Easter Break Part II: Sydney

After taking the bus and then a train back to Geelong, I took a shower at my own apartment before spending the night at a friend's apartment. With a 6:50 am flight I had to take a 3:45 am bus from the train station to the airport. My choices were to spend money on an Uber in the middle of the night, or spend the night within walking distance of the train station and just walk. Thanks, Martyna!

Day 1

Traveling around this continent without a car feels like Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. The airport was mostly uneventful, except for Tiger Air charging Nina, Angela, and I $75 each for going over our luggage weight allowance. We had all kept to the luggage maximum of one carry on and one personal item, but heck if I know how much 15 kg weighs. Clearing security to fly domestically in Australia was a bizarre experience. I never once showed my passport, ID, or boarding pass to anyone. I didn't have to take my shoes off and didn't have to remove my liquids (there isn't a liquid restriction). The Canadians and I were shocked. Then the whole luggage situation happened and we were just annoyed. After a 16 hour flight, the one hour flight to Sydney felt like the blink of an eye. As soon as we landed we changed into swimsuits, dropped our stuff off at the AirBnb, and took an Uber to Bondi Beach. The water was as clear as glass and bluer than the sky. Considering I woke up at 3 am, I definitely took a nap in the sand. It felt amazing. We made our way back to our AirBnb, showered, and settled in a bit more. We met another couple staying at the same AirBnb named Sarah and Dustin who then invited us out to dinner. It was at this random pub that a pennant for the state of Iowa was flying!

Day 2

Before I continue much further I should clarify who "we" are here. On this trip was Nina, Nina's friend Angela (visiting from Canada), Daniel, Nick (another friend of Nina and Angela's who is studying here as well), and me. We got up the next morning and headed for Central Train Station, where we caught a Hop On Hop Off tour bus. I had never been on one before, and I've come to decide that they are a great way to see a big city! We saw everything iconic and learned a lot. One highlight of the day was lunch. We got to eat at the top of the Sydney Tower, which has a revolving floor to see most of the city while eating. I'll include a video at the end. The Sydney Opera House was obviously another highlight! It was even more beautiful up close. Fun fact: the Sydney Harbor Bridge was built in the 1930s at the height of the Depression, and was nicknamed the Iron Lung because it provided full time jobs to so many men for such a long time.

Day 3

Saturday we got back on the bus only to get off almost immediately at the Chinese Friendship Gardens. The gardens were beautiful beyond belief, and we saw at least three huge lizards. We then took the bus to the next stop where we went through Madame Tussod's Wax Museum, and Sydney's Sea Life Aquarium. Both of those exhibits were absolutely stunning! The was museum was more fun than we anticipated, and the aquarium was huge. I fulfilled my dream of seeing all the various fish from Finding Nemo at the Sydney Harbor! To end the day we took a boat tour around the harbor and watched the sunset on the harbor. While there isn't much to write about Saturday, there are plenty of pictures! (By the way, thank you, Stallmans, for the fun shirt!!!)

Chinese Friendship Gardens

Madame Tussod's plus a delicious lunch

Sydney Sea Life Aquarium

Captain Cook's Cruises

Day 4

For our final day in Sydney we actually headed out of the city. We rented a FlexiCar and drove a couple hours west to hike in the Blue Mountains. Yes, I can drive in Australia. :) Our hike started out innocently enough. We headed towards the Three Sisters Walk to see the famous landmark of the Blue Mountains (the Three Sisters). We saw some stairs branching off from the walk and figured it was where the trail continued. Twenty minutes later we finally reached the bottom. When I say stairs I mean at least an eight inch drop for every stair. By the bottom, my quads were dead and shaking. We hiked a few kilometers in one direction and decided to keep going. Long story short, it was a hard hike. And in our case, what goes down must come up. There's no way to sugarcoat it: climbing what we would later find out to be 2,200 feet uphill in stairs was hell. After we finally emerged near the trailhead of the original walk, I decided I had earned a sticker for my water bottle. We ate a well deserved lunch and drove back to the AirBnb. As far as soreness goes, let's just say that a full six days later I am finally feeling well enough to climb stairs without grimacing. I definitely had to walk backwards down the stairs the first few days after the hike.

Blue Mountains

Day 5

Not a ton happened on our travel day back to Geelong, except the frustration of an annoying airport day. My bag got pulled aside for my marching band lyre that I forgot was in my backpack, and then I got randomly selected for drug/explosive testing. All of this after waiting for three hours in the atrium of the airport to finally be able to check my bag in. But I made it! And it was a really great trip!

Today marks 2/3 of my time here, and I can't believe how fast it's gone. Rachel is coming to visit in 3.5 weeks, and two weeks after she's here I go home!

Some videos from Sydney.

Lunch in the Sydney Tower

Madame Tussod's

Penguin Exhibit at the Aquarium

The Great Staircase (Hell)