Aussie Oy!

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So I didn't mean to, but I've ended up visiting every city again in the past couple of weeks.

After the massive road trip ending in Melbourne, I was off to Canberra to visit Anthony. It was nice to just relax after the road trip.

I had issues with the public transport in Canberra, as the buses ran only once per hour during off-peak times, and of course I managed to miss the bus, or lose track of time, and end up waiting another hour. One afternoon I managed to miss the bus twice! So I didn't really see anything new in Canberra, but I had a great time anyways. Did some star gazing the first evening...I don't think I will ever get tired of seeing the night sky! Did you know that Orion and the man in the moon are upside down in the southern hemisphere?
We also went for kareoke one night...my first time doing kareoke, and I found myself surprisingly shy when I was handed the microphone! But I did have lots of fun that night.

I also got some lessons in driving standard...as well as lessons in car-buying. The driving experience was funny, as when I first got into the car I was expected to adjust the mirrors and everything. But as I was to be driving around in a field, I made the comment, "who'd be tailgating me in this field?" But sure enough, after a round of driving, there was someone tailgating me on the field! The lessons went rather well, and I think with a bit more practice, I'd have no problems driving standard! (Ok boys, you can stop laughing now. Seriously.)

I ended up going with Anthony to Sydney, as he was going up there with a few of his mates for Big Day Out. We weren't able to get me a ticket, but I hung out with Kylie instead (I had met her in the hostel when I first arrived in Sydney). We had a great time that weekend. There was a bit (ok, a lot) of drama from a girl in the group over my precense (somehow I came across as not trustworthy and she had a grudge against me for some odd reason...how a goody-two-shoes like me gets labled as untrustworthy I have no idea). Luckily I was able to stay at Kylie's place right near Paddy Markets and Chinatown. The weekend didn't go quite as planned, with lots of drama and confusion and surprises (couldn't figure out if it was a soap opera or an episode from Seinfeld...I think I will vote for Seinfeld), but in the end I did have lots of fun.

The weekend included lots of browsing at Paddy Markets, eating cheap street food at markets in Chinatown (not recommended to anyone with a weak stomach, as I found out later!), fireworks at Darling Harbour on Australia Day (or rather, pretty colours as a massive palm tree blocked our view of the actual fireworks), drinks with Anthony and Nathan at random bars (and getting turned away from other bars because I wore flipflops or they wouldn't accept my id...so Sydney isn't so laid back when it comes to drinking), and just wandering around Sydney. We visited the Queen Victoria building, the Botanical Gardens (where we saw the massive fruit bats hanging from the trees in huge numbers), and the Chinese Friendship garden at Darling Harbour. I had lots of fun and lots of laughs. It was definitely a better second impression of Sydney than the first time around. Then we drove back to Canberra on Sunday afternoon (after a lot of worrying as the car didn't start in the morning and had to be jump-started at the hotel!).

Canberra was just a nice break. It was good to just sit around after the huge road trip, and it was nice to spend a day just lounging around after the Sydney adventures (ok, fine, I didn't have any other choice because I was sick).

I did have the best coffee of my life in Canberra (go to the cafe next to the YHA and ask for a flat white), and I got to do some more star gazing (saw a shooting star while hanging up laundry at midnight), and I realized that the area around Canberra is pretty. I found it rather ironic after driving in the Flinders and the Grampians and being wowed by the landscape there, to have completely ignored the beauty of the capital area. Canberra has the reputation of being boring, but if a tourist is going to drive all the way to the Flinders Ranges to see some hills, surely they can appreciate the beauty of the landscape of the A.C.T.
I wish I had gotten some pictures to prove it.

"Some people see in black and white. Others see in colour."

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Photos

Darling Harbour fireworks
Our view was blocked by crowds and trees...so artsy photos resulted instead.

Darling Harbour by night
An evening stroll the night before Aussie Day

Sunbathing lizard
We spotted this lizard at the Chinese Friendship Garden in Darling Harbour

Giant goldfish
In the waters of the Chinese Friendship Garden, we spotted lots of huge goldfish!

Inside the Queen Victoria
The inside of the Queen Victoria building was quite grand!

The bats!
In Darling Harbour and the Botanical Garden, there were huge fruit bats everywhere!

Comments

[Evan]

no its not a goldfish
dude........ thts a koi fish.......... not a goldfish