http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Oceania , Australia , New South Wales , Sydney , Balmain en-us Tue, 05 Jan 2010 05:54:54 +0000 Tue, 05 Jan 2010 05:54:54 +0000 Our last leg of our month long vacation to Oceania ended in Sydney Australia When we arrived to Sydney one of my best college friends Aimee was there to pick us up It was great seeing Aimee after almost 5 years Aimee and her husband John were recently relocated to Sydney from Kansas City. Although they only have been there for 4 months both of them have aclimated themselves to Sydney li http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-454101.html Our first day in Sydney started pretty well we managed to naivagate our way around to drop the car back at Darling Harbour and then went for a bit of culture at the Maritime Museum we decided against the aquarium due to ridiculous overpricing so instead we headed over to meet Chewy another mate from the Asia trip briefly before he left Sydney. Following this we decided to go on a wander throug http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-399397.html I am back in Sydney and have settled into a routine of getting drunk every night and spending my days working on my CV reading design blogs starting my own design blog httpdnoise.wordpress.com pushing a few pixels around looking at job sites and generally getting prepared for applying for jobs when we return to the UK. Our travels are nearly over we have a week in Thailand to unwind before http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-387820.html A plane leaves San Francisco at 22.30 on Wednesday night and arrives fourteen hours later in Sydney at 8.30 on Friday morning. What is the time difference between San Francisco and Sydney It sounds like a GCSE maths question that I would have got horrible wrong or something Douglas Adams might have written. At the time of writing this it is now 16.45 in Sydney 21.45 in San Francisco and I am sat http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-378373.html OK so happy new year's to everyone back at home thought I'd whack up some of the photos I took from NYE over here. Didn't take any photos of the main fireworks display at midnight decided I'd rather actually enjoy watching it The fireworks photos are from the family fireworks at 9pm... still probably the most impressive fireworks I'd ever seen so it's not all badInto my last month or so in Syd http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-361628.html Finally after just over 2 years of being in Sydney one of my friends took the plunge and came to visit me I know Summer came over in Oct 2007 but 2.5 days really wasn't long enough. Angela arrived on the Friday before Christmas just as the weather was getting better.....although I was working until Christmas eve she managed to entertain herself shopping sleeping a bit of sightseeing an http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-360262.html Well happy new year. Ok so I'm a little late but this is really the first chance I've had to sit down and think over things and realise quite how terrible I've been at updating this blog in the last year. And to think that my life changed so much since November 2007 and I've not put it in writing. So my resolution for this year is to document more of what I've been up to. It won't quite be a http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-360248.html Well I have 9 days to go before my big trip and it still has not sunk in that I am going This is my first blog so still trying to work my way around the system.I leave on November 18th for 6 months. I will spend 3.5 months in South America on my own. From there I fly to Madrid to stay with an old friend and his family Barcelona to meet my cousin Switzerland to stay with my friend Sara who lives http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-343093.html Saturday 27th September 2008GO THE HAWKSThanks so much to Pete and Nancy for such a good Hawks Party on Saturday When I arrived in Sydney 2 months ago Pete converted me into a Hawthorn Hawks fan and low and behold they actually made it to the Aussie Rules final but no one really expected them as the underdogs to win excpet die hard fan Pete of course but they did it and a good afternoon http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-328851.html Hi everyone just a very quick update for yous So I have found a great house to stay in and in a few days time I move from 7 Evans Street to 67 Evans Street It couldn't be more handy and I'm delighted as I love this area but didn't think I could afford a place here....maybe I can't but I'm moving in anywayIts a lovely 4 bed house with garden And BBQ which I am so looking forward to throwing http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-317812.html So I now reside in Balmain. And it is lovely I want to stay here There are so many little cafes bakeries bars trendy boutiques restaurants and best of all the London Hotel and its legendary London Burger mmmmmm This place is a particular favourite of mine as you can sit on the verandah with a Blond Beer low Carb you know and enjoy the view of the Harbour Bridge........ What I love ab http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-314911.html And so the trip is almost upon us....and we are almost packed. Don't ask me how but it has taken what seems like weeks for me to pack. Tom spends 10mins today and he has a perfectly packed rucksack...not fair.Anyways we're off tomorrow where our first stop will be London but only to catch a connecting flight to Istanbul. From there we will spend over a week touring the country seeing places such http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-296856.html I have been told I need to at least have one entry in my blog even though I won't be posting actively for a while.Today is my last day with my job...I am sad but looking to the future...can't wait to get back on the road again. I hope you will all enjoy reading my blog as I will writing it.Siobhs http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-281681.html For those who can read Chinese here is a story which will touch your hearthttpsichuan.scol.com.cnsckj20080516200851693235.htmHere is a quick English translationldquoOn 12 May a high school English teacher named Mr. Wu sacrificed his life to save his student. After guiding his class safely to the playground from the fourth floor Mr. Wu went back into the building in search of his last s http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-278597.html This the letter from my Sister Haibei today together with some photos that she tookDate Tuesday May 20 2008 947 AMHello Bob now I am a volunteer of the Provincial Red Cross. I have worked for them since May 13. I have sent a batch of supplies to one of the disaster affected areas Han Yuan which is belongs to Ya An City. Now I work in Chengdu managing transfer of all the supplies received http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-278246.html For those who donrsquot know me I came to Australia from Chengdu China in 1990. Since then I have settled here and live in the tranquil quiet suburb of Balmain Sydney. I was completely oblivious until Tuesday morning 6am when a friend of mine Hugh Alexander called and asked how my parents were. After a few seconds of complete bafflement my mood descended into a mixture of despair and anxie http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-277424.html Ah New Years Evehellip probably the most hypedup day of the entire year. After enough nights out boozing and giggling with strangers and creepy men at the Establishment and Hugo's I opt to spend this night watching the Harbor fireworks over the bridge from a park in Balmain East. Funnily much like Christmas Eve this other major holiday night was spent laying out on a blanket watching the sky http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-276991.html Lazurus Long once said Great is the art of beginning but greater is the art of ending. So we're under pressure ... despite SJB's requests for continuing our blog describing rain soaked Government or Finance Offices of the UK would be boring this is the final chapter.We're not going to give you a brief history of Australia. Needless to say this was one place that Captain Cook was really http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/Balmain/blog-260819.html