Blogs from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, Oceania - page 655

We all woke up with excitement on Friday ready for another fun fun weekend here in Oz! Mary Neill was of course up early for work, and of course Lynds and I were enjoying no job haha! At this point we were beginning to get a little stressed out….if you remember the restaurant we both worked at last week, The Beach Pit, they were supposed to call Lynds with her shift times. Of course they didn’t, so Lynds wrote them off for good. If we thought we were sore after the first day of surfing, there is no comparison to the way we felt after two days of the ocean throwing us around! We decided to give it a rest for the day and actively pursue some jobs! I spent the afternoon walking around Manly handing ... read more

Hey guys, sorry it’s been so long! We’ve had a most fantastic week though! Mary Neill started her job on Wednesday, so that’s made everything really start to hit home that we are here for a while! Lynds and I, still on the job search, decided to make the most of the beautiful day and sign up for a surfing lesson!! I have been waiting since we left San Diego in February to have my shot at surfing again. I was soooo EXCITED!! We walked down the boardwalk and we’re just loving the beach scene. It’s a very pretty walk. There’s a playground on the way so kids are playing, people are laying out, everyone’s having a good ole time. Lynds and I sign up for the adult class and have about five other folks in ... read more

There are wild cockatoo looking birds the size of big seagulls that fly around our neighborhood as well as a flock of smallish parrots. There is not a belief in picking up after your dog. The dogs sort of free-style which makes for some gnarly side walks, but, the upside is, there are no dogs allowed on the beaches or parks so the free-styling is contained. No flavored creamer! I’m considering vanilla flavored custard as a substitute. Will report back. The beach is literally covered in surfers. The waves are HUGE and the water is cold. The surfers run, barefoot, in their wetsuits from wherever they live straight to the water, so as you walk around town you often see barefooted surfers in full body wet suits carrying their boards and running to the beach. I ... read more

HISTORY Twenty years ago three young men - all good looking, wholesome and wide eyed - set out on a journey that would take them to places strange and distant. They started in steamy Singapore (staying at the Cockpit Hotel - alas, no more!) and journeyed to exotic Ko Samuii (before it had an airport), to forbidding China (where they walked on the unrestored section of the Great Wall), caught the Trans-Siberian (7 days without a shower), lived in history-soaked Florence (and mastered Italiano), and set up a hostel for wayward travellers in Hammersmith, London. Yes, those three young men were Frank, Joe and Tez - or as you may know them, The Busters! TODAY Looking back across the last two decades one can’t help but notice the similar paths our lives have taken. We are ... read more

Monday was a busy day for us. MN stayed home most of the day, still trying to get over her flu. Lynds had orientation and a job interview. I had to go into the city for a job interview as well. This is a good time for me to explain the job situation. Since I’ve received congratulatory messages on my new job, I thought I needed to clear it up. Yes, in last week’s journal I talked about waitressing. Lynds and I both had what they call a trial run at the Beach Pit, a restaurant near the beach. The management, whom we are not to fond of, said they would call us to let us know. However, we never really got one such call. Lynds got a text message late Friday night for her to ... read more