveniently fell in love with three brothers. Inconveniently, tribal laws forbade them to marry. The brothers decided that they didn’t like that so they took to the battlefield in order to capture the sisters by force. For their own protection, a witchdoctor from the Katoomba tribe turned the sisters into stone. Personally, I don’t see how that’s helpful, but I’m not a witchdoctor so I won’t try to tell him how to do his job. He had meant to reverse the spell once the battle was over but he was killed. Naturally, he was the only one who could reverse the spell, so the sisters are now destined to be a rock formation forever. There is an alternative story, but it also involves a witchdoctor turning the sisters to stone with a magic bone for their protection and then subsequently losing the magic bone which was the only way of turning them back. I won’t bore you with the details. Moral(s) of the story: don’t turn people to stone. It doesn’t help. Or teach someone else how to reverse it, since apparently witchdoctors are lousy warriors. And don’t lose your magic bones. But it really is a lovely rock formation. From a geologic standpoint. We then went over to Scenic World, which houses some attractions in order to take in the most from the Blue Mountains. You can buy an unlimited ride day pass for all the different things to see and it really makes for a spectacular day in the rainforest. We started with a ride on the scenic railway. This is the steepest funicular railway in the world, reaching a max of 52 degrees over a distance of 310 meters into the valley. It was originally constructed to haul the coal and shale from the valley floor to the escarpment above in the 1880’s. The coal mine was closed in 1945 but the railway remained a tourist attraction, since they had started taking passengers down and back on weekends starting in 1928. Honestly, it was really very cool. And a little nerve racking. Especially when you imagine riding it without all the safety features we have today. From there, we walked along a piece of the scenic walkway, which is a boardwalk built down the valley under the tree cover of the rainforest. Tanya hadn’t been back in a few years, and was telling us how much fancier and done up it was since the last time she was there. I very much enjoyed it. The piece we did went by the site of the old mine and featured a section on how they pumped air into the tunnels for the workers. And there is 1000 kilometers worth of mine tunnels! That’s an immense amount underground. We rode back up on the scenic cableway, which is the steepest and longest aerial cable car in the southern hemisphere. It was just beautiful, rising up from the rainforest and being able to take in the whole view. Our last little excursion was on the scenic skyway across the gorge above Katoomba Falls. At its highest point, it is 270 meters above the valley floor. It features a glass bottom in the middle, so if you want to look down and marvel the option is there! All in all, Scenic World was well worth it, especially if you plan on being out in the Blue Mountains already. Tanya then treated us to high tea at the Hydro Majestic, a historical hotel with amazing panoramic views of the Blue Mountains. It was beautiful and so delicious! It came out served on a three-tiered stand and everything. I cannot even begin to describe how lucky I felt to be there. On the way out, we took a photo for two ladies who had come to visit since it was where their grandparents had been married in the 1920’s. So much heritage and tradition. Also, I wasn’t asked for my ID with my glass of champagne. Which obviously I had run back to the car for. We went out for dinner and drinks that night. Remember what I said about food? Can’t go wrong. But I also highly suggest Cho Cho San if you want Japanese cuisine, a cool atmosphere and are near to Potts Point. For drink after we went to The London, which was close by in Paddington. Reasonably priced drinks, and I’ve been told the food is good and also reasonably priced. Might have to check it out since I’m here another week or so. Saturday and Sunday were lazy, recharge days. I worked on the tan by the pool, did some reading, procrastinated on the blog, etc. I did do something exciting though! Well, I didn’t really do it, Ross did. But I was literally along for the ride. He took me for a spin around Sydney on his motorcycle! And it was awesome. Not 100% sure that I’ll be running out for my motorcycle license any time soon, but it was such a cool experience. It’s a little hard to explain because all the words I’m picking don’t seem to do it justice, but you get such a different view of the world from a motorcycle then you do a car. It’s a lot more freeing. And you know that feeling that I was talking about, how you get a wave of “wow I’m really here”? The whole time on the bike, that’s all I could think. Saturday night we went to dinner with the whole crew to their favorite restaurant, China Doll. It was so good. Upwards of the best meal I’ve ever had. So many flavors and amazing seafood choices. Especially the scallops. After dinner, I went out with the girls for drinks and a dance in Double Bay. There are quite a few bars within walking distance and it made for a very fun night! Monday was a beach day. Tanya dropped Sam and I off very early at Manly Beach. Where I then discovered that my bank has denied me access to my debit card. Yay. Good thing mom is on the case! We got some smoothies for breakfast before posting up for a nice three hour lay out on the beach. Manly is gorgeous, and since we went on a Monday it felt like there was no one there! Once we had gotten a little hot and restless, we walked back up the Corso, which connects the beach to the wharf. It’s the main walking street in Manly and has a lot of shops with air conditioning that we could duck into and peruse whilst also cooling down. We then did a very small walk from Manly Beach to Shelly Beach. Shelly Beach is where a lot of people learn how to scuba dive, and snorkeling is popular because the water is secluded and there are herds (schools?) of seahorses that shelter there. During the walk, we kept seeing signs about protecting the Australian water dragons, which are a type of lizard. We thought they’d all be hiding but then, lo and behold, we saw one! It was pretty shy until it realized we just wanted photos and then he stopped to pose for the camera. Once we went back to Manly, we had mexican for lunch and spent a little more time on the beach before catching the ferry back to Sydney proper. That ferry ride is a must do. You sit at the front of the boat, getting the wind in your face and catch a stunning view of the city on the way in. Amazing. We walked around the Opera House before catching the ferry back to the house. We took a tour of the Opera House yesterday (or today for you, this time change is weird), but this post is long enough already so I’ll tell you all about that on the next post that I promise will be more timely. Catch ya later!
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Meet AnyaHi, Hola, Bonjour, Ciao!
I’m Anya Phillips, a data analyst and travel enthusiast who is always on the lookout for the next adventure! Categories
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