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Day 108 (Christmas Eve)- We woke up and thought we were going to be on time for our bus however Lauren offered us a lift on her way to work and once in the car we realised we would have definitely missed the bus had we had to make our own way there. Lucky us! The bus journey only took a few hours and we were so excited for Sydney. We were dropped off at Central Station and had to find our hostel, it was only a 10 minute walk and we knew the address but we didn't have a map and so we had to ask numerous people and after a few circuits of the area we found it! We were so excited nothing could get us down and our hostel was in a great location, the room was very basic but it was a double so at least we had some privacy for the morning and we could see what Santa had left. We were starving and wanted to explore the city, it was about 3ish and wanted to leave the harbour for a full day so we walked across to Chinatown (pretty much the area of our hostel which pleased Eve a lot) and found a nice restaurant. We ordered roast duck noodles and meat and seafood fried rice with Chinese tea- we felt like we were back home i.e. in China again! To walk it off we trotted down George Street which is the main shopping street running direct through the centre of the CBD. We walked through the Strand Arcade and found a gorgeous cafe and treat ourself to a coffee- it is xmas after all! We then walked down to the QVB and looked up in awe at the magnificent clock and down below at the mosaic tiling. It was so nice to see some nice buildings and architecture with a bit of history, as supposed to the new beach towns we visited so far along the coast. We grabbed some shopping and booze for Xmas BBQ on Bondi and bumped into Dom. Dom was the lad we first met in Datong China on our day trip to the hanging monasteries and grottoes almost 3 and a half month ago. Now here he was outside the liquor shop in Sydney. Amazing how small this world can be at times. we swapped numbers and after a quick change we met him and walked along to a bar where we also organised to meet Markus and Heidi from our Fraser Island trip. We had a couple drinks but left about 11ish as Santa was due and Eve was far too excited to be in public much longer (I think I was as well to be fair)
Day 109 (Christmas Day)- We awoke nice and early and were ecstatic to see the big guy in red and white had popped in. He left us a little bundle each; Eve received a vest top, earrings, a necklace, hair serum, lip-balm, chocolates and sweets. I opened up a T-shirt, swimming shorts, boxers, aboriginal decorated bottle holder and some lightening hair spray stuff. After skyping home we had to checkout and move hostels. It was only up the road though so not a problem and I was happy to see the free xmas breakfast was still available. We took a seat and enjoyed our bucks fizz, sweet mince pies and walnut cake. After stuffing ourselves we got ready, beach towels in hand and as we stepped outside we thought twice. It looked cloudy from inside but it was actually cold! It was also forecast for rain and it had rain earlier so decided to give it a miss altogether and put away some of our BBQ food and made sausage sandwiches instead. The hostel had a good movie room so we watched Love Actually then the Pursuit of Happiness. Still cold outside we were happy when Markus text us to ask us to go down to another hostel their friends were staying at and we sat and played some cards and drinking games. There was 7 of us in total, we ended up staying till 8ish and had a great afternoon. For our xmas dinner we had Chinese! We found an Asian food court and after a few circuits we settled on a Chinese counter and ordered chilli and garlic king prawns, steamed veggies in oyster sauce with rice and soup. We went back to the hostel and slumped to sleep with a hot chocolate.
Day 110 (Boxing Day)- We had a well deserved lie in and went in search of a couple of shops so we could return a couple xmas presents that didn't fit. After looking around a market we walked up George Street and we could barely move. It was jam-packed! People couldn't even fit on the paths, overflowing to the roads and causing all sorts of problems. We were sick after 30 minutes so jumped on a bus to Circular Quay and waited at the Customs House for a free tour of the city. It was a 3 hour tour on a tip basis, so no upfront fees, you pay what you want. It started at the harbour and gave us a history of British colonisation the opera house, harbour bridge and the convict history. We moved through the Rocks area and past other significant buildings such as the old hospital, library and government buildings. We ended in the botanical gardens and from here we had a closer look at the opera house. It is actually cream and not white and covered in tiny tiles which isn't what we expected. We walked back along George street to the hostel and got changed as it was ladies night in the bar. This entitled ladies to free champagne (cheap sparkling wine) all night until stock ran out. So we went through about 4 glasses each and further beer and cider. There was a live band on so Eve dragged me up for a dance or two. Amy and Ian text us asking if we wanted to meet them in a club in Kings Cross so we filled up a water bottle with goon and got moving. We were informed it was a 20-30 minute walk and to pass time we made up a drinking game. We played rock, paper, scissors with the loser taking a swig. If you lost twice consecutively you had to spin round on the spot twice whilst drinking. So the 20min walk turned into a 45min one and we were on our merry little way by the time we got to Kings Cross. We found Ian and went in to a club, Eve sneaked in and I had to fork out $10. It was typically mainstream music and heaving but we managed a bit of a dance. I went to the toilet and the bar but after 20 minutes and because I was rather drunk Eve assumed I was lost and along with Ian went on a hunt for me. Whilst they we were running around the club me and Amy were drinking a teapot of cocktail. However I was also holding a second drink which isn't allowed in Australia so was told to leave by the bouncer. This was the point when Eve and Ian found me and that was the end of our night. We had already heard so many stories of people being told to leave clubs for a huge array of ridiculous reasons-having 2 drinks being one of them, so I should have known better. By this point it was about 3ish anyway so we had a great night and probably saved ourselves more money at the bar. We got a taxi back and said our goodbyes.
Day 111- Apart from the brief moment at 9am when a lad informed me of the Sunderland score and I performed a mini celebration in bed we slept in til 1ish. I was still feeling very rough, but Eve wasn't too bad so dragged me for a walk to Hyde Park and we chilled out in the sun most of the day. It was a lovely day, sun shining and a nice break from the city. After tea we chatted to the people in our dorm and drifted to sleep.
Day 112- Fully recovered we rose early and made some tuna pasta for our big day ahead. We planned a day in the Blue Mountains and had been looking forward to it for a while hearing some great reviews about it along the way. We met up with Amy and Ian and another couple they knew and boarded the train to Katoomba. We arrived two hours later after dozing most of the way and once off the train we headed down to the main lookout- Eagle View point. It was stunning and we could see why the mountain range received the name it did. Above the expansive range was a hazy blue colour between the sky and tree tops. The appearance is caused as the trees are gum trees and mainly eucalyptus which contains an oil which is released into the atmosphere and reacts with it to create this hazy blue mist. After some photos we picked a route. We walked downhill to Wentworth falls which were beautiful, spoilt only buy people climbing it and ruining our photos! We ate dinner here and then carried on down into the floor of the Jamison Valley. It then took us 2 hours to trek along the bottom and up to the great stairway which gave us great views. We then had to crawl up this Great Stairway which was a series of extremely steep steps (something reminiscent of Emei Shan in China, luckily only 20 mins worth instead of 8 hours!) up to the Three Sisters. These sisters are three rock stacks rising up from the valley floor standing alongside each other connected by small bridges. Again the views were spectacular and spent some time admiring the beauty of them. After a few more steps we reached the top and treat ourselves to a Calypo for a hard days work. We had to rush to catch the train but we made it and chatted the whole way back. After our goodbyes we made tea and had an early night.
Day 113- It was Saturday and as usual Eve drew up a list of markets to visit and first up was the Rocks. It was a great market with the stalls sprawling around the little streets and plenty of variety. We spent a while here and the food smelt amazing however it was still early even by our standards so reluctantly, we left the garlic BBQ prawns and Turkish wraps and caught the ferry to Balmain. It used to be a very busy shipping area where all the dock workers lived and worked and Eve's dad said we should pop down as well anyway. The ferry ride itself was amazing giving us amazing views of the bridge and harbour. It was a 30 minute walk up to the centre from the ferry dock and it was a beautiful area. Every house was different with a few terraces and a detached here or there and all individually built and decorated brilliantly. Once at the market square we found no market. We asked a local and they said it wasn't there any more so we went to a supermarket instead and got some tea in. We jumped on the bus and 5 minutes later we passed a market so it must have moved areas. The bus took us through a lovely area called Glebe where we seen another market there so hopped off and had a look around. It was much smaller and a bit more hippyish but the food was amazing again so we bought a Russian pastry each which was lovely. We planned to meet Adam and Roz in the afternoon for drinks so dropped off our shopping and got the bus back along to the Rocks. We went into the oldest pub in Sydney called The Fortune of War Hotel and wasn't quite as we expected. There had clearly been a lot of renovation done and was nothing special although they poured a good pint. It was great to see them after a few weeks and swap stories. We then went to the Australia Hotel for one before we headed off and Adam took us to their hostel and showed us the amazing view the hostel roof deck offers. It would have been a perfect spot for NYE but apparently the tickets were sold out ages ago to locals- a bit disappointing if you'd paid the money to be in that particular hostel over NYE. We caught the train back to our hostel and made a king prawn stir fry for tea and chatted with everyone in our room for a while.
Day 114- We popped in to Peterpan's to sort out some things for New Zealand and then jumped on the ferry to Manly beach. Again the ferry journey was great and this time it took us to the East side of the harbour and took around 40 minutes passing some amazing houses and small beaches. The ferry was packed and the other end was even busier. We shuffled our way down the Corso which was the main street that cuts over the headland to the beach. It was very touristy with expensive bars and cafe's but we expected nothing other. The beach was amazing considering its proximity to such a big city. It was heaving and we found a spot and read our books catching some rays for an hour. We then walked along the promenade to Shelley beach and on the way back walked past yet more amazing houses with stunning sea views. On the ferry back we organised to meet Amy and Ian that night to discuss where we would go for the fireworks on NYE. After lengthy discussions we decided to go to Balmain. When we went to the market there we spotted a perfect spot that gave great views across the full harbour with the upside of taking drink and the downside of not seeing the opera house. Our planned meeting time was 9.30 am!
Day 115 (New Year's Eve)- We managed to get a good nights sleep and woke up nice and fresh. We met Amy and Ian with bags full of food and booze. On the ferry we seen the spot we picked was empty, we were sure people would have already started to get their spots. Naturally we started to panic and thought it must have been cordoned off but we walked to it no problem. It was down a small side street but still thought it was too good to be true. We sat down next to the small wall over the harbour and went to get ice. By this time it was 11am and only one other party had arrived. Anyway we started our hourly photos and broke out the bottles. It wasn't until 3pm when the police came over and told us we couldn't drink- which we were well aware of and hid our drinks in time. They came by twice more and gave us no problems. We knew alcohol was prohibited as it was public land but it wasn't an official event area so we didn't get searched and there was little in the way of police and security. So we drank and ate all day having a great time and by 6pm the place was still pretty empty with no more than 30 people there. We don't know why it wasn't heaving, it was ideal. The day flew past and before we knew, it was 9 o'clock and time for the kiddie's fireworks. They were brilliant and it was hard to imagine them getting much better. By now it was quite busy but never got crowded all night. As midnight drew closer we sat on the wall and as it approached no-one was counting down. It struck 12 and the fireworks started but nobody really celebrated or wished each other new year. Everyone just sat and watched the display and took photos then packed up and left. Quite different to home and a bizarre experience. Saying that it wasn't something we were to bothered about anyway as we were in complete awe of the spectacle in front of us. It was magnificent with fireworks projecting from the bridge, skyscrapers around the city and on several barges in the river. It lasted around 20 minutes and just got bigger and louder. They were incredible. After we said our wishes and packed up we jumped on the bus which was free and took us as far as it could. We had to walk for 30 mins back to the hostel through the centre and it was crazy. We could barely move and people were shouting and standing in the street talking. Simply mad. We had a fantastic night.
Day 116 (New Year's Day)- We had no plans for today as we expected everywhere to be closed like it would be at home but no. It was just as busy as any other day so walked along to Darling Harbour. It was a beautiful day and we found a nice swanky bar with a happy hour on so bought a couple of drinks each and some nice chunky chips, then had a look around the harbour. We walked down through the gardens which were full of old buildings and water features and then wandered through Chinatown back to our hostel.
Day 117- We checked out of our hostel and had a lot to do before we met Josh at 9pm to get the keys to the house. First stop was Peterpan's yet again to do some more messaging and book our Great Ocean Road tour from Melbourne. We had to wait for an hour to see someone, then this French girl popped up and surprise surprise she was useless! All she was interested in was selling tours that she obviously got commission on and then when we asked for others she replied that she didn't know them. How she can be a travel agent and not know the tours she sold was beyond us. My patience didnt last long and we left her mumbling away to herself. We walked down to the next travel agents and after 5 mins we were seen to by a guy from Essex. He gave us all the options and wasn't biased to any so we picked a one and then even bought our New Zealand bus pass with him. He was great and I managed to knock loads of money off and somehow got us 2 nights accommodation in Melbourne for a grand total of $10 and then I still managed to knock more money of the total. We were very pleased with what we got and my haggling skills paid off! We were starving by this point and went to a cafe for kangaroo pizza which we heard did them for 4 dollars. It was lovely but tiny- nothing is cheap in Oz! We had a couple of hours to spare so we had a stroll through the botanical gardens to Macquaries chair and enjoyed the views over the harbour- again! We met Josh in the train station at 9 and swapped some beers for the house keys. The house was in Revesby which was a 25 min train journey out the centre but it was a free roof over our heads for 3 nights in Sydney when we were otherwise stuck so were delighted. When we arrived it was very typical of a grandparents house but was very homely and clean so we were happy enough to go straight to bed.
Day 118- Once we got into the city we jumped on to the bus to Coogee beach. This is a beach East of the centre and took about 30 mins to get there and it was packed- participially of teenagers off school. We had our lunch then started the coastal walk to Bondi. It was a beautiful walk and took us a bout 2 hours to complete. It was a lovely day for it as well. We passed loads of beaches and took us over along the cliffs edge and even through some bush areas and was great. We passed loads of small beaches and coves and were shattered by the time we arrived at Bondi. It was a massive beach although still quite busy. We found a nice spot and lay and sunbathed for a while then when I got bored I went for a dip. It was so much colder than up North as expected but still quite a shock. The surf was strong as well so I didn't stay in for too long and then I got Eve up and we caught the bus back.
Day 119- Our last day in Sydney and still had something to do, it is an incredible city we both loved and there is so much to see and do. Funnily enough the last thing we did was one of the first things we thought of doing when we arrived- walk across the bridge. We got the train over to Milsons Point and found a take away shop that sold fish and chips. We couldn't resist and caved in. They were delicious and ate them overlooking- for the final time, the harbour. It never gets boring, its always so busy with boats and yachts going past and we could have sat watching it for hours. Once we finished our grub we set off up the stairs to the bridge. It took a while to get across but was a nice walk and took some good photos. We continued to walk around the harbour to Darling Harbour and then to King street wharf and ended up at Pyrmont Bay where we had a coffee and cake and enjoyed our last few hours in Sydney. Once back we packed our stuff and turned in for a good nights rest.
- comments
mam what a wounderful start to an amazing year, and a fantastic end to a very hapy year... well done you's 2......x