Sydney (Part 1)

I really don't know where to start about Sydney.

We drove in, I thought it was very much like Boston. I wandered around it during the week I had there after the OzBUS trip and have come to the realisation that it's one of a handful of places that I've been on this whirlwind adventure that I think I could actually move my life to and happily live in. I was sad to leave it but I'll be back for a couple of days at the end of September so will make the most of that and see what I missed out on first time around (namely that Thai restaurant we couldn't wait a half hour to get into Todo! I won't be inviting you to come :P )

The first full day in Sydney passed by me in a bit of a hungover haze. Last night with OzBUS peeps so we partied hard..a little harder than I should have, and the baby guinness came out (I may well have to accept the Evil Triplet Ringleader title after all). I managed to drag myself out of bed around noon – the first morning we didn't have to be up and be somewhere in sooooo long. The furthest from the hostel that I ventured as a coffee shop around the corner for some banana bread and a cuppa to try clear the cobwebs. It didn't work to I went back to bed to rest up from the *cough* 3 months on the road..the hangover was a coincidence.

When I was feeling a little more bright and bubbly the next day I got up and out of the hostel at a reasonable time to go explore a little bit and get my first sight of the Opera House. My partners in crime for the day were Richard and Todd, both of whom wanted to get a look at the OH too. We strolled through Hyde Park admiring the place and wondering at how relaxing the atmosphere in Sydney is. It's a big city but doesn't have the same rushed pace and hurriedness about it as I've seen in other big cities. We were walking along minding our own business when all of a sudden, out of nowhere, the Opera House was right in front of us. We turned a corner, and bam, there it was. Crazy and soooo cool! We walked around it and through it and enquired about a tour for a later date before settling down to some lunch in the cafe on the Harbour Bridge side of the OH. I wanted to check out the Bridge in advance of my climb later that evening...it looked high! The people that were climbing it were like little ants crawling along it, I was pretty chuffed that I was going to be one of those ants in a few hours, and also slightly freaked out that I was going to be climbing it! After lunch we walked around Circular Quay, stopped for a drink on a rooftop bar and I left the boys to go check out The Rocks before making my way to the Climb office.

I got there in lots of time and found out that I was to be the only climber for the Discovery Climb at the time I'd booked in – a VIP tour with the sections of the bridge we were using all to myself along with the greatest guide, Kelly. The climb took about 3 hours and had me navigating through narrow corridors, over mesh walkways, up lots and lots of stair all the while connected to a wire running the length of the Bridge. It was INCREDIBLE! Thanks for the gift guys, it was truly awesome! When I got to the top and had had all the cheesy pictures taken I stood and admired the views over the whole of Sydney sparkling brightly below. I was standing there minding my own business trying to ignore the people from the Classic Climb who had arrived up a few minutes after me and were across the way having their photos taken when I spotted two people separated from the crowd standing closer to me than to their group and thought it a bit weird. Then the dude got down on one knee and I clocked what was happening. Not wanting to be part of or ruin their moment I tried to step back but was stuck in place so stood there silently while he did his thing...embarrassing! She said yes, it was a happy day :)

The next day a gang of us headed out to Palm Beach to visit Summer Bay and see if we could catch a glimpse of any of the Home & Away cast. No actors to be seen but the beach was beautiful. We had some snacks at the Surf Club and then headed for a stroll on the beach. Annie and I braved getting in for a dip and boy was the water cold...Brrrr! When we got back to Sydney Annie, Una and I headed to the Aquarium. We were expecting big things as it's advertised as Sydney's #1 Attraction – I was let down. It was cool and all, but it wasn't as magic as they seemed to think it was.

As we had got a combo ticket to get entry into Wildlife World, Una and I headed there the next day. Along the way we got sidetracked...I needed some warmer clothes than those I've been wearing (I sent warmer stuff home already doh!). After a bit of shopping by the hostel we headed off but again got waylaid and ended up in Paddy's Market in Chinatown rather than Wildlife World. It was like the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, but with less agro from the vendors so all was well with the world. When we eventually made our way to WW we were not let down. It had a whole lot more to see than I expected and we got to see our first koala bears. They even had some little baby ones to look at...sooo sweet!!

The final site I saw in Sydney was the Pylon Lookout on the harbour bridge. I'd got a free pass after the bridge climb so took advantage and headed off to see what it was like from that height. While I was doing this Una was off exploring the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Botanical Gardens – both things on my list of stuff to do when I get back there.

My last full day in Sydney was spent visiting my old neighbours from home, the Dempseys. I was a bit nervous about seeing them given it has been about 16 years since I last saw them, but I was soon put at ease. They're still as warm and friendly as they were then, welcoming me into their homes and taking me out to lunch to catch up. It's weird to see someone I grew up with in what's become their home speaking with an Aussie accent when she used to sound just like me! Apparently I look exactly the same as I did when I was 4...so they wouldn't have walked by me in the street if they'd seen me because they'd have figured out it was me ;)

We bade farewell to Sydney to fly to Broome for a few days before getting on our next bus adventure.