There are few skylines as iconic as that which greeted us through our plane window on the 17th of January. As the flight finally bumped its way out of thick cloud, that was actually the tail end of the cyclones that had wreaked havoc in Queensland, we glimpsed the majestic arch of the Harbour Bridge. Beyond it, caught in a single shaft of summer sun, sat the famous Opera House. Kasia, for whom Sydney had been home for a while 10 years ago, was beyond excited to be revisiting her old stomping ground and for me this view, so quintessentially Australian, brought home to me how far we had come since leaving the UK in November. We really were on the other side of the world. Hostel rooms, even the quietest, cleanest ones can be a
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