Week 1 Australia

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So after looking on the internet we found a flat in St Leonards with great views of the bridge so we have been staying here for a week while we find a van to buy to start our travels across the country. The flat is great and every morning we have parrots on the balacony coming for their breakfast. the first day there were 32 parrots (mainly due to the fact that we literally poured bird seed all over the balcony). One of the parrots was a bit worse for wear and looked like he had been in a fight. We named him scruffy and after a couple of days he was feeding out of our hands (see picture below) and not letting his partner have any.

To get around the city we bought a travel pass and took ferries and trains all over the place, a great way to travel around and one thing that is not expensive in Sydney. On day one we went to Kings Cross (so many stations are called after UK places) and managed to find a guitar so from now on Shenton is going to be bombarded with me singing Thank you by Dido until I can learn a new song that is.....

It only took us another day to find the car, a Toyota Landcruiser with a bed in the back, we pick it up in a few days then its just us and the van for 3 months.

We caught the ferry over to Manly and listened to a busker who was fab. I think i am going to give it a go when I learn a few more songs, but I think people will pay me to stop either that or throw things at me.

After another day of relaxing on the different ferries we experienced the "rocks ghost tour" Shenton had to dress up as the ghost of a scottish bridge worker who dies and they didnt find the body. He loved having to put on his Scottish accent which for once actually sounded Scottish, everyone clapped as he screamed "get off my bridge" which apparently is what the ghost has been known to say. Well we didnt see any ghosts but it was good fun and we got to see some sights in Sydney that I am sure we would have missed.

Took a ferry to Parramatta the next day and strolled around the opera house, we listed to Massive Attack playing outside the opera house and drank a bottle of wine while taking in the night views of the harbour and the bridge.

The rest of our days in Sydney we spent looking at the Chinese gardens which were so peacful in the middle of the bustling city and eating ice creams while people watching at Darling harbour. We have really enjoyed Sydney but 1 week is enough and we are looking forward to picking up the car tomorrow and getting a bit more rural.

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Photos

Parrots
Here you can also see the view from our balcony

Ghost tour
Hey you! Get off my bridge

Chienese gardens
Waterfall within the gardens

Harbour at night
Enjoying a glass of wine listening to Massive Attack