Thursday, August 26, 2010

Thursday morning we woke up and had the morning to ourselves.  Then around midday, we drove to Bondi Beach!  There we sat near the beach, and a few of the crazy boys got in the ocean, I don't know why because it was freezing outside, and even colder in the water I am sure! I brought my swim suit, but there was no way I was getting in the water, especially because I got a cold the night before, so I was wearing a hundred layers and trying to sweat it out! Too much partying and adventures, and not enough sleep!  Then we walked the coastal walk from Bondi to Clovelly Beach.  It is the most beautiful walk in the world I think! Lots of cliffs, beautiful water, people surfing, running, and just enjoying the amazing landscape.  The walk also goes by a graveyard!  Those dead bodies have one of the best views of the ocean in Sydney! I want to be buried there! But the girls might remember that when we were there we had to walk around the cemetery because they were doing construction.  Now there is a great boardwalk that is right above the water and cliffs, with spots to sit and take pictures!  It isn't the easiest of walks, but I managed, and I think sweating helped me get over the cold (so did the tons of vitamin c pills I kept eating throughout the day!).  When we got to Clovelly Beach, one of the OzIntro Guides had set up a BBQ!  It was mostly meat, but I made a great cheese sandwich and had salad!  The walk really worked up our appetite though.  After we all went down to the beach to play volleyball.  My team lost twice, but it was tons of fun.  I also threw a rugby ball around for the first time!  I kept wanting to throw it like a football! It is weird throwing it to the side.

After volleyball, I wanted to finish the walk back to Coogee instead of getting a ride.  Why waste the beautiful views in a van? Even if I was sick! We got back and had to go to the OzIntro office where the explained how to find work, how to find places to live, and all the best places to backpack to.  I was the only one looking for work in Sydney, the rest are travelling up to Cairns and riding the bus slowly back down to Sydney or Brisbane for work.  After the talk, I went out to dinner with two of the girls, had a great fish sandwich!  Then the boys wanted to go out, but none of the girls did.  Of course, I chose to go out with the boys, and was the only girl!  We went to a nearby bar that had an awesome, and massive, outdoor courtyard.  Then inside there was two man band playing covers of John Mayer and what not. So we watched that for a bit but got bored! Ha.  We headed to another bar called the Palace in Coogee, and played some pool.  Then we all headed back to the hostel for some much needed sleep!

Wednesday, August 25th 2010

I woke up pretty hungover from the night before.  Backpacker bars are crazy, and I was out till 3 am, and I was still a little jet lagged.  But we woke up and drove down to Circular Quay.  We saw the aboriginal men playing their didgeridoos and danced for a little bit before we got on the ferry.  The ferry is one of the best ways to see the city skyline, opera house, and harbor bridge.  It was a beautiful day, probably about 14 degrees Celsius, so thanks to dad that is about 57 degrees Fahrenheit.  But the sun was shining so it seemed warmer.  We got to the zoo, and immediately went to the elephant show.  I saw two baby elephants, one of which was the first elephant to be born in Australia.  They showed off kicking a soccer ball (football), playing a harmonica, and picking up logs.  It was cute!  Then we ate lunch at the zoo, and walked around.  Saw the giraffes, kangaroos, koalas, bears, hippos and more.  But I didn't get to see the Orangutans, which I wanted to see so I could show all the UK people why Australians call red heads, or gingers, Rangas.We also saw the seal show, and one of the seals was a California seal that had a loud, deep talking voice, so they said "that is the American Accent".  They like to make fun of us Americans here.  Then we saw the bird show, which I had seen last time I was at the zoo with the girls.

After we walked down to the bottom of the hill to board the ferry back, and all of a sudden, this really nice private boat pulls up to the dock.  Tons of paparazzi showed up, so we got pretty excited and tried to guess what celebrity was going to the Taronga Zoo, and why!  We walked over to the side of the dock that no one else was on, and all of a sudden I saw Nikki Hilton!  The paparazzi almost knocked me over because I somehow had the best seat in the house.  I still have to look up why Nikki was going to the zoo (She got into a zoo van).  Maybe she was adopting an animal or sponsoring a new exhibit or something.

I got back from the zoo and was super tired, but Chris called and wanted to go see a 10 piece band.  So I met up with him for the concert and it was great.  Reminded me of being on Frenchman Street in New Orleans.  The band had a sax, trumpet, base, and played great jazzy funk music.  The bar also brewed their own beer, so I felt right at home.  Finally I got to go to bed and rest up for next day of oz experience!

Day 2

This first week in Sydney has been amazing, and it is mostly because I used the program OzIntro.  On the second day we sorted out my bank account and did all the necessary things before we headed over to Darling Harbor for lunch.  It is crazy to be back in Darling Harbor, which was the first place we toured in Sydney two years ago.  After lunch we went to the aquarium, where I saw sharks, nemos, dories, and neon coral.  I think I paid more attention to the fish this time than I did two years ago.  It got me excited to go scuba diving and snorkeling! That night we went to the Gaff, which is a crazy backpacker hostel, and I had a great time, but I probably could have drank fewer beers (at least I didn't participate in the wet t shirt contest, nor did I watch)!  At the bar I saw two pledges from Pi Phi who are studying at Sydney Uni.  It is great to see some familiar and American faces!  I really enjoyed being with a group and have made some good friends from the UK, Dubai, and Canada.  But most of them aren't staying in Sydney, they are headed up to Cairns to travel and work, which makes me jealous because I want warm weather.  I forgot that Sydney still has a little bit longer of winter, and it made me catch a cold!  Oh well, it is well worth being sick.

I made it!

After a layover in Phoenix, Las Vegas and 9 hours at LAX, I finally boarded the 14 hour flight from Los Angeles to Sydney.  I got off the plane, and bought 2 bottles of Captain Morgan straight away at the Duty Free.  Then I waited forever in the customs line, where, of course, my visa had a problem, so I had to go to immigration and have them put my middle name on my visa.  Then I was late to meet the OzIntrogroup at the meeting point, so I had to go to a pay phone and call them!  Finally, our guide Nicola found me and I got onto the bus.  The bus was full of UK ppl, and they were amazed at how much I packed, so now I am called the American with 4 bags ( i only have two!) and they just have a backpackers backpack. Oh well, I don't know how to travel light!

After we got back to the hostel, we set up our phones and received our itinerary.  Then I went to the pub with two of the boys to get a celebratory beer! Ha, at the pub I met up with Chris, its great to see him again.  But then I had to say bye to him and start the day with a mini tour of Sydney and a ride on the Jet Boat.  The jet boat ride on the harbor was amazing, it was the best way for me to re-fall in love with Sydney again.  The clouds started to part, the sun starting shining, and I was flying under the harbor bridge and around the Opera House. It was an amazing start to my crazy trip back to Australia after the 26 hour wait and flight to get here!