Sydney

After sending Mom and Dad home, I had another trip up my sleeve…I was en route to Sydney! No better time than the present to explore Australia’s other major city (arguably the more famous of the two). This trip’s blogs aren’t exactly in chronological order, this post will have  my first and last two days, then a separate post will be up for my time in the Blue Mountains. A little confusing, but I think it’ll work 😉.

Day 1

I landed, took the train from the airport(!! Melbourne could learn a thing or two – apparently there is one in the works with an ETA of 2035). I was off to Circular Quay (pronounced “key”), one of two transit hubs, the other being Sydney Central. A quick stop at my hostel to drop off my belongings, and off I went. I caught a ferry to the Taronga Zoo (part of their public transit system!) that gave me lovely harbour views. At the zoo, I moseyed around for about an hour before it stopped being fun. Between the heat, humidity, and lack of sleep from the night before, I just wasn’t having the best time. I had lunch at the zoo, ferried back, and took a three hour nap. It was GLORIOUS. 

Because Kate sucks at sitting still, I went out for a walk in the evening across the harbour bridge (which is another one of Sydney’s icons, after the opera house) to and around North Sydney, then caught another ferry back. The opera house is so pretty at night! 

I had an early night, because I wanted to do the Bondi (“bond-eye”) Beach to Coogee (“cuh-jee”) walk at sunrise to beat the sun and heat. The sunrise was just before 6, so I set my alarm for four to catch the bus to Bondi to start at 5.

Day 2

I failed miserably, I turned off my alarm while (whilst if I want to channel my inner Aussie) half asleep and slept until 6:20, waking up very grumpy about it already being sunny and hot. But, once my common sense also woke up, I realized that it was still plenty early, so I got my butt in gear and found a bus to start the walk around 7:30. It was already HOT. And I didn’t realize just how humid Sydney is, being the distance from the equator as Los Angelos. Since Sydney is on the east coast, the sun was beating down against the shoreline and toasty warm. The walk was busy, but gorgeous:

I stopped en route for a smoothie in Bronte (“Brontie”) and an iced coffee once I got to Coogee around 9, anything to cool me off! I was getting together with friends to celebrate a birthday later in the day, and Jayde (also from Manitoba!) invited me over to hang out before our birthday barbie on the beach. 

We headed back to Coogee around 11 and hung out, managing to snag a shaded picnic pavilion near a barbecue that is free for public use. Another thing Australia has going for them: all the public spaces! It was a lovely afternoon, we played volleyball, had our barbecue, and ate cake. What more could you want?

I headed home to get ready for the evening. Many of Sydney’s high-traffic bus stops have designated drop off and pick up zones, helping to manage congestion. We were going out in Bondi to celebrate the birthday girl and it was a culture shock for me! I haven’t really gone out in Melbourne, and I forgot just how busy and LOUD bars are. We had the BEST sweet potato fries at Salty’s, with blue cheese dip – highly recommend! Summer in Bondi is busy, but it was a nice change of pace! 

Then I went to the Blue Mountains – stay tuned for that post!

Day 5

When I arrived back to Sydney proper, I took a fast ferry (aka direct ferry) to Manly and hiked around Sydney Harbour National Park. The north coast of the Manly peninsula was absolutely stunning too:

That evening I got to have perogies for dinner! Jayde found them at Woolies, and they weren’t half bad. I also got to be the spider conquerer, rescuing this bad boy from the bathtub (and then proceeding to set it free off the balcony):

Day 6

My last day in Sydney was uneventful, because my sunrise kayak tour got cancelled due to the potential for thunderstorms 😭. I had a slower paced day, not wanting to get all hot and smelly for my flight home in the afternoon. An excursion to the Australian Museum, where I spent close to two hours perusing the “100 Greatest Treasures” exhibit. This exhibit contains a selection of the most significant artefacts, and some supporting items to provide context. I loved it, as I find my brain tends to get “full” after a while, so it was nice knowing I was getting the cream of the crop, so to speak. As a bonus, the museum had a bag check, so I didn’t have to carry around my backpack and trusty Coles bag the entire time!

After the museum, I decided to treat myself: bubble tea AND sushi. It was the nicest lunch, I went to a place that has a sushi train, a conveyor of plates that circulates and you can pluck off whatever suits your fancy. Then I was off to the airport, and back to Melbourne!

See you soon!

Kate