Sydney

Ah Sydney. My home away from home. My favourite place so far on this earth. How do I write just one blog containing all my love for this wonderful city? I've known for a long long time that something was drawing me to go to Australia. I remember even when I was younger that I always wanted to go there. For some reason, something was just pulling, urging me to go to this faraway land down under I'd heard amazing things about. I can't explain what it was. I just knew I needed to go. After two and a half months travelling in Southeast Asia I felt that pull to go to Australia even more. Asia was amazing and I had the best time there but I just felt so ready to go somewhere western again. Somewhere a little familiar in culture but completely different from home. We left for Sydney from Bangkok, staying in the same room and bed of the same hostel we'd previously stayed at back in October. The flight was pretty uneventful... Apart from the fact there was severe turbulence and at one point we dropped what felt like a good few metres, feeling as if we were going to fall from the sky. No big deal. Even the cabin crew were being informed by the captain to take a seat. It was all a bit terrifying; particularly when someone screamed rather loudly as the plane dropped. It didn't scare the hell out of all the other passengers at all! I'd heard from a lot of different people that Melbourne happened to be better than Sydney and I just couldn't wait to get to Sydney just to get a feel for it myself and to make up my own mind. I've not yet been to Melbourne but I am excited to check out the differences and see why there's such a big Melbourne/Sydney debate. I was particularly excited as we arrived only a few days before Christmas and I was excited to spend the festive season somewhere different, somewhere warm! The concept of spending Christmas on a beach seemed very bizarre. I had already thought it odd hearing Christmas songs in Asia whilst wearing shorts and flip flops. But to actually spend the day having a BBQ on the beach in the sun, was just a very weird thought. Stef and I were staying in a thirty two bed dorm.. Yes thirty two.. In the centre of Sydney, in a room called 'The Church' at Nomads Backpackers. We met some seriously amazing people in the dorm, you all know who you are! Spending Christmas and New Year's Eve in Sydney in a thirty two bed dorm was bound to be the best festive period I'd ever experienced and it didn't let me down. We explored the city and drank a whole lot of 'goon' with our new roommates. Goon is a name for any cheap, nasty wine that comes nicely packaged in a box, that you can conveniently carry around and share with new friends. Lots of goon CONSUMING, card games and drunken adventures were soon to follow in the not-so-holy 'Church.'

Christmas Day had arrived in the city of Sydney and a whole big group of us bought a big supply of meat, chocolate, crisps, cheese and of course goon to head down to Bondi Beach for a BBQ. A BBQ on Bondi Beach for Christmas Day! Exactly as I'd imagined it to be... Except that seems to be a big lie we English were told somewhere along the line, and somehow we're still believing it, and flocking in our millions to get a taste for this dream that everyone talks about. What we're not told is that it's destined to rain on Christmas Day. What we're not told is that Aussies don't seem to have disposable BBQs for sale. What we're not told is you're not allowed alcohol on Bondi Beach. With nowhere to cook our food, nowhere to drink our goon and our dreams shattered we were all devastated! 98% of the group were in fact English and so being the troopers that we all are, we ran into that sea regardless of the rain and overcast sky. We're British, what's a bit of rain?! We took one for the team and had a good splash in the sea, caught some waves and generally had an amazing time. Never ones to let rain get the better of us, we still had a fantastic time. Not many people get to say they've spent Christmas Day on Bondi Beach now do they? Feeling cold, wet, increasingly more hungry and feeling satisfied that out trip to Bondi wasn't wasted, we carted all our goodies back to the hostel and cooked up a feast of an indoor BBQ. Even though, strictly speaking it wasn't what I had in mind for Christmas Day, it turned out to be better. We were all in our snuggly warm clothes, eating and drinking loads and having a good laugh. If we'd have stayed on Bondi, we wouldn't have been able to cook our food or drink our goon. It all worked out for the best as I had such an amazing Christmas with amazing people. Boxing Day was pretty much the same procedure. We ventured out to a pub for Christmas dinner, finally getting that much needed roast! Drinking and eating in the dorm room commenced as usual.. Oh and we proceeded to be chucked out for making too much noise, by a girl who clearly didn't know the meaning of Christmas spirit! Scrooge. A lovely few days were spent visiting some of the sights of Sydney. A group of us got a ferry over to the must-see Manly Beach. It was absolutely gorgeous over there and a fun day was had by all splashing and playing in the crazy waves. I can definitely see why surfing is such a big thing in Australia; those waves can be amazing. That is one thing on my to-do list; to learn to surf in Sydney. It will happen before I leave! We visited Taronga Zoo and for the first time I saw kangaroos and koala bears. They were seriously so cute. My next mission is to cuddle one! The zoo was huge and part of the adventure was getting the ferry over there and taking in the gorgeous sights of the famous Harbour Bridge and Opera House. No matter how many times I see them, I still have to photograph these iconic symbols, known famously throughout the world. Sometimes I have to pinch myself and remind myself I'm actually in Sydney! This isn't a crazy, wonderful dream.. This is real! After a fun filled few days watching the Hobbit at the world's largest IMAX, checking out the beautiful Darling Harbour and generally just enjoying being in the city, New Year's Eve had arrived. After a bit of a glitch with Christmas Day not being as I expected, I was keeping my fingers crossed that New Year's Eve wasn't going to let me down too. The Sydney fireworks are renowned throughout the world and I was so excited to be in the thick of it, experiencing it for myself. I just hoped this wasn't a big hype that was exaggerated and it would be just as wonderful as I hoped. A lot of the main viewing points were ticketed events and were obviously sold out by the time we came to book anything. We'd heard of a place that wasn't ticketed, had a good view of the Bridge and Opera House and was free to get in. The downside was they allowed 17000 people in on a first come, first served basis, so we were up and out early in the morning on the day of New Year's Eve, ready to queue and wait for the fireworks. It was a blisteringly hot day but with good company and lots of food on hand, we had fun waiting to be let into the park. When we finally got in, we set up camp for the day and sat in the glorious sunshine, eating our picnic and drinking ridiculously expensive cider. There was one set of fireworks at 9pm, mainly for the children to watch, rather than them staying up late until midnight. The viewpoint was amazing but there were quite a lot of trees in the way, but we managed to get quite near the front of the throng to watch the 9pm show. As we had such a good view of the harbour, we decided we'd stay there until midnight so we knew we'd get a good view of the main fireworks. It was not to be, as the security guards shooed us away and blocked off where we were standing. The view for the main fireworks wasn't quite as good as the previous one, but we could still see them and it did live up to everything I thought it would be. The fireworks were amazing and the atmosphere as 2013 turned into 2014 was incredible. Friends and family back home were contacting me, saying they'd just watched the fireworks on the news, that they couldn't believe I was actually there! It was such an amazing feeling to know that millions of people around the world were watching Sydney head into a new year and I was actually THERE! It gives me goosebumps to think about it. It's certainly not your average Christmas and New Year, and I will forever look back and remember just how amazing it was to be in the thick of it. After the Christmas festivities eventually came to an end, it was time to start looking for somewhere to live and start looking for a job. Stef and I had planned to stay in Sydney for a few months as a means to earn some much needed money that would allow us to travel the east coast of Australia later in the year. Before the settling down and the reality of work commenced however, we still managed to squeeze in a few activities. A big group of us went on a road trip to Hunter Valley for some wine tasting in the oh so retro camper van, AKA Big Slutty Nora. Pumping up the tunes, we set off a couple of hours away from the city and enjoyed the road trip in Slutty Nora's vintage interior. Hunter Valley was absolutely stunning and not only did we taste the much needed decent wine after all the goon, but we had a very interesting lesson about the art of wine making from the brilliant Roger, who owned Iron Gate, one of the wineries in the region. It was fascinating to learn about the different techniques, procedures and of course the different types of grape used to make the wines. The scenery around us was absolutely beautiful and idyllic, and it felt lovely to do something different and learn about the fine science that is wine making. It was of course a given that I would walk away from the wine region with two bottles of expensive, but delicious wine. It would be rude not to, right? Before Stef and I had left the UK, we'd booked to go and see Australia V England in the fifth and final test match of the Ashes cricket series. I was, in particular, very excited by this as I've been brought up with cricket and it is in fact the only sport I can stomach to watch. England normally don't do too badly but this year however they'd already lost four out of four matches and had no hope of winning the series. Not feeling dispirited however we made our way, wearing pink for the Jane McGrath breast cancer awareness day, to the Sydney Cricket ground ready to cheer on our team! The atmosphere in the cricket ground was incredible. The crowd was a sea of pink and it brought a lump to my throat to realise that all these people were raising awareness for this amazing cause. It struck home with me for many reasons and it was truly beautiful to see everyone making such an effort. To me, it didn't matter who won or lost, it just felt amazing to be at the ground for such a special day amongst the array of pink t-shirts, hats, banners and flags.

Predictably England lost badly, but their ever supportive fans, The Barmy Army were not defeated and they cheered with joy until the bitter end. It didn't matter to them if they'd won, lost or drawn; their spirits were ever high and they were just glad to be supporting their team. Even though my country lost, I wasn't bitter and felt grateful I was there on such a momentous day. As well as all the amazing experiences we had in Sydney I've mentioned above, there has of course been so many more, but I would be here forever writing about them all. After spending just over a month in Sydney, I've seen and done so much, met amazing people and drank a whole lot of cheap and nasty alcohol. I've had a picnic in the Botanical Gardens, seen a live performance at the Opera House, walked from Coogee Beach to Bondi Beach, spent days wondering around the beautiful city and so much more. It truly is my favourite city in the world and I just knew there was a reason why I was being drawn here. I feel like I belong here. I feel like it's my home. I just love being here. The city makes me feel alive and happy. I walk down to Circular Quay and see for the millionth time the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, but it doesn't get old. I still need to photograph it again and again, because it's still a wonder to me. I thought that once you'd seen it, that was it. But not for me. I seriously can never get sick of the sight of the beautiful harbour. Most days you see a cruise ship docked in the Quay, and I've often wondered what the passengers decide to do with their ONE day in Sydney. If I had just one day to see the city, what would I do? I actually don't think I can answer that question. One day here wouldn't be enough for me, unfortunately. I've only been to one place in Australia but I can already tell I love this country. I knew there was a reason I needed to come here. I often have to remind myself that it IS real and I AM here! I can't believe I'm in Australia! Until the next adventure..

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