The beauty of travel is that someone’s ordinary becomes your extraordinary.
Unknown
We were so excited to see Australia because one, I’d dreamed of it my entire life, and two, this would be our 7th continent. How awesome was that? Because of Covid, Australia had been closed to all tourists for almost two years, and for most of our trip, we wondered if we’d even get a chance to see it. But mere weeks after the border opened up, we hopped on our flight to go and see the land down under.
We had a long list of things we wanted to do while we were visiting, but travel around Australia was still very restricted. Unlike most countries, the individual states all had their own Covid restrictions and testing protocols. To cross from one state into another, we’d have to undergo new covid tests and have new quarantine periods imposed on us, so that wasn’t very attractive. Not having been here before, I didn’t realize how absolutely huge this country was either. Australia is about three-quarters of the size of the US, but they have less than 8% of the US population. Most of the land (the outback) is completely barren and desolate while nearly all of the country’s population is concentrated in the bigger cities on the South and East coasts. To get from one city to another, we were looking at full day travel distances and expensive transit. We were flying into Sydney, and because of the costs, distances, and travel restrictions, we decided that we’d need to stick around Sydney and simply make the most of our time there.
We’d caught our flight in the wee hours of the morning in Singapore, and after 8 hours of flying, we stepped off the plane into Sydney on a beautiful late April morning. After taking our obligatory #7 photos in the airport, we grabbed our bags and headed for the arrivals hall to meet our driver. We were staying at a popular hostel just a stone’s throw from the Sydney Harbor, and our hostel had arranged an airport shuttle for us. Our driver was the utmost professional, and he walked us through the airport and out to our awaiting SUV.
Our shuttle was quite expensive, but we’d researched enough to expect that transportation in Sydney was going to be generally pretty high. The city has grown exponentially over the last 50 years, and although they’ve tried hard, they haven’t quite been able to improve the infrastructure to keep up with this phenomenal growth. Traffic is horrendous, and there are ferries, trains, buses, and more available to travelers to help mitigate the issues; to pay for all of these mass transit options along with the roadway improvements, they charge fairly high fees, especially in that lovely stretch that we were on between the airport and the city.
Our hostel was interesting. It was actually built over ruins that were in the process of being excavated. We walked in on the ground floor, and aside from the elevator and stairs, there was nothing but ruins to see. On the 2nd floor, we found the reception area, a lounge, dining tables, and 8 small kitchen areas. The receptionist showed us how and where we could store our pantry and refrigerated items, and he ran down the list of house rules for us. There were people all over, and from the looks of the kitchens, they were much better used here than anywhere else we’d stayed. That’s not to say that the place was dirty; there were just people milling about all over, and the pantry and fridges were teeming with food. The pantry was a 12’ section of double-sided cubbies where you could label and place your items inside. The fridges were industrial coolers, and nearly every shelf was heavy laden with cold goods. The large kitchen area was divided into four small kitchen pods. Each pod had two sinks, two stoves with two burners each, two microwaves, and two toasters. There were also stacks of plates, bowls, pots and pans, cups, and more in each kitchen area. It was extremely well laid out, and it was practical and efficient.
After checking into our room, we toured the rest of the hostel and found the laundry facilities, and on the roof, we found a large gas grill, more lounging areas, and a beautiful view of the Sydney Opera House. Our rooftop overlooked the harbor, and from where we were, we could see cold waters in the harbor and the Harbor Bridge as well. I remember standing in awe on that rooftop for a few minutes because, well, I’ve seen pictures of the Opera House thousands of times in my life, and here I was finally looking at it for real. And, it looked exactly like it did in all of those pictures. So many of the places we’ve visited on this trip have been a bit of a let down because they were surrounded by construction or the view was impeded by the landscape of the city or the angles that the photographers used to get their shots were unreachable by common tourists, but this one, this one was exactly what I’d been hoping for.
I could have stayed on the rooftop for much longer than we did, but our stomachs were beginning to rumble. Our in-flight meals were okay, but it was time for some real food. We followed our noses to the Australian Hotel next door to our hostel. One of the curious things about Australia is that there are quite a few businesses that are called Hotels, and most of them are not actually hotels. I’m not quite sure I understand why they’d do this, but they do, and it took some getting used to.
We picked a table outside under the cover of the roof of the bar’s porch, but to order, we had to go inside to the bar. Brian and Henry had selected a kangaroo and emu pizza to try, and although that sounded awful to me, I was hungry enough to acquiesce. When Brian went to place the order, thankfully, the bartender let him know that they didn’t have any emu today, so he settled for ordering us a ‘normal’ pizza with ‘normal’ meats on it. The pizza was $32, so we naively expected that it would be a rather large pie. When it arrived, we were a bit taken aback at the size. It was about the size of a medium pizza, and it was thin crust. For the three of us to be as hungry as we were, it took an enormous amount of self-control to eat slowly and savor it. We finished our meal without leaving even a morsel on the table, and we agreed to go find a grocery store for our next meal.
We knew that everything would be more expensive in Australia, but I don’t think we understood just how much higher the prices would be. Even buying groceries and cooking our own meals would put a strain on our budget. But we agreed to do the best we could, and after buying groceries for the following morning’s breakfast, we headed to our room to rest up a bit.
A few hours later, we ventured down towards the train station and found a grocery store on the lower level of the station. We bought some groceries for breakfast for the week and we found a meal to throw together for dinner that night. When we returned to the hostel, we claimed our pantry cubby and a kitchen area, and we worked alongside many others as we threw dinner together. The hostel was very lively with someone cooking in every kitchen zone. Homemade meals were the norm here, and old and young alike joined us in trying to save a bit of money.
We woke the next morning and found a kitchen spot to make our breakfast. After a delicious breakfast of French toast, we decided to explore the harbor bridge area. Henry had found out that you could climb the harbor bridge, and he tried talking us into that. When we found the cost was $250 per person, we unanimously agreed that crossing the bridge on foot for free provided beautiful views as well. The hike across the bridge was enjoyable as there were good views all the way across. The bridge shook as the traffic zoomed past us, and I found that a little unnerving. There were memorials on either end of the bridge to remember the men who died building it in the 1920s and early 30s. They were sobering as well.
At the foot of the bridge on the opposite side of the harbor, we found the beautiful Kirribilli neighborhood. The streets here were lined with immaculately maintained and expansive homes, and the streets were dotted with coffeeshops and small local businesses with unique storefronts. This area is one of the older and more affluent neighborhoods of Sydney, and from the gorgeous shoreline, we could view the Royal Botanical Gardens, the Sydney Opera House, and the Harbor Bridge. We decided to snack through our lunch, as the restaurants were a little too pricey for our appetites and our budget, so after a quick visit to a local market, we sat in the shady comfort of a park bench, gorged ourselves on chips, and people watched for a while.
We continued walking down the shoreline to see what we could find, and we happened upon Luna Park. Luna Park is an amusement park, and you can see the enormous smiling face on the front gates from our side of the harbor. We considered making an afternoon of it, but we decided to wait and see what else we might want to do while we were in Sydney; we could always come back. Because the admission was only required for actually riding the rides, we were able to walk through and check it all out for free. There were quite a few rides, and Henry was definitely itching to try them, but we simply enjoyed the views and listening to the kids scream in delight.
We made it back towards our hostel, but instead of turning in, we kept walking past so we could try to find the Woolworths, a larger grocery store near the train station. The market at the train station had decent options, but we were hoping a larger store might have better selection and, fingers crossed, lower prices. The Woolworths was located in a mall, and unfortunately the mall had been closed the night before. This time the mall was open, and as we walked from floor to floor, we still struggled to find the supermarket. After taking the elevator down, and going through a few hallways and doors that felt like service hallways, we pushed open an unmarked door and found ourselves in the middle of the grocery store. It was such a strange feeling to enter a store like that, and we kept waiting to hear sirens blare announcing our presence. But no one seemed to notice or think it strange, so we tried to compose ourselves and walk through the store like it was nothing unusual.
We found lots of good options here, and even if the costs were slightly higher, the meals would be better. For dinner, we opted for vindaloo and rice, an Indian soup that Brian absolutely loved. My version was less spicy than the Indian restaurant’s version, but it was still too much for me. It had a delicious flavor, but it took hours for my mouth and tongue to stop burning afterwards!
The next day, we started with a walk over to the Royal Botanical Gardens. The gardens were gorgeous, green and vibrant, overflowing with beautiful flowers, shrubbery, and small wild animals. We wandered the meandering paths admiring the views and taking advantage of the photographic opportunities, and sooner than we expected, we rounded the last corner to find ourselves exiting the park.
Down the path just ahead of us was the iconic roofline of the Sydney Opera House. As we walked, the paved trail surrounded by luscious green lawn changed to the sprawling brick and concrete plaza of the opera house. We enjoyed watching all the people around us getting their photos. The Instagrammers were out in droves, posing in their best, and sometimes downright strange positions. We laughed at them, and then we got our own Instagram-worthy pictures too.
We couldn’t help but laugh as we watched an Asian family take their family photos. Like us, they were documenting their travels by taking a family photo on the steps of the opera. Their youngest child, a boy of about 4 or 5 was being extremely uncooperative. He refused to sit within 3 feet of anyone else, and wouldn’t smile at the camera to save his life. I couldn’t help but chuckle as I recognized that the struggle for good family photographs is real. And its universal.
The opera house was pretty, but at least in my opinion, it was prettier from afar. We’ve seen the pictures of the opera house for so long, but up close, we just couldn’t get an appreciation for the unique design so well. We enjoyed sitting on the benches outside, though, as the day was absolutely fabulous, and we’d worn ourselves out.
The opera house sits on the harbor right beside Circular Quay, one of the largest ferry stations in the country. From the bench where we rested, we watched ferry after ferry go out and come back in. We could see the 6+ lanes of traffic moving across the harbor bridge, we could hear the trains roaring through the lanes above Circular Quay and the constant horns of the ferries as they docked and undocked, and we were surrounded by people coming and going through the plaza. It was such a poignant reminder that Sydney is still a very large city, and we were in the center of it.
We grabbed some dinner at a little pub on the pier, and then we headed in for the night.
We found out that we would be the unexpected beneficiaries of a transportation strike earlier in the year in Sydney. As a result of the strike, the city would be offering free public transit for all travelers for a 12-day period which just happened to coincide with our visit. The free period didn’t start for another day, so instead of venturing too far out, we explored the walkable areas in Sydney once more on the following day. We found a fantastic lunch spot in the basement of the mall with Woolworths. Since they didn’t have any seating, we placed our order and found a nearby park to sit and enjoy our food. We loved watching the long-billed birds peck around for insects, and we got a little nervous when they got closer to us than we expected.
But on the next day, we started exploring the further reaches of the city. We walked down to the train station and rode out to the Hermitage Foreshore Walk. The buses were comfortable and easy to navigate, and since we didn’t know what would be in walking distance of the park, we hopped off a few stops early to grab a snack to eat.
After another quick bus ride, we found the trailhead and made our way into the park. The trail was paved and very walkable and it hugged the shoreline overlooking the bay. We watched a group of friends having a good time jumping off the front of their sailboat, and we marveled at their stupidity as the water had to be insanely cold. To each their own, however. We had beautiful views of the setting sun over the water, and the meandering trail took us to several private beach areas where we could stop and rest along the way.
At the end of the evening, we waited for the ferry to pick us up and take us back to Circular Quay. We waited and waited, but the ferry never came. We were starting to get hungry, tired, and a little panicky about not getting back home for the night when we came up with a new plan. We caught the bus back to the station we’d stopped at earlier in the day, and then we walked down to their ferry station. They had a more frequent ferry, and we thought we’d have a better shot at catching one.
We had to wait a little while, so Henry played on the playground in the park while we killed a little time. We laughed as we watched a nicely-dressed young lady clean up her dog in the water fountain. Her beautiful, extraordinarily fluffy snow-white dog had apparently had a bathroom accident, and she spent 15 minutes holding the dog and washing his back end in the water spigot. While not the most picturesque way to spend the time, we all laughed at her misfortune. And that poor dog’s as well.
At the appropriate time, we walked down to the water’s edge and caught our ferry for home. We spent several minutes trying to figure out what was moving in the trees above us, but we finally came to the conclusion that it was bats we were seeing and hearing. A little creeped out and a little amused, we made our way onto the dock and out onto our boat.
The night air was beginning to cool down, so we chose to ride in the interior cabin and block out some wind. Of course, when we got close to Circular Quay, we began to get amazing water views of the Opera House and the Sydney Harbor Bridge, so we had to go outside. It was a spectacular city skyline, and it was worth braving the cold to get to enjoy it.
Only minutes after docking, we found a spot in the kitchen and cooked our dinner. It had been a wonderful day out enjoying the fresh air, but we were exhausted and starving.
The next morning, we washed our laundry while we ate our breakfast, and then we packed up to leave the hostel. We’d really enjoyed staying here, and we would have been happy to extend our stay, but they were full for the weekend. After checking out, we caught a ferry at Circular Quay to cross the harbor. We’d be spending the next few nights in the Glenferrie Lodge, an old home turned hotel in the picturesque Kirribilli neighborhood.
The ferry ride was short and uncrowded, and when we disembarked, we only had a short walk to get to our new home sweet home. The Glenferrie was a beautiful old home with a cozy and private back yard. We made it to our room and settled in, and then we immediately headed back out to explore Sydney a little more.
Our first stop for the day was at Wendy’s Secret Garden on the North Shore of the harbor. We walked the 1.5 kilometers through Kirribilli and past Luna Park to find the garden, and then we spent the next several hours soaking in the lush greenery and diverse plant life surrounding us. This garden was created by Wendy Whiteley on the land she owned with her husband, the beloved Australian artist Brett Whiteley. Brett died in 1992, and in her grief, Wendy threw herself into clearing out this overgrown plot of land just below their home. She would work herself into exhaustion clearing dense undergrowth and removing trash, old rusted refrigerators, and even rotting mattresses as her way of coping with his death. She planted a garden and found happiness in creating a living, breathing, refuge. The garden grew large enough that the public began to take notice, and Wendy allowed guests to come and visit for free. Today, the garden is full of benches, seats, and resting areas where visitors can relax and find refuge from the city.
Our next stop was to visit the Hornby Lighthouse. We walked back towards Luna Park and took the ferry to the last stop in Sydney Harbor. We wandered through the Sydney Harbor National Park on the South Head Heritage Trail until we rounded the corner and found the red and white striped lighthouse overlooking the bay. This lighthouse has been in use since 1840 and is the third oldest lighthouse in New South Wales. We watched as the ocean waves aggressively beat against the shore on the east side of the peninsula. The waters on the west side, the harbor side, gently lapped against the shore, but on both, massive rocks were visible deep in the water. This entrance into the harbor is dangerous, and many ships have crashed here because of the hidden reef and strong currents.
We found a seat on a rock outcropping and decided to watch the sunset. The colors in the sky were magnificent enough to make the return trip in the dark worthwhile. We watched as fishing boats passed around us. The moon rose and the grumblings of our bellies grew louder as we rested, and we finally headed back towards town. We found the Made in Italy restaurant near the park where we enjoyed a delicious pizza pie, and then we took the ferry back to Circular Quay yet again. The ferry nearest our lodge had closed for the night, so after crossing the Sydney Harbor bridge on foot again, we finally made it back to our room late in the evening.
We had really wanted to go see the outback and glimpse some of the wildlife of Australia, but with our tight budget and timeline, we just couldn’t swing it. It would just be wrong for us to leave Australia without seeing a kangaroo, so we found our next best option – a combo ticket to The Wild Life Sydney Zoo and Sea Life Aquarium. We got up early the next day and caught the train for the Wynyard Station, and after a short walk around the marina, we found the entrance to the Wild Life Zoo. We bought our tickets while we were waiting in line, and within just a few minutes, we were making our way through the gates to see the Australian animals.
Now I admit, I was a bit disappointed that the very first animal we got to see was a python. Snakes are not my favorite, at all, and I could easily pass them by without feeling bad about it. It just so happened that we arrived at his nest at his meal time. Just as we walked up, the zoo employees, using a two-person safety system, delivered him the cutest little white fluffy bunny to devour. Mercifully for us, the poor rabbit was already dead, but the snake still managed to find him quickly. In a matter of minutes, he had swallowed him whole. It was disturbing to watch, but the reality is that this happens in nature regularly. And in real life, outside the confines of the glass cages and eager onlookers, the rabbit’s death is far more agonizing. We stood with a bunch of strangers watching this unpleasant scene, and I couldn’t help but observe the small children as they watched. I’ve not kept much of this kind of thing away from Henry, and these parents did the same for their kids. As disagreeable as it was to see, it’s undeniably a part of life.
We also got to see gliders, numbats, and a super cute echidna. We loved watching the Tasmanian devil run around his enclosure. He darted around somewhat randomly, and it was like watching a funny looking dog scurry aimlessly around. Henry’s favorite was the wombat, though. Short, fat, and cute as a button, these little animals were fun to watch. Henry begged me to get one to bring home! I enjoyed watching the platypus also. It’s hard to believe that these animals are real because they just look like a Frankenstein-ish creature. The platypus swims gracefully and swiftly, and it is one of the very few venomous mammals in the world! And the koalas were absolutely adorable. Sleeping high in their trees, these little bears looked like as cuddly as could be and you couldn’t help but want to hold one.
We saw several different types of kangaroos – tree kangaroos, wallabys, and a pademelon. I wasn’t aware of how the different species varied so much in size, color, and adaptations. Most of the ones that we saw were quite small, less than three feet tall, but they can get over 7 feet tall. The zookeepers must be creative to make feeding more fun for the kangaroos and to keep them engaged. On our visit, they were securing their food inside the small openings of a large plastic drink carrier and hanging the carrier high in the enclosure. The kangaroos had to reach up high and work to get their food loose. This creates a challenge and helps fight boredom. The sweet little kangaroos seemed to enjoy the game.
The cassowary we saw was quite strange. These large birds look similar to an ostritch or emu, and they are similarly flightless. They are the third largest bird in the world, and they are often labeled the world’s most dangerous bird. The large casque that grows on their head makes them appear a little more foreboding, but the casque is used primarily for hearing. Their sharp claws and enormously powerful legs, though, make them deadly.
We saw lots of reptiles and insects, and I could tell you about them, but quite frankly, I’d rather never think of them again. There was a sign in the zoo that stated that 90% of Australia’s reptiles are found nowhere else on earth. I’ll just say this about it: Most of the creatures we saw were bigger than any versions I’ve ever seen before, and I’ve been to a lot of zoos. Australia is home to many of the world’s deadliest creatures, and while these weren’t necessarily the ones on this list, running up on some of them in the wild would very likely cause me to hurt myself!
We stepped out of the zoo and found some lunch at the Cargo Bar on Darling Harbor. The view was lovely, and we watched the people amble by enjoying the beautiful day as we ate our lunch. At our designated time, we stepped back in line to enter Sea Life and use the second half of our tickets.
We really wanted to dive the Great Barrier Reef while we were in Australia, but because of budget and timing, we couldn’t pull that off on this trip. Sea Life was the perfect place to learn about all the amazing plants and animals we’d miss by not going diving. The exhibits were spectacular, and we saw hundreds of varieties and species as we walked past the various tanks. Our pictures simply do not do the aquarium justice, as the animal variety, aquariums, and environment were so incredible to see. We saw so many fish, eels, seahorses, anemones, rays, jellyfish, sharks, and sea turtles.
We’d never seen a dugong, a close relative of the manatee, but we spent a lot of time watching one eat his plate of vegetables underwater. Like with the kangaroos, Sea Life helped to create a little more normal life for these animals by making their foraging a little more challenging. We watched the dugong dive and swim to get his fill.
We also spent some time watching the penguins waddle around, but we let the other visitors have the best viewpoints here. We’ve been fortunate enough to see penguins in a way that most people never will and seeing them in the zoo exhibit is just a little bit sad after seeing them thriving in the wild.
We also got to see the lionfish exhibit. The waters in the Caribbean where we’ve done most of our diving are teeming with lionfish, but they are an invasive species there. Because they aren’t native to those waters, there aren’t any predators for them. The lionfish kill off the fish in mass, and therefore hurt the economy and the ecosystem. The waters here in Australia are the native home for these creatures, so seeing them here just felt right.
We left Sea Life exhausted and mentally worn out. It had been a fantastic day, but we were done. We caught the train back to Kirribilli station, and after a few minutes rest in our room, we found our way to the Batch Burger restaurant for dinner.
We knew it would be good when we rounded the corner and saw the line coming out the door. We stood in line, and when we finally got close enough to see the counter, we saw three seats coming open at the bar. And we saw why the line was so long. There were a total of 5 seats at the bar, and then it was standing room only after that. Brian snagged the seats for us, and we placed our orders. We watched the four chefs work within the extremely small kitchen, preparing burger after burger at an astounding pace. Each person could nearly touch shoulder to shoulder in the small kitchen, but they worked together to seamlessly serve so many. Our burgers were fantastic, greasy and delicious just like a good burger should be.
After the meal, we retired to our room for the evening. Brian and I sat in the backyard gazing at the stars and enjoyed the cigars we’d been carrying with us since we lift the states 8 months earlier. We smoked them in the cool night air in celebration of hitting our 7th continent, and aside from them being a little dry, they were very enjoyable.
We woke up on our last full day and after eating a buffet breakfast in our hotel, we headed to the Circular Quay once more. We were en route to check out Manly Beach, one of the most popular beaches in all of Australia. When we stepped off the ferry, we quickly made our way to the beach. Hundreds of people were lounging in the sands and soaking up the sun. We claimed a bit of sand towards the edge of the crowd, and after laying out our gear, we began to talk about hitting the water. The sun was out, but the stiff winds made it a little cooler than I liked it. Henry and Brian braved the water, but I never made it that far.
The most interesting thing about the beach for me, really, was the attentiveness of the lifeguards. When we’d first arrived at the beach, there were several hundred feet of open swimming area, and it was all patrolled by lifeguards. As conditions shifted, the lifeguards would adjust the swimming area and corral the swimmers accordingly, but they would all stay in the area. By the time we left, the waters had gotten much rougher, and only a small sliver of the water was open. The many lifeguards watched the remaining swimmers like hawks. Swimmers were strictly required to stay in the approved areas, and any play that looked like horseplay or could be construed as someone needing help was quickly quashed. I’ve never been to a beach so well protected. I couldn’t help to think to myself that this felt like overkill, really, but then again, the conditions here change quicker than you might imagine. In mere seconds, the water can get very rough, the weather can shift dramatically, and swimming predators can enter the area unexpectedly. They keep guard like this because history has taught them they need to. And that is just a wee bit scary when you think about it.
It continued getting colder throughout the afternoon, and we finally had enough of the wind and sand wearing us out. We ate our dinner at the New Brighton Hotel just a block or two from the beach. While eating on the roof of the three-storied restaurant, the fire alarm sounded. Far from alone on the roof, we watched anxiously as the wait staff made their rounds from table to table and told us not to worry; it was a false alarm. The alarm system was outrageously loud, however, and the siren sounds seemed to resonate from right beside us. It probably blared for 5 minutes or less, but it felt like an eternity. Thankfully our food was delivered shortly after, and the delicious meal made up for the inconvenience of listening to that dreadful alarm.
We tried some gelatismo at the ferry station as we waited to come back to Kirribilli, and we finished our day pleasantly worn out and thankful for our time in Australia.
The next morning, we packed our bags, and caught the train for the airport. It was time to move on to our next destination of Thailand. It had only been ten short days since we arrived in this beautiful land, and I didn’t want to leave it so soon. I have dreamed of visiting Australia so many times, and it seems unreal to me that people actually live here. I will be back again, and perhaps, I’ll get to experience a little more of their ordinary lives.
Expedition Fresh Start 