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The build up to 08
Now staying in the Sydney Central YHA (Youth Hostel) right in the heart of Sydney I was back from Melbourne and getting ready for the Christmas/New Year build up. On our return we all met up in Coogee which had by this time begun to feel like home already. Although as a group everyone was now staying in different place as you have to book accommodation in July for Sydney to guarantee getting in over Xmas and New Year, most people were still around apart from one or two escapees who had convinced themselves Xmas at home would be more fun!!! HOW?
This was my first experience of living in a City in Oz and after loving waking up looking at the beautiful blue ocean in Coogee every morning, it had a lot of compettition with the far more characterisitc suburbs. My favourite thing about the 2 weeks living bang in the heart of Sydney was the abundance of Asian people and Chinese restaurants. Not really. I'm not going to lie!! It was my absolute fixation with the whole Darling Harbour and Sydney Harbour Bridge/Opera House area and the beautiful blue skies
that made it extra special. Walking around the harbour on your own, people watching and walking in a relaxing cool breeze gave many a moment to stop and take a good look round at exactly where I was. Not bad!
I met up with a few guys from my OzIntro group who had packed 5 of themselves, all their luggage and a tent PLUS camping equipment, into the back of a stationwagon. Yes 5. Cosy!! That evening I went to the Imax with them and then decided that it would be a great idea to go with them back to their campsite for a bit. Little did I know they were in the nearest campsite. some 30 minutes out in the middle of Hickville. We went to find a drink in the 'high street' which at 5pm on a Sunday was deserted and petty much closed (even the restaurants!!). The only thing open was a petrol station (handy I guess) and a local pub. Result. As soon as we walked in, we could feelan overwhelming number of eyes piercing at us, just like walking into a cowboy bar in a Western! Anyhoo, drinks were half the price of Sydney
Central and we had a great night even though the sheer volume of middle aged male locals was a bit unnerving! Even the accent was a lot thicker, right out in the Kun Treeee. We survived, found a couple of luke warm pies in the petrol station and then went to sleep in the tent. I say sleep in a very loose sense of the word. How does anyone get a decent nights sleep on a roll matt on the floor with 6 people in a 4 man tent! Am I just a princess???
It was time for the Christmas Eve cruise! We had bought tivkets from OzIntro and got dressed up for the occassion. There were 3 boats running with over 1500 revellers on board for a 3 hour, open bar cruise around Sydney Harbour! The atmosphere was electric with that many people hanging around the wharf, the majority in Christmas hats and tinsel. Our boat had 650 people on it and was an absolute blast albeit that the queue at the bar was sometimes a tad long. The next day was Xmas Day on Bondi (unfortunately cold and not it's best) with a concert in the pavilion
for the orphans of Sydney which I spent with my now good friend Donna.
The rest of that week was a combination of hardships from booking the New Years Eve cruise for 8 of us, getting very drunk in the sunshine at the horse racing on Boxing Day where we suddenly felt very underdressed in shorts and flip flops, and me deciding to cook a barbie on the beach for 20 people with Xmas hats, crackers and cake!! Went down a storm and ended with all of us in the sea at some point being smashed into the sand by the ridiculously strong currents on Coogee Beach.
As you will have seen from a previous blog, I put lots of photos of Sydney Harbour New Years Eve. It was an amazing night and a memory that will last a lifetime of the amazing tingling sensation running through your spine when 6 barges of fireworks are exploding in the sky above your head, the opera house at one side of you, the bridge in front and about 1.5 million people screaming and cheering. Its giving me a shiver even typing that. One word. WOW...
The last few days
in the City were spent looking for somewhere to live. I was proactive and saw several places advertising 'your own room in 2 bed flat' for $160 a week. Perfect. Until you go to a house owned by a little Korean lady with 2 bedrooms in it, with 4 bunk beds in each room (so 8 people in total) and then you get shown your room which, is actually the walk in wardrobe in the hall with a single bed in it and a light. A sliding door and no window!! That means one bathroom, 8 people. Erm NO! Luckily I got a call from a guy at Ozintro as a room had come up in Coogee. It wasn't my own room, sharing with another guy (camper than Julian Clary) for $200 a week. I had been to enough bolt holes in the city, this was in Coogee, right next to my new job, right by the beach. I did the only sensible thing an snapped his arm off!!
This little update brings us to 2008 and my crazy 6 months working as an accountant/tour guide/bus driver/cleaner/babysitter/jeiger king etc etc....hold tight for the ride....
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