Week 69 - Sydney, Adelaide (Australia)

Simone and her housemate Mark both work on weekdays so we had a chilled start to the day, enjoying having a moment to sit down with a quiet cuppa. That was until we called the one man band Philippine Embassy in Adelaide to discover they were shut for another week and made the rush decision to apply for our visas while we were in Sydney. We didn’t have anything prepared and it was all a bit chaotic. We ran out, caught a train and found an internet cafe to print and fill in the forms and itineraries we needed for our applications. Luckily there wasn’t a queue at the Embassy and we were in and out in the blink of an eye. 

Since we were in the CPD we thought we should take the chance to explore and headed off to the Darling Harbour. I’d never really realised that Sydney has so many little harbours, I thought there was just one big one. The Darling Harbour is a great area with lots of fountains and grassy areas, playgrounds and restaurants, bars and attractions like the aquarium and Madame Tussauds lining the harbour front. We walked around the water, marveled at the sheer number of jellyfish and jumped on a ferry bound for Circular Quay. Considering the cost of a harbour boat trip the ferry was a steal at $6 and gave us a great view of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.

Circular Quay is another big harbour covered with bars and restaurants. Once off the boat we wandered over to the bridge where we’d been recommended the Pylon Climb. The famous Bridge Climb is crazy expensive and booked up in advance so the Pylon Climb was much more up our street. We climbed the stairs and reached the lookout at the top of the pylon for stupendous views across the harbour. Next, we walked to Observatory Hill, a little pocket of green with the city observatory at the top, again with views over the harbour. Back at Circular Quay we jumped on a bus back to Simone's. 

View of Circular Quay from the Harbour Bridge Pylon, Sydney.

When Simone got home from work we got ready and headed out into Bondi, apparently Wednesdays are the new Friday. We picked up two of her mates Dani and Canadian Mark on route and got our first glimpse of Bondi Beach, still heaving despite it being early evening. Our first stop was the Bucket List, a bar right on the beach with a real post surf vibe. We only stayed for one before moving on to the RSL, a members club on the cliff with views out across Bondi. Next stop, the Beach Road. As Simone is a regular we were whisked to the front of the queue and headed upstairs past the rows of beer pong tables. It was heaving, a great bar/club with live music and a good atmosphere, if we weren’t still recovering from the Melbourne/Wollongong burn out it’s the kind of place we could have happily stayed all night. Around 11pm me and Rhys headed off, leaving Simone to enjoy the rest of her night.

Me and Rhys with Simone, Bondi Beach, Sydney.

We had to head back to the Philippine Embassy the next day to collect our passports. After we picked them up, shiny new visa in place, we decided to walk through Hyde Park and on to the botanic gardens. Hyde Park has a huge war memorial, a couple of fountains and an avenue of trees and is home to the Sydney Festival for the month of January. Although not much was on in the day we did get free water bottles (how can anything free not be good?!) and we wandered through the festival site before popping out at the cathedral. A couple of photo stops and a cafe lunch later and we walked into the botanic gardens, stopping at the NSW Art Gallery to check out the 19th European Collection. I’ve learned Rhys quite enjoys galleries so long as i’m very specific and only pick one or two rooms to visit at a time. From the botanic gardens we followed the path around to Mrs Macquarie's Chair (a bench cut into the rock) and a view point over the harbour. We continued around the bay until we got to the Opera House, not quite as impressive close up as at a distance but so iconic it deserves a visit. We decided we’d probably never be there again and stopped at the Opera Bar for a glass of wine overlooking the bridge.

Fountain in Hyde Park, Sydney.

View of Sydney Harbour from the Botanic Gardens.

That evening, Simone’s mate Rachel and her fiancee had invited us all around for a BBQ along with Canadian Mark. It was a really good night, good food, good company and a nervous cat.

The next day, we hit the coast. A lot of people had told us that the Bondi to Coogee walk was a Sydney highlight so we packed a picnic and set off. The coastal cliff walk is about 6km long and takes you through the bays of Sydney’s eastern suburbs from Tamarama and Bronte to Coogee. Most of the bays we passed through had sandy beaches and rock pools and we found a great little beach shelter where we could rest and enjoy lunch. After a cold drink in Coogee we started the walk back, stopping for a dip in the icy cold rock pool in Bronte and then for an ice cream in Bondi. For a city, Sydney has some great beaches and the walk was definitely a pleasant way to spend the day.

Bondi Beach, Sydney.

View towards Coogee from the Eastern Coastal walk, Sydney.

On Saturday Tim and Tam flew in from Brisbane for the weekend and we arranged to meet them in one of Sydney’s oldest pubs in the Rocks, The Fortune of War. After a hectic journey in to Circular Quay on the ferry from Rose Bay (leaking water bottles and no ticket machines - Sydney really needs to sort out it’s transport system especially tickets), we headed in to the pub to wait. It was so good to see them. We had a couple of drinks in the pub before wandering over to the botanic gardens to find a spot with a view of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge where we could set out our blankets, enjoy our picnic lunch and have a few subtle drinks. We stayed in the park for hours chatting and catching up and climbing on the statues (oh we will grow up one day) before catching the bus back down to Simone’s picking up sausages on the way. Simone was throwing a BBQ and the house was full when we turned up. By the time Tim and Tam and their friends they were staying with had left, Simone was on her way out for the night and me and Rhys made up our bed on the couch and left everyone who was still on the patio to it.

Rhys and the Harbour Bridge, on the ferry from Rose Bay, Sydney.

The Opera House, Sydney.

Rhys, Tam and Tim, Botanic Gardens, Sydney.

The next morning we were meeting Tim and Tam in Circular Quay again to catch the ferry to Manly, another beach suburb 30 minutes away across the harbour. 45 minutes late and Tim and Tam turned up. The ferry ride was another scenic trip, one of our highlights of Sydney has definitely been the ferry rides. Once there we wandered in the direction of the main beach, stopped to stroke a ridiculously fluffy puppy and found a little restaurant for lunch. After watching a lifeguard competition we found an empty patch of sand and laid out our blankets for a couple of hours of paddling and swimming, sun bathing and people watching. Around 4pm we decided it was time to head back into the city and walked back to the ferry terminal. Back in Circular Quay we said our goodbyes - we see Tim again in 5 weeks in the Philippines and are hoping Tam might be tempted to join us. 

Monday we spent the day hanging around waiting for our flight back to Adelaide. The weather had turned and it was threatening to rain. Other than a picnic at the southern end of Bondi beach we stayed at Simone’s relaxing until it was time to walk up to Bondi Junction to find the bus to the airport. Another Sydney transport problem and 4 shops later we managed to find somewhere to buy bus tickets and made it to the airport with plenty of time before our 8pm flight. Once in Adelaide, Slater picked us up and drove us back to his where we cracked open a bottle of wine from his wine club delivery. 6 bottles later and a couple of Alan bungles and we decided it was time for bed.

Following the stupid amounts of wine the night before, Tuesday was a chill day with the biggest adventure being a trip to Coles to do a food shop. When Al got back from work we popped around the corner to the Holdfast pub for a drink and a catch up before heading home for dinner.