Well it took alittle bit of time for me to get a chance to take a break and start writing about my travels but here is the overview of my first week traveling. Its been quite an interesting week!
My 35 hour trip to Sydney was of course intersting. After spending the previous 2 months figuring out how to shrink my worldly posessions into 2 bags to bring on the plane and a few boxes to ship, I was of course still trying to pack up until the time we left for the airport. My family drove in 3 cars to drive me to Dulles Airport where I almost had to take my 5 year old cousin Elizabeth through security with me as she wouldnt let go of my leg. The flight from IAD to LAX was an easy 5 hours, followed by a 5 hour layover at lax. As I checked my bags in to Air Pacific at LAX the woman at the counter asked if i had already applied for my Austrailian entry visa. I had been told this was something you could do when you land in sydney as its just a $20 entry fee. Well she told me I couldnt get on the plane with out one and that it took 24 hrs to clear. I started to freek but figured...alright...worse comes to worse I stay in LA the night and get on the plane tomorrow. After already starting to panic the woman said I could apply right then and there through the airline, be automatically accepted, and then just get on the plane. I was now wondering why she didnt just tell me that from the beginning to save me from 5 min of contemplating other plans?!?!?! (one of the things I have learned about travel is be flexible and instead of breaking down when plans change just figure out how to make it work for you).
Another easy 10 hour flight from LAX to Fiji's Nadi airport and another 5 hour layover. When I looked at my ticket I was in seat 29J I figured based on the letter that I had the window seat and I was uber excited. Well turns out I was wrong and there was no seat "I" giving me the middle seat. All I could think about was last years trip to New Zealand where for the whole 10 hour flight I was stuck inbetween a large fijian woman and an intoxicated Sweedish oil boat captain who wanted to talk the whole flight and smelled of captain morgans (i guess a fitting drink for an oil boat captain). Somehow the airline gods made up for the last trip and the window seat ended up empty, so I quickly moved over and shared the middle seat with the Yoga instructor from Colorado who was headed to NZ for a meditation retreat. I slept like a baby for the whole 10 hours.
For some reason everytime I arrive in Fiji is when the first waves of excitement of my trip arrive. I guess its because Im only one flight away from my destination and the landscape of Fiji is such an amazing one. I had a "flat white" coffee and a sausage roll at the airport, two of my favorite british, NZ, Austrailian delicacies. Then boarded my final flight to Sydney where for the first time I was on the top floor of a 747. After another easy 5 hour flight, and a quick run through customs, I met up with Alicia at the international arrivials door. Alicia was my roommate in the group house I lived in in London. We got on immediatly and spent the first 48 hours in our room simply chatting about everything from traveling to vegemite! So from London, to Dublin, to New York, to Washington DC, to another visit in NYC, to Fayes wedding in New Zealand, and now to her home country Austrailia, I have almost covered half the world with her. Well she is getting married and that is the reason for my visit to austrailia.
I arrived on New Years Eve and she was having a "fancy dress" party/BBQ at her and Mark's that evening (Mark is her fiance whom she met while we were roommates in London and through our neighbors across the hall Faye and Niall whos wedding I went to in NZ last year). I luckly found out that "fancy dress" means costume party, however had no room to fit a costume so I simply wore my snowboard pants and hat and called myself a snowboarder, an idea that had only transpired durring my 35 hours of travel. New Years in Austrailia is much more like 4th of July in America with barbeques and fireworks. I met her friends who were amazing and friendly, ate some sausages, drank austrailian beer, and watched the fireworks from their balcony. A successful new years in my new hemisphere!
Spent New Years day a bit hungover on Alicias couch with the others who had crashed at her flat, watching pretty crappy austrailian TV and sweating in the Sydney heat. I ended up taking 3 showers that day to cool off and have taken a minimum of 2 every day since! Alicia and Mark drove me to my hotel that I was going to stay at for the next 2 days which was quite posh. I figured I had been saving for 6+ months so I should splurge on a 4 star accomodation for 2 nights. I got to my room, ordered room service for the 2nd time in my life, and ordered a movie on the TV...then crashed in my king sized comfy bed!
Friday Alicia picked me up in the AM for the "official alicia" sydney tour. We drove all around the city, through the older part of Sydney called the rocks, across the Sydney Harbour bridge for an amazing view of the Opera House, then through Potts point and Kings Cross, then Paddington and the Southern Beaches. We had lunch at Bondi Beach at a Beach club with an awesome view of Bondi, cheep beer and cheep food! YUM! Then back to Sydney and my hotel where I decided to take a walk through the rocks which might be my favorite spot in Sydney with its older, colonial architecture. It reminded me a bit of boston. Back to the hotel for dinner where I ate at the mahogany lined restaurant with a view of the adjacent park. I had an amazing chicken dish that was stuffed with brie and tomatos and a nice glass of white wine. Then one last night in my GIANT king sized bed!
Saturday I checked out of the hotel, stored my bags for the day, and headed back to the rocks. I went to the MCA, Museum of Contemporary Arts, which was extremely intersting to see the austrailian side of art. When I walked up the the 3rd floor I was confronted with a piece of art that I had seen before at the Tate Gallery that was up for the Turner Prize. The piece was a sculpture depicting a Fragonard painting, who is a rococo artist who I absolutly LOVE and used him as a precident for many works in High School. The artist is Yinka Shonibare whos art is amazing as he recreates scenes from high baroque paintings in sculpture, flim and photography using traditional dress from the baroque time period made with african fabric. It turned out the 3rd floor was a full exhibition of his art. I then walked along the harbour, sat at the tip of the penninsula between the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House and listened to my Ipod while reading a bit of Kerouac.
Saturday night was Alicias hens night and I picked up my bags at the Mendies hotel where I had been staying and took a cab to their hotel where we were going to spend the night. A night of fun, champagne, and debauchery took place as usually does on a Hens/Bachelorette party. Back to the hotel where we crashed.
Sunday morning was a bit hungover as it should have been. We were all sitting around the hotel watching tv and recapping/laughing about the previous night. Then Alicia recieved a phone call, the day went sour as we found out that the best man had passed away after the bucks night (or bachelor party) and what was once an upbeat atmosphere changed quickly into one of confusion. We all did what we could to clean up the hotel and check out as Alicia went to the hotel the guys stayed in after the bucks. I was supposed to check into a hostel at potts point but an old friend from london, Cindi, offered to let me stay at her place up on the northern beaches of Sydney. I took her up on the offer as I would probably just be sitting around in a daze all day and since her boyfriend was out of town she would probably be the same. We tried to turn the day around by having a beer, heading to the beach, cooking a good dinner, but the events of the morning were still a bit shocking.
I decided to spend a few days at the northern beaches at Cindis, she offered to let me borrow her car after dropping her off at work so I could explore, and head to the beach! Actually had turned out to be an amazing turn in my trip staying at Cindis as I get to head to beaches i would have never explored and get a chance to experience a bit of Sydney suburban life. Monday (yesterday) I headed to Narrabeen Beach and lounged for the day, again listening to my ipod, reading my book, jumping in the ocean occasionally to cool off, and simply playing beach bum. Another barbeque dinner last night with an amazing sunset.
Now am figuring out my beach plan for the day. Might hit up Northern Narrabeen as there is a surffing competition, then head to the other northern beaches to get a lay of the land. Wednesday I head back to the city and stay at a hostel for 2 nights before picking up a rental car on friday and driving up to Forsters for the wedding which is in the amazing rainforest on a lake. Quite excited to explore more of Austrailia!
Alright time to hit the beach!
My 35 hour trip to Sydney was of course intersting. After spending the previous 2 months figuring out how to shrink my worldly posessions into 2 bags to bring on the plane and a few boxes to ship, I was of course still trying to pack up until the time we left for the airport. My family drove in 3 cars to drive me to Dulles Airport where I almost had to take my 5 year old cousin Elizabeth through security with me as she wouldnt let go of my leg. The flight from IAD to LAX was an easy 5 hours, followed by a 5 hour layover at lax. As I checked my bags in to Air Pacific at LAX the woman at the counter asked if i had already applied for my Austrailian entry visa. I had been told this was something you could do when you land in sydney as its just a $20 entry fee. Well she told me I couldnt get on the plane with out one and that it took 24 hrs to clear. I started to freek but figured...alright...worse comes to worse I stay in LA the night and get on the plane tomorrow. After already starting to panic the woman said I could apply right then and there through the airline, be automatically accepted, and then just get on the plane. I was now wondering why she didnt just tell me that from the beginning to save me from 5 min of contemplating other plans?!?!?! (one of the things I have learned about travel is be flexible and instead of breaking down when plans change just figure out how to make it work for you).
Another easy 10 hour flight from LAX to Fiji's Nadi airport and another 5 hour layover. When I looked at my ticket I was in seat 29J I figured based on the letter that I had the window seat and I was uber excited. Well turns out I was wrong and there was no seat "I" giving me the middle seat. All I could think about was last years trip to New Zealand where for the whole 10 hour flight I was stuck inbetween a large fijian woman and an intoxicated Sweedish oil boat captain who wanted to talk the whole flight and smelled of captain morgans (i guess a fitting drink for an oil boat captain). Somehow the airline gods made up for the last trip and the window seat ended up empty, so I quickly moved over and shared the middle seat with the Yoga instructor from Colorado who was headed to NZ for a meditation retreat. I slept like a baby for the whole 10 hours.
For some reason everytime I arrive in Fiji is when the first waves of excitement of my trip arrive. I guess its because Im only one flight away from my destination and the landscape of Fiji is such an amazing one. I had a "flat white" coffee and a sausage roll at the airport, two of my favorite british, NZ, Austrailian delicacies. Then boarded my final flight to Sydney where for the first time I was on the top floor of a 747. After another easy 5 hour flight, and a quick run through customs, I met up with Alicia at the international arrivials door. Alicia was my roommate in the group house I lived in in London. We got on immediatly and spent the first 48 hours in our room simply chatting about everything from traveling to vegemite! So from London, to Dublin, to New York, to Washington DC, to another visit in NYC, to Fayes wedding in New Zealand, and now to her home country Austrailia, I have almost covered half the world with her. Well she is getting married and that is the reason for my visit to austrailia.
I arrived on New Years Eve and she was having a "fancy dress" party/BBQ at her and Mark's that evening (Mark is her fiance whom she met while we were roommates in London and through our neighbors across the hall Faye and Niall whos wedding I went to in NZ last year). I luckly found out that "fancy dress" means costume party, however had no room to fit a costume so I simply wore my snowboard pants and hat and called myself a snowboarder, an idea that had only transpired durring my 35 hours of travel. New Years in Austrailia is much more like 4th of July in America with barbeques and fireworks. I met her friends who were amazing and friendly, ate some sausages, drank austrailian beer, and watched the fireworks from their balcony. A successful new years in my new hemisphere!
Spent New Years day a bit hungover on Alicias couch with the others who had crashed at her flat, watching pretty crappy austrailian TV and sweating in the Sydney heat. I ended up taking 3 showers that day to cool off and have taken a minimum of 2 every day since! Alicia and Mark drove me to my hotel that I was going to stay at for the next 2 days which was quite posh. I figured I had been saving for 6+ months so I should splurge on a 4 star accomodation for 2 nights. I got to my room, ordered room service for the 2nd time in my life, and ordered a movie on the TV...then crashed in my king sized comfy bed!
Friday Alicia picked me up in the AM for the "official alicia" sydney tour. We drove all around the city, through the older part of Sydney called the rocks, across the Sydney Harbour bridge for an amazing view of the Opera House, then through Potts point and Kings Cross, then Paddington and the Southern Beaches. We had lunch at Bondi Beach at a Beach club with an awesome view of Bondi, cheep beer and cheep food! YUM! Then back to Sydney and my hotel where I decided to take a walk through the rocks which might be my favorite spot in Sydney with its older, colonial architecture. It reminded me a bit of boston. Back to the hotel for dinner where I ate at the mahogany lined restaurant with a view of the adjacent park. I had an amazing chicken dish that was stuffed with brie and tomatos and a nice glass of white wine. Then one last night in my GIANT king sized bed!
Saturday I checked out of the hotel, stored my bags for the day, and headed back to the rocks. I went to the MCA, Museum of Contemporary Arts, which was extremely intersting to see the austrailian side of art. When I walked up the the 3rd floor I was confronted with a piece of art that I had seen before at the Tate Gallery that was up for the Turner Prize. The piece was a sculpture depicting a Fragonard painting, who is a rococo artist who I absolutly LOVE and used him as a precident for many works in High School. The artist is Yinka Shonibare whos art is amazing as he recreates scenes from high baroque paintings in sculpture, flim and photography using traditional dress from the baroque time period made with african fabric. It turned out the 3rd floor was a full exhibition of his art. I then walked along the harbour, sat at the tip of the penninsula between the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House and listened to my Ipod while reading a bit of Kerouac.
Saturday night was Alicias hens night and I picked up my bags at the Mendies hotel where I had been staying and took a cab to their hotel where we were going to spend the night. A night of fun, champagne, and debauchery took place as usually does on a Hens/Bachelorette party. Back to the hotel where we crashed.
Sunday morning was a bit hungover as it should have been. We were all sitting around the hotel watching tv and recapping/laughing about the previous night. Then Alicia recieved a phone call, the day went sour as we found out that the best man had passed away after the bucks night (or bachelor party) and what was once an upbeat atmosphere changed quickly into one of confusion. We all did what we could to clean up the hotel and check out as Alicia went to the hotel the guys stayed in after the bucks. I was supposed to check into a hostel at potts point but an old friend from london, Cindi, offered to let me stay at her place up on the northern beaches of Sydney. I took her up on the offer as I would probably just be sitting around in a daze all day and since her boyfriend was out of town she would probably be the same. We tried to turn the day around by having a beer, heading to the beach, cooking a good dinner, but the events of the morning were still a bit shocking.
I decided to spend a few days at the northern beaches at Cindis, she offered to let me borrow her car after dropping her off at work so I could explore, and head to the beach! Actually had turned out to be an amazing turn in my trip staying at Cindis as I get to head to beaches i would have never explored and get a chance to experience a bit of Sydney suburban life. Monday (yesterday) I headed to Narrabeen Beach and lounged for the day, again listening to my ipod, reading my book, jumping in the ocean occasionally to cool off, and simply playing beach bum. Another barbeque dinner last night with an amazing sunset.
Now am figuring out my beach plan for the day. Might hit up Northern Narrabeen as there is a surffing competition, then head to the other northern beaches to get a lay of the land. Wednesday I head back to the city and stay at a hostel for 2 nights before picking up a rental car on friday and driving up to Forsters for the wedding which is in the amazing rainforest on a lake. Quite excited to explore more of Austrailia!
Alright time to hit the beach!
You know, I got stuck next to Alaina on the flight to Florence. Within 10 minutes she was passed out and had her legs draped over mine.
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