WANTED: New legs and feet

Friday night with Jemma and her friends from Caltex was great! Jemma and I first met up for coffee. Then, we met the others at a Thai restaurant in Newtown. We started off with some red wine and then finished with some sparkling wine. After having some good food, we headed to a sports bar for some beers. This was my first time having more than a ‘sip’ of beer. All I can say is that is went down… and thankfully it stayed down! Her friends were very generous and welcoming and I just couldn’t refuse. I also had a drink of lemon, lime and bitter with Vodka. It was good but I have no idea what ‘bitter’ is. After most of her friends left, Jemma, Richard (another student who works at Caltex) and I headed to another, classier bar. We had a few martinis ($10! Eep!) and just chatted the night away. Thankfully, SUV was just around the corner so I walked home by myself and made it alright. It was a fun night and I’m sure there will be many more.

Saturday’s weather was miserable. In the afternoon, my flatmate Sacha and I went into the city and did some shopping. Whoa! There are tons of deals?!?! Cool clothing shops like Supre, Jay Jays, SES, Sportsgirl, and heaps (lots) more, I can’t remember them all. I just wish I had an occasion to shop for. There were 2 malls and a long strip of shops on a closed street, just a few minutes walking distance from each other – can’t wait to go back. The style here is very 80s… as I mentioned before… skinny jeans, large belts, high boots, leggings/tights, polka dots and stripes in bring colours. Its lots of fun and quite funky…I need an excuse to do some shopping. We finished off the evening with some sushi at a local sushi bar… mmmm... It was very good.

I had decided that I would go into the city today and explore. The weather was finally decent (not rainy and 18 deg Celsius – not bad for winter!). So I headed into the city on a bus that took about 15 minutes. I started off in Darling Harbour. This is what Toronto has to do with our waterfront. It was beautiful… lots of green space, souvenir shops, a theatre, water park area and lots more. It was just perfect for strolling along. It did remind me somewhat of Ontario Place, but MUCH, MUCH nicer.

Looking west across the Harbour

Looking out of the Harbour (North). Lots of fancy restaurants and nightclubs on the right.

I paid $3 to walk around the Chinese Garden of Friendship and it was well worth it. It was so peaceful and serene. There were small waterfalls, lots of green trees and bushes, a large pond with gigantic Koi fish, and funny shaped rocks. It was nice just to walk around, clear my mind and appreciate the sights and sounds.

One of the many pretty views within the Garden

Then I headed up through Hyde Park and visited the ANZAC (Australian New Zealand Army Corps) war memorial. Australians are very proud of the men and women who served during World War I, in particular, in Gallipoli, Turkey. (Wikipedia-it for more info). I took lots of pictures of random buildings. Everything is just so beautiful and historic. Even the hospital didn’t seem like a hospital and actually looked quite pleasant to go to!

Anzac Memorial by night

I walked into Circular Quay. It is the hub for the Sydney ferry system and it’s the point where all transit systems (tram, monorail, bus, ferry, etc) intersect. It was bustling with lots of people – mostly tourists. There were a number of street performers and vendors. Right nearby, is the Rocks which used to be full of warehouses and pubs for convicts, sailors and ordinary men. Now it’s a tourist attraction and I just wandered around the cobbled streets and admired the colonial buildings. The Rocks market was in full swing and I was amazing to see the arts and crafts vendors were selling. I also headed into an arcade with more shops and saw a candy making demonstration. That was pretty cool, but the candy was too sugary for my liking.

Circular Quay - Bridge view

After that, I went up to the Harbour Bridge and walked around there for a while taking pics from the high vantage point. From there, I walked along the shore around to the Sydney Opera House. I had seen it from the Bridge and even before that, through the buildings and trees as it poked its sail-like structure out. Both the Bridge and the Opera House are majestic and awe-inspiring. I caught some beautiful views of the city and surrounds and was lucky to see the sun begin to set. I walked through the Botanical Gardens to Mrs. Macquaries’ Chair which is a point on the other side of the cove where you can see both the Bridge and the Opera House in the same frame. I kept thinking I couldn’t believe I was there… looking at the masterpieces before me. David, you would have loved it!

The Harbour Bridge - from the sidewalk

Thank you 10 sec delay feature on the camera!

From Mrs. Macquaries' Point

Since the sun was beginning to set, I continued back to Central Station through the Gardens and then again, through Hyde Park, taking some cool night time pictures along the way. The streets were quite busy so I felt pretty safe and I headed back onto the bus to Newtown.

St. Mary's Cathedral

It was truly a fantastic day which I am paying for, physically right now. Total walking time: about 9 hours. Needless to say, both my legs, knees and feet are sore and in need of replacement for tomorrows start of Orientation.

It’s starting to sink in now that I will be here for the next 6 months. I will get to know the city and it is my home for now. In the past, I’ve always had someone to travel with, to walk with, to talk to... I rarely do things without a companion. But today, I was truly on my own. I made my own decisions on where to go and what to do. I walked and explored and admired to my heart’s content without having to try to please anyone but myself. I’ve been quite apprehensive on finding someone to travel with in December, but now, after today, I think I’d be quite happy on my own, at least for the most part. I won’t be afraid to do things on my own now, like visiting a Museum or going on a Harbour Cruise. I can’t wait around for other people to do these kinds of things with – time is too short and I need to do them on my own. Companions are great and lots of fun and love meeting people and being around other, but sometimes, you just need to be by yourself and your thoughts. And today is what I did and needed.

On a side note… I don’t think I want to leave. I’m falling in love with the city and I’ve only see the “tip of the iceberg”!

For all my pics:
http://ca.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/lilliandemelo@rogers.com/my_photos