Day 3 – Arriving in Australia and exploring Sydney
We landed in Sydney at 8am on a sunny winter morning (although it was still 13 degrees!). We were very excited that the first Australian we met, the immigration guy, was called Bruce! Seriously! Chris and I were trying to subtly point it out to each other without drawing attention to ourselves or giggling. The kids were of course oblivious.
Finding the train station was easy, but when we tried to buy a ticket they advised that a taxi would probably be cheaper for four. After checking it out online an Uber was cheaper, but not by much so we chose the more sustainable and fun option of the train.
The T8 took us to St James’s station where we walked through Hyde Park (are we in London?) to the fountain and the St Mary’s Cathedral. This park has a great view back to the city and we saw some local birdlife (an Australian White/Sacred Ibis).
Our hostel, the Elephant Backpacker’s, was about a 10 minute walk from the station. As our flight to Aus had been delayed by a day we had a room from the night before and arrived just in time for breakfast 😊. After some cereal and a tea we checked into our first hostel room. High ceilings and our own fireplace – not bad. The piles of dust in the corners had my allergies worried though…
Having not slept since Saturday night really (it’s now Wednesday) we were feeling pretty rough, especially me. We were determined to head out as this was our only sunny day in Sydney – rain was forecast for the next two days ☹. I was feeling sick though so we decided to have a quick nap for an hour. Worked a treat for Chris and the kids but not me – I’ve never been good at napping and sleep evaded me.
We headed out regardless and did a lovely loop of Mrs Macquarie’s Chair, the Botanic Gardens (where we stopped for an emergency lunch which totally broke the budget as Evie and I were fading fast), and the Opera House. We’re not generally city people but we really liked the views across the parks to the CBD. From the side we were staying on it seemed that the tall office buildings of the CBD are surrounded by green parks. We were pretty much the only walkers on this route, everyone was out running, presumably on their lunch breaks.
At the Opera House we joked about how massive the ticket prices would be and decided to go in and ask for a laugh. It turns out that they reduce tickets with a day or two to go so they were $70 each to see Westside Story the Musical. We thought it was actually pretty good value as we’d get to see the inside of the Opera House in all its engineering glory so booked in for the following evening. How many times do you get an opportunity like this!?
We stopped for an ice cream and then heading back through Circular Quay a street performer (who made it to Australia’s got talent quarter finals) was about to start so we settled in. We were all grateful for an excuse to sit in the shade.
Aiden was picked to be his assistant and got to hold the knives. Jokingly the man asked Aiden if he could juggle them and he tried! First person to have ever actually had a go apparently! Luckily they’re not sharp (or he wouldn’t give them to kids to hold I hope) so Aiden didn’t get cut when he failed and caught the blade. Muppet!! Our little man also got to throw the performer’s helmet up to him on his tall unicycle. Third time lucky! Aiden loved it and Chris also got to hold the unicycle for him. I love it when you find these little unplanned gems.
Back via the shops for some food to cook for dinner.
Daily update:
Healthy eating rating: Not great…using jet lag as an excuse.
Cereal, Fish and chips, ice creams and Chicken Korma.
Sustainability rating: Medium
Bought packaging free vegetables where possible,
Bird species seen: 9
Day 4 – Jet lag and A Westside Story
Jet leg is causing chaos so we slept in. For some reason I seem to be unable to sleep between 1 and 6am at the moment ☹ and Chris keeps stirring. Luckily the kids are pretty much sleeping through. Aiden doesn’t seem to have suffered at all. Guess I should be pleased rather than jealous…
It seems we arrived in Sydney in time for the first two days of rain in the last two months ☹. Thank goodness we got out yesterday to explore – nothing looks as good in the rain. We had planned to head out to some of the beaches and walk about, but after a lazy morning looking out the window at the rain we wussed out and ate our sandwiches in the hostel. This was the first day in five that we weren’t changing country or living location so the kids just wanted to stay in one place and play with their toys. Fair enough really.
We did have to head out though as my shoes of choice for the trip were already proving uncomfortable! My road running shoes hurt my little toes both in Manila and Sydney (despite having been fine for many miles of running?). Perhaps they’re getting old. Cue a frustrating walk across town to Pace Athletic. Seemingly in Australia jaywalking is also not allowed so everyone waits for the green man. In Sydney these can take a good few minutes a time, which really slows up a 15 minute walk in a downpour! We made friends in Pace with a lovely NZ guy and after lengthy chats about travelling, NZ and running I bought some new trainers and then a cake at this awesome health food shop – Health Nuts (Darlinghurst Road, Kings Cross).
The rain had eased on the way back so we were able to take in the sights a little more. The Australian house style is not what I was expecting, with lots of these lovely houses with balconies with intricate railings. I like this city.
Early dinner before we headed out in the rain to the Opera House for the show. There are bars with amazing views across the bay to the bridge, and you can see the massive concrete structure well from the inside. It was also pretty amazing to be sat inside one of the domes as you can really see the shape to remind you where you are.
The show itself was a slightly operatic version of Westside Story which we didn’t all love. Aiden really wasn’t impressed, but Chris and Evie loved it. A pretty amazing experience for the money. On the way back Aiden spotted a Possum in a tree. We’re doing a scoring system for who can see the main Aussie animals first so Aiden gets a point there.
Daily update:
Healthy eating rating: Better.
Cereal, Tuna and sweetcorn sandwiches with cucumber and Vegetables and black beans in tomato and paprika sauce with rice.
Sustainability rating: Medium
Reused bags and water bottles.
Bird species seen: 9
Points: Aiden 1
Day 5 – The road trip across Australia starts
Woke up super grumpy at still having not slept. How long does jetlag last?? My mood was not helped by the continuing rain.
We had a couple of hours to kill so headed out to towards the State Library but popped into the NSW Art Gallery instead as it started to rain heavily. I’m not into art at all really. Chris is more into it, but we enjoyed walking around the galleries with the kids talking about famous artists like Van Gogh and Picasso and picking our favourites. There were a few pieces which were film and we sat and watched. The kids favourite was one with two ladies with woven animal heads representing the relationship of Cambodia and China through traditional Cambodian dance. This involved a lot of rolling across the sand with their feet entwined. The kids intend to recreate this at some point so watch their page when we get to Cambodia!
After sandwiches for lunch back at the hostel we waited for a break in the rain to head to the station. Thinking we’d gotten one we quickly pulled on the backpacks only to be hit by possibly the heaviest shower of the day. Which of course stopped the moment we arrived at the station. Typical! Back to the airport to pick up our car, say goodbye to Sydney and drive out to Katoomba in the Blue Mountains.
TBC…