On the way to Sydney our plane passed over Guam and I saw a beautiful sunrise. Averi met me at the airport in Sydney and we took the train to their apartment. As we walked to the apartment we passed several backpacker inns and outdoor cafes. We went out to breakfast at an outdoor cafe near their apartment. It was strange for me to order all in English and be understood. I've been so use to pointing or using a combination of Japanese and English at restaurants. Breakfast was a nice reminder of home with scrambled eggs, hash browns, bacon and toast. During breakfast Averi mentioned she had some friends that attend Hillsong Church and asked if I wanted to go. I was excited for a chance to attend a worship service there because I love listening to Hillsong music! We quickly finished our breakfast and jumped on the train. We were going to one of Hillsong's satellite churches in a movie theater at a nearby mall since the main church was too far away.
We arrived late, but were able to catch the end of the message and one worship song. Even though I didn't attend the whole service, it was still a neat experience. After service Averi introduced me to some of her friends and was surprised to be greeted by some with a hug and a kiss on the cheek! Averi told me later that is the typical way Australians greet each other. We stopped by the lounge for some tea and got a great view of Sydney! There was a Target in the mall so we stopped there and I found some jeans. I was confused as to why there was so many winter clothes out, but forgot that it was fall in Australia!
After church Averi showed me some of the sights of Sydney. We walked by St. Mary's Cathedral, Botanic Gardens and Art Museum. We walked to Hyde Park to check out the St. Patrick's Day festivities. There were tons of people decked out in all shades of green, eating and drinking and having a good time. After the park we walked along Finger Wharf and saw Harry's Cart, famous for its meat pies. We walked back home and stopped at the grocery store on the way. For those who know me, I get pretty excited about food..but seeing wheat bread and hummus was a whole new level of excitement for me! These are two foods I really miss while living in Japan. We waited for Phil to come home from work and after he got home we talked for a little, ate a quick dinner and left to go to church. Phil and Averi attend a Sunday night service at St. Andrews because it is geared towards young adults. I enjoyed the service and met some of their friends afterwards. After church went for dessert at Max Brenner's chocolate shop with another young couple. All the desserts sounded so good it was hard to choose, but I ordered a white chocolate, strawberry shake and it was delicious!
Day Two in Sydney
On Monday I slept in and then went to the gym with Phil. Phil is a rugby player so he works out often. I was just excited to go to a gym, since I don't have one close by me in Japan. The gym is near Phil and Averi's apartment, but we decided to take the bike to save on time. This was my second time riding on a motorcycle and I loved it! The first time was in Thailand when I visited The Fujii's, but this was my first time riding on busy, paved streets. After the gym we stopped at Harry's Famous Cart of Wheels on the way home for some meat pies. I don't remember the name of the one I ordered, but it was like a pot pie with beef, mashed potatoes, green peas and gravy piled on top. Phil and I sat on the dock overlooking the harbor eating our meat pies and filling each other in on the past year. It was nice to catch up and see how God has been providing for us as we live overseas.
After lunch Phil took me to the aquarium in Darling Harbor. I really enjoyed the aquarium because there were several levels and you could see the sharks, rays and dugons swimming on the side and above you. The dugons are similar to manatees and you can only find them in waters around Australia. Wildlife Park was next door to the aquarium, but it was closing right as we got there. The staff allowed Phil and I to zip through quickly, so I was able to take a quick look at the animals. There was also a huge crocodile that Phil really wanted me to see inside. As we walked through it really felt like you were in the outback because there were sounds of crickets, snakes and other creatures..it was a little creepy. Saw the huge crocodile and some kangaroos, koalas, bats and snakes. After the aquarium Phil and I met Averi at the nearby mall. Averi and I really wanted to get pedicures and the lady at the store tried to give us $5 off for a group of three. But, Phil could not be persuaded so Averi and I got our nails done while Phil roamed around the mall. Met up with Phil afterwards and went to Chinatown for some Malaysian food. This was one of Phil and Averi's favorite restaurants and I could see why because once we arrived there was a long line out the door. Dinner was delicious and I think the only other time I've eaten Malaysian food was in London. My favorites were the chicken satay and roti bomb. The roti bomb is similar to Indian curry and nan, but the bread is more flaky, closer to the consistency of a crossiant. Ordered a sweet version of the roti bomb and Malaysian twist of shaved ice for dessert. It was shaved ice, syrup, red bean, jelly and corn..pretty good, except the corn on top was a little strange. It was a really nice night so we decided to walk home through downtown Sydney.
Day Three
We got an early start on Tuesday since I had slept in on Monday. Phil, Averi and I all woke up around 6am to go for a run and workout at the gym. Averi had work and wanted to workout before, so I decided to go with them. After working out Phil dropped Averi off at work and we headed off to Featherdale Wildlife Park. Rode on the motorcycle again and it took about an hour to get to the park. Part of the ride reminded me of home as we headed into the outskirts of the city into the suburbs. While riding the motorcycle was fun, my body was a little sore afterwards because I couldn't really relax like in a car, even as a passenger! The park was great because there were kangaroos wandering around and other animals to pet. Phil fed some fish to the storks, while I just watched. I did feed the kangaroos some food in an ice cream cone and pet a koala. There were quite a few koalas and they were really cute. Also saw some wombats, tazmanian devil, huge bats, alligator and emu. Some of the emus were out in the open and tried coming after Phil and I because we had the kangaroo food.
After Featherdale we went to Circular Quay to take the Manly Ferry to Manly Island. The ferry ride was about a half hour with amazing views of Harbor Bridge, the Opera House and Sydney skyline. Phil and I rented bikes on Manly and thus began our biking adventure.
He had warned me that the first part of the bike path was all uphill, but after that it was smooth sailing. I have never biked, ran or walked up such steep hills before and at one point had to walk my bike up. But, after conquering the uphill battle I soon found myself riding along through the beautiful landscapes of Sydney National Park. We were only a half hour from Sydney, but it felt like we were really in the outback! We stopped at three lookout points, each with a better view than the previous one. This was the first view..pretty amazing
The second was this view...even more amazing
The third was this view...
I could have spent the whole day here, but time was limited. We had planned on taking the 5:15pm ferry back to Syndey because we had to be downtown by 7 to get picked up for our safari tour. The ferry came every half hour, so we didn't want to miss it. We barely made the ferry and Phil and I had to ride like the wind on the way back. Luckily, the last part of the ride was all downhill.. a little scary at first but what a thrill! We paid for our bike rental and sprinted to the ferry just as they were making their last call, whew!
We were able to catch our breath and relax on the ride back to Sydney. Made a quick stop to take some closer pictures of the Opera House and headed home. Averi had made dinner, so we ate, showered and caught a cab to the meeting point downtown. We were all expecting a big coach bus and big crowd of people, but were met by our tour guide Russ driving a 9 passenger van. Besides the three of us, we only picked up one more girl from Sweden named Malin. Drove about 2 1/2 hours north to the town of New Castle. Along the way we stopped for a rest break and saw an Australian opossum. It was brown instead of white and not quite as ugly as the ones in the states. Checked into the New Castle Youth Hostel around 10:30pm and called it a night.
One thing about Australia that bothered me was the lack of screens on their doors and windows. Phil and Averi's sliding door didn't have screens, nor did the window in our room at the hostel. I did a lot of praying at night during the week that nothing would crawl or bite me while I was sleeping! God answered my prayers because I didn't see any cockroach in the apartment and only got one mosquito bite on the last day!
I always enjoy your beautiful photos, Kristin. I also love your thoughtful and detailed writing. Neat to be able to experience Australia vicariously through your blog. Thank you!
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