Sydney

Last night, I touched back down on West Australian soil after a hectic but brilliant weeklong holiday in Sydney! Expect this post to be rather lengthy as I saw and did so much, but here’s the concise version if you won’t be reading on: Food, booze, sights, reunions. Now for the full version…

Saturday

It was quite an early start in order to navigate a train and a bus to the domestic terminal in time for 10:30. Flying domestic is too easy; turn up an hour before take-off, walk straight through security (they didn’t seem to care too much about the liquids rule) and onto the plane. No turning up three hours before and twiddling your thumbs in departures like on international flights! I flew with Virgin Australia, which I was told is a nice step up from Aussie budget airlines like Jetstar and TigerAir without too much of a price increase, and I tend to agree. Naturally, I was sitting in close proximity to a screaming baby, but once I plugged in my headphones and got absorbed in my book the 4.5-hour journey flew by. They fed us too, which always sits well with me! During descent the plane banked down towards the airport, giving us a gorgeous view of the harbour just as night fell, which was a beautiful introduction to the east coast.

The boys picked me up from the airport and we drove to their place in nearby Randwick, south of the city. I stayed with three guys from Bath who are on placement at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, where I also applied before being accepted at UWA. I knew Tom and Rob from shared lectures and labs in first and second year, but hadn’t met Greg before as he does natural sciences. It was interesting to hear what their research involves, ranging from diabetes to immunological diseases, if a little strange to picture what life would be like if my placement had been switched with one of theirs. I would have had to live in a smelly, male-dominated house for starters! I jest; I was quite happy on an airbed in their living room for the week.

We just had time to change before heading out to a dinner party at some old family friends of Greg’s in Mosman, north of the harbour. Mosman is pretty fancy and their house was absolutely incredible with a huge terrace and harbour views. The Smiths and the Websters, each with a son and daughter around our age, were obviously accustomed to entertaining and providing the boys with a square meal from time to time, dishing up a huge spread that accompanied the large volume of white wine beautifully. Everyone was very friendly and had roots in Wales and Cornwall, so it was really nice to get to know them. After dinner, we retired to the pool room (the game, not the swimming facility, although they probably had one of those too) and had a few more drinks before we drove home and crashed out after a long day of travelling and booze.

Sunday

We all woke up late with sore heads and little ambition to do much with our day. Greg and Tom were semi-comatosed and reluctant to leave the house, but Rob and I took advantage of cheap last-minute tickets and Randwick’s close proximity to the SCG to see an AFL game. It was my first time and I was a little unsure of the rules, despite seeing several games on TV and the boys at work’s best efforts to educate me. Australian Rules Football, or “footie”, is a bit of an odd mix of rugby, football and basketball, although it more closely resembled mud wrestling once the heavens opened. The weather was absolutely horrendous (something we’re not used to over west!) and luckily we managed to move to seats undercover, otherwise I think the combination of a stinking hangover and being soaking wet would have beaten me. A beer and a hotdog proved to be incredibly remedial and we had a great time; Sydney Swans lost to North Melbourne Kangaroos by a huge margin. We trekked back home and had a very uneventful, lazy evening watching a movie. The boys had to work all week, so I prepared to take my first solo journey into the city to start a week of being a tourist!

Monday

I hopped on the bus into the city with the plan of covering the city centre on foot and finding some stuff to do in the upcoming days. Public transport is great in Sydney; I walked off the bus straight onto Circular Quay, which is the main ferry port situated between the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.

After exploring these two icons (and using the Opera House bathrooms of course), I moved west into The Rocks, which is a really cool suburb underneath the bridge with loads of great cafés, shops and bars. My love affair with Sydney’s food started here with lunch in the Fine Food Store; Quesadilas and cous cous salad. Yum! My walking tour continued north via the Town Hall and Queen Victoria Building, which is an incredible building now filled with designer shops, to China Town. I went to the Chinese Garden of Friendship, a walled haven of beautiful flowers and lakes situated right in the middle of the skyscrapers. My next stop was Darling Harbour (the next harbour up the river from Circular Quay), a popular tourist hub boasting the Maritime Museum and Aquarium.

The showers started to come in by late afternoon, so I returned to Circular Quay to catch the bus back home, where the boys did dinner and we watched a film. After covering pretty much the entire CBD on foot, I was knackered and ready for bed by 9!

Tuesday

I got the ferry from Circular Quay out to Manly, a town out on the northern peninsula where the river meets the ocean. The crossing was awesome; meandering down through the harbour was pretty calm, but as we got near the mouth of the river, the huge swell coming in off the ocean had the boat rocking all over the place. I was sitting outside on the deck and we all got absolutely soaked! There are lots of interesting little islands in and around the harbour, which the commentary of the ferry informed us of.

Choppy seas approaching Manly

I would describe Manly as similar to Padstow: A little tacky and commercialised, but with plenty of nice scenery, walks and, most importantly, fish and chip shops! I amused myself in the morning with breakfast in a little café, followed by a long walk along the promenade and out along the coast path to a nature reserve. The terrain was very hilly, similar to that of North Cornwall, and the approaching clouds added to the feeling of home! A short browse around the surf shops was followed by a long-overdue reunion with the lovely Tamsin Fritz, an old friend from school who’s spent this year travelling Asia and is currently residing in Manly on her working holiday visa. We got a cider at a pub and did what we do best; gossiping about old school days and people back home!

SJS girls down under! 

With promises of a proper reunion with the girls when we’re back on home soil, I bid Tam goodbye and hopped on the ferry back to the city. My plan was to grab the bus straight home as soon as I got off the boat, but I got a surprise text from Jen while I was on the water. Jen and I met at Truro College, then both went to Bath and got involved in the Lacrosse Club, so we’ve been friends quite a while. She’s doing a psychology placement in Sydney and had her Mum and sister visiting, so I killed half an hour at the Museum of Contemporary Art (weird stuff: think the Tate) before we all met at the Opera Bar for a catch up and an afternoon cocktail before they went to the ballet. Seeing home/university friends over here is something that I’ve become accustomed to, but when I think about it it’s actually quite amazing that we’re all so far away from the UK. They were flying up the coast the following day to see Brisbane, the Gold Coast and all sorts of other exciting things, which did make me a little jealous; I would have loved to show my parents this incredible country this year, but it just wasn’t feasible. Never mind, we’ll do it one day!

Wednesday

Another day spent sightseeing in the city. The weather was much warmer and sunnier than previous days, so I took the opportunity to take a stroll through the Royal Botanic Garden, which was very beautiful and, like the Chinese Garden, quite amazing in that you could see skyscrapers popping up around the outskirts. On its edge is Mrs Macquaries Chair, a huge rock with great views of the city. It’s a pretty well known attraction, therefore it was absolutely crawling with Japanese tourists. They were literally forming a gigantic crowd around it and all shouting at each other at once for photos, so I had to settle for a selfie on the outskirts of the mob.

Looking back on the harbour from Mrs Macquarie's Chair

Exiting the gardens on the northern side, I paid a visit to the Art Gallery of NSW for some culture. This was a little more up my street than the contemporary gallery; I don’t pretend to be an expert, but I know that I prefer real portraits to weird chubby Spiderman sculptures… Next on the list was the Sydney Tower Eye for a bird’s eye view of the city. Likewise, a very busy tourist attraction, but the incredible views were well worth the crowds. I wanted to do the BridgeClimb during my stay, but I found myself running out of time and it was over $250. Something else to add to the list for next time I suppose, it's supposed to be incredible! The Tower Eye also had the advantage of being situated within Westfield shopping centre, so a little browse of shops like Gucci and Chanel didn’t hurt!

The art gallery getting a bit scientific

I took my time making my way back to the quay via several shops, and when I arrived it was absolute chaos, with thousands of people bustling around the Opera House. At first this confused me (all I wanted was to get to the Gulyian café for some chocolate therapy), but when I saw the entourage pulling up along the harbour it all made sense. Kate and Wills are on their royal tour of Australia and they were arriving in Sydney for the first time! I caught a glimpse of them despite the hoards of fanatical monarchist Australians and foreigners, then got out of the madness as quickly as possible.

Crowds for the royals

Back at the boys’ house, we had a quick shower and Rob, Greg and I headed back into the city to a bar called Good God for a Mighty Boosh themed trivia night. As you do! It’s a weird cult show with a small following in the UK, so I was absolutely amazed that it was so busy, with most fans wearing fancy dress. I reckon Greg and I assisted with one question each; beyond that, we left the work to Rob and proceeded to get drunk on cider and eat chips and nachos. Not a bad evening all in all! We then indulged in a fun game of “guess the brandy” back home before hitting the sack, an activity that made me very glad I didn’t have to go to work the next morning.

Thursday

A little fuzzy-headed for the second time during my trip, I dragged myself out of bed and back in the city for a remedial breakfast. At lunchtime, I got on the bus to Bondi Beach for a reunion with my old school friend Tommy, who’s transferred his surf instructing from Polzeath to Bondi. We ate lunch at a restaurant on the seafront run by our mutual friend Richard, who’s now sponsored in Australia. He wasn’t working, but turned up just as we were leaving and it was lovely to see them both. Life seems pretty cushty for them both right now! To be honest, I wasn't particularly impressed with Bondi; it's a nice beach, but the town part is a bit scabby. The afternoon flew by and, just after Tommy had to leave, Greg turned up in his car having finished work early. We spent the last hours of sun having coffee in a trendy bar/café called the Bucket List, retiring inside to a fire when it got chilly. All in all, not a bad hangover day!

Tad windy on Bondi...

Friday

Before I knew it, the last day of my visit had come around. I had a lie in and made my way in the glorious sunshine to meet up with my auntie Sarah and Ian, their children Katie and Dan and Sarah’s parents, who were visiting from England. Sarah and Ian moved over several years ago and I’d only seen them once this summer when they returned to Cornwall for a holiday, so I was really excited about seeing them again. We met at Darling Harbour for a harbour tour and lunch on a huge cruise ship, which was amazing. The food was delicious, we had cocktails and chilled out on the top deck and the boat roamed around the harbour. What a perfect end to the holiday!

I got back home just in time to say goodbye to Greg and Tom, who were off to New Zealand for a week’s holiday driving around the south island. Despite only meeting Greg during my holiday, he’s a great guy and I feel that I’ve gained a good friend for final year during my visit. Rob and I then had a very quiet evening consisting of takeaway Thai food and movies, before I got an early night ahead of my return flight. The next morning brought an early busride to the airport, and before I knew it I was stepping off the plane into the heat of the western sun. All-in-all, I was very impressed with Sydney, even more so due to the opportunity to be reunited with so many family and friends, from both Cornwall and Bath. It's an added bonus to return home to the Easter long weekend, with two glorious work-free days ahead of me!