Hello everyone,

I have now been in Sydney for exactly 4 weeks so it probably is about time for an update! Sydney is really nice, I wasn't too sure when I first got here but I really like it now and for the 1st time since we have left the UK, over 4 months ago, we are really settled somewhere.

We arrived in Sydney on Wednesday 27th August and quite a lot has happened since we have been in here and i don't want to bore you all so i'll keep it quite brief!

Probably the main story since we arrived here was the departure of one half of the Speak sisters,Cazza!

We arrived in Sydney and Mark & Matt had already been in Sydney for a few days and were lucky enough to find us a little flat in one of the suburbs very close to the city in Petersham. So we are currently living in a 2 roomed flat which is a welcomed changed from hostels, we can actually unpack!!

Carol had 10 days before she went back home and Jenny & Kate had a week in Sydney before they travelled up the East coast of Australia so we made sure the 6 of us did as many things together as we could.

Carol went on a tour to the Blue Mountains with Jenny & Kate on the Thursday while Matt & I went job hunting and to join some agencies.

On the Friday night we had arranged a big night out as it would be the last night out with Jenny & Kate, it turned out to be a very funny night, however not for Matt! We got the train into the city and went to meet Jenny & Kate in their hostel where we had a few drinks before heading to Kings Cross. We went to a night that was a Brit-Pop and Indie night and it was really good. The music was good and really reminded me of being at Promo in Preston in some ways. The bouncers were really strict though and poor Matt went to the toilet and got mistaken for someone who was too drunk and sick everywhere and ended up getting chucked out, talk about a case of mistaken identity. The 5 of us were dancing away and it took us ages to realise Matt wasn't there! He ended up going to a pie shop and had pie, mash and gravy so that cheered him up a lot!!

The Sunday Carol, Jenny, Kate and myself went to the beach and did was the coastal walk from Bondi to Coogee Beach which was a lovely walk along the cliff tops. There were a lot of beaches in between as well which were very pretty.

On the Monday, Mark started a job and the 5 of us were supposed to go to Palm Beach (Home & Away beach) however I got a phone call from an agency asking to go and register so unfortunately i didn't end up going, which Michelle, I was gutted about!! Matt, Carol, Jenny & Kate still went and said it was good so i will definately go there in the near future!

Tuesday Carol and I went to the aquarium which was really good. It is situated on Darling Harbour, which is lovely, and there are loads of restaurants, cafes and bars down there. I wish I had money to go and eat there! The aquarium was pretty big and had loads of different fish, turtles, frogs and even a massive crocodile which we weren't too keen on! There were also 2 underwater walk ways where you could see, in 1 lots of seals and in the other different species of sharks, giant turtles and a massive ray. It was really cool as they were swimming all around the walk way.

After the aquarium, Carol and I went to meet Jenny and Kate in Hyde Park. They were with John, one of the guys from New Zealand and we spent time chilling out having a chat in the park. Matt, had been at a successful job interview, and came to meet us by the park. We headed down to the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House to take some pictures at night time. Mark came to meet us after he had finished work. We said bye to Jenny & Kate for the last time until we see them back in the UK as they were starting their travels up the East coast of Australia the next day. It was sad to say bye as we were so used to seeing them and had been with them since the beginning of Fiji, it was the end of an era!

On the Wednesday Carol and I went into Sydney for a while before I had to go for a job interview at TAB (a bit like Ladbrooks), i got chatting to a gril, Lauren, at the interview and we both ended up getting the job just working on Saturdays.

Thursday Carol and I had a day at the Zoo. We got the train into the city and then had to get a ferry over to Toronga Zoo. To get into the zoo we had to get a cable car over the zoo which was really cool as we got to see the animals from high up and got an overall view. The zoo was pretty big and it had all the big animals there; lions, tigers, giraffes, elephants as well as an Australian section which contained koalas, kangaroos, wallabies and dingos. They also had a big Antarctica section that had penguins which made Carol's day!

Carol wanted to go and see the red pandas but unfortunately they were hiding from us. There was a woman there that was 'a profit of doom' who informed us that they wouldn't come out. She left and they came bounding at Carol and me!! It was funny!

We finished the day watching the seal lion show before getting the train back to Petersham. We got ready and headed back out to the theatre to see Phantom of the Opera. It was a ood show, the Phantom was amazing in it. We had a brilliant day.

Friday and it was Carol's last proper night out, we ended up going to the Indie night again, hoping Matt wouldntn't end up getting chucked out this time! We had a couple of drinks in the flat and then headed to Kings Cross. Gavin, one of Mark's friends from Manchester came out with us too as he is studying in Sydney. It ended up being such a funny night! Carol and I met this woman called, what we could only think was Box in the toilets. She was smoking away, bearing in mind the smoking laws are the same as at home, and the boucers are major strict in this place! She seemed to form some sort of special bond with Carol and myself. She was I'd say in her 40's and seemed to be from Eastern Europe. She kept telling us not to forget our accents as if she had lost hers. She told us she had been here since she was 6 but her accent was so thick!! Later on Gavin started dancing with her and she started insulting an Irish girl and then hugging me and Carol, it was all quite bizarre. Poor Box got thrown out as well as she tried to light a cigarette at the table and then hide it under the table! We think they have a quota each week of how many people need to be thrown out, 1st poor Matt and 2nd Box!! She was a legend! Gavin stopped over at our place and we laughed all night about the legend that was Box!

Sunday and Carol got up early and left for the airport after a very teary goodbye on my behalf! Matt and Mark cheered me up by going out for the day to Cockatoo Island. We got the train into the city and then a ferry over to the island. The island used to have a jail on it and there were many derilict buildings and tunnels through the walls. it was pretty cool, there was some sort of art exhibition.

That is pretty much it for exciting things we have done since been in Sydney, since Carol left over 2 weeks ago, I started training at TAB and completed the week training meeting some nice people there. Lauren, who was at my interview, 2 of the lads and myself went out the other Saturday to watch the Man U - Liverpool game which was a good and ended up having a few too many drinks!

I have also got a temp job in the city at a lawyers in the week so i am working flat out at the moment which is quite funny really as I only need a part time job not a 6 day week! It's nice to meet new people and feel settled somewhere though on the other hand.

I'll keep updating every now and again while I am working if there is anything worth writing about. Keep the messages coming, it's really nice to hear from people.

Take care

Liz

xxxx