a nice girl named Sydney

I arrived in Sydney at 8:30ish am on Wednesday their time, so I kind of had night on the flight over the ocean and then it was morning. I again navigated buses and after a long ride with an overly hormonal couple touching and groping each other, made it to the hostel. Luckily since it is 'winter' here (not fair), I was able to get into my room early. After a long debate with myself I decided it would be in everyone's best interest if I showered before I ventured or for the day.

So fresh and so clean I got directions and wandered down to Bondi Beach (bond-eye) and observed. A nice man named Craig sat down beside me and made casual conversation and I ended up spending the afternoon sitting on the beach chatting. He gave me tips on what to see and where to go. Aren't friendly strangers awesome? After the afternoon I ventured along the beach walk back to the hostel in hopes I'd find my suite mates and they would speak English and want to party with me. I ended up rooming with an English girl named Emma and three Scottish girls all with awesome accents. They were all doing their own things so I got dressed for the evening and wandered back down to the main road in front of the beach in search of cheap food and beer.

I found both cheap food and beer AND free wifi at a bar/restaurant called the canteen and settled down for some solid people watching. Had a chat with another nice man that was working the door later that night and, again, recommended some stuff I do the next day. Afterward I strolled back to my hostel and went to bed for an early evening.

I woke up nice and early for my second day in Sydney and went for a run along the beach walk. Running along the ocean seems to be a lot more motivating a lot than on a dreary treadmill. It was Anzac Day, which is kind of like our Canadian Remembrance Day or American Veterans Day, so they were a LOT of people touring around for the day. I then went back to the hostel and had my oatmeal, packed up my stuff, and got directions on how to get to the city center or circle.

On my itinerary for the day was to see the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Opera House, and perhaps the Botanical Gardens, which luckily were all located in the same (tourist trap of an) area. Once off the bus I spotted a man with a Starbucks bag and sent charging in the direction that he was coming from (Enrollment Ladies, those gift cards are a lifesaver!! You get 30 minutes of wifi with a coffee). I then spent the rest of the day observing and taking pictures and generally just wandering around and appreciating where I was and the fact that I'd gotten the opportunity to be there. Wandering while hauling 50+ pounds of luggage, but wandering nonetheless - I just thought of it as strength training :).

At the end of my afternoon I took an overpriced train to the airport and waiting in anticipation to land and see Mard!

- Sabrina, Bina, Wood

PS all of my photos from the second day in Sydney are on my camera and not my phone, so those will have to come later.