Part 2, Week 13: April 15-21
- Katie and Webster
- Apr 21, 2019
- 5 min read
This week started off as they all do. Webster and I spent Monday and Tuesday at school working away on assignments, readings and going to class. I managed to read four chapters in one day! Webster got two assignments done, gave a 30 minute presentation, and found some time to watch the Leafs. In the evenings we worked really hard to eat all the fresh food we had in the fridge. We didn’t want anything to go bad while we were busy out and about with our visitors this week!
On Wednesday, I didn’t have tutoring because it is school holidays here, similar to their March Break. Webster and I instead went for breakfast at Donut Papi, a gourmet, handmade donut shop. We tried a coffee bean donut and a Simpson’s inspired strawberry milkshake donut. They were absolutely delicious! Fresh! Sweet! Tasty! We are glad we finally checked it off our list.
In the afternoon Webster had one last class and ultimate frisbee practice. I managed to get a bit more school work done.
On Thursday, bright and early, Mom and Wayne landed in Sydney. After a 22 hour flight and 14 hour time change, we met them at their hotel and headed out for a big day of exploring! We wanted them to get over the time change so even though it was a long day, we explored the Rocks and Circular Quay. First, we took a ferry from Circular Quay, under the Harbour Bridge and into Darling Harbour. Then we turned around went back under the Harbour Bridge, past the Opera House and to Rose Bay. We had a great view of the ocean coming into the river that separates north and south Sydney.
After our self-guided harbour cruise, we headed up to the Harbour Bridge to get a better look at the water and Opera House. We climbed a few flights of stairs and finally arrived on the bridge looking out over the harbour. It was such a sunny day which was really exciting for them!
Then, we headed into the city centre to do some souvenir shopping! We headed to Paddy’s Markets which has discounted souvenirs at a fraction of the cost in major tourist areas. As you can imagine Mom and Wayne shopped until they dropped! They found lots of great souvenirs.
After shopping, they were pooped. The sun had gone down and they were really feeling the jet lag. We headed back to their hotel and ordered in pizza for dinner. We said goodnight at 8pm and let them get a solid twelve hours of sleep for our next full day!
On Friday, we met up with Mom and Wayne at 10:30 for a quick coffee before heading out to the beach. We had to show them our most visited spot, Bondi Beach. We took a bus to Bronte Beach about 2km away from Bondi and enjoyed a nice coastal walk along the ocean. We stopped to people watch, take lots of pictures and point out all the cool surfers. When we arrived at Bondi we enjoyed a great lunch sitting outside. We were lucky to have another beautiful day, sunny and 26.
After visiting Bondi, we came back into the city centre to visit the Westfield Tower. This is something Webster and I have had on our list since day one so it was really exciting for us too. We went up 310m above the city to get great views over Sydney. It was so clear we could even see the Blue Mountains far out into the distance. We waited at the top for the sun to set and get some great photos.
Our last stop was dinner at Spice Alley. Webster and I tried Spice Alley a few weeks ago and loved it. Typically food in Sydney is very expensive and Spice Alley is a much more reasonable option. We all tried Asian food from one of the “stands” in the alleyway. It was a great way to try something new and get something different.
On Saturday we woke up bright and early, at 6:20am, to head to Wild Life Sydney Zoo for breakfast with koalas! We arrived just as the sun was coming up and met our group of 8 others. We were given a behind the scenes tour of the zoo before it opened to the public. Our guide worked at Wild Life Sydney for over ten years so he was really knowledgeable about all the animals and was able to share great stories. We saw wombats, kangaroos, a crocodile, snakes, spiders, and tons more!
After our tour we headed up to their rooftop cafe to have breakfast. We were joined by ten koalas who were delivered some fresh eucalyptus. We ate, watched the koalas play and then got to have some photos with them. In Sydney it is against the law to touch koalas so we just posed beside their perch instead of giving them a snuggle. It was a great morning!
Afterwards we headed to a local food, art, and luxury handmade market, Paddington Market. Paddington Market is held at the school where I volunteer so I was able to show Mom and Wayne where I spend my Wednesday’s. We wandered around looking at clothes, souvenirs and delicious food. Mom and Wayne even tried an Australian specialty, Leamington’s, a cake pastry with jam, covered in chocolate and coconut. We spent the rest of our afternoon wandering around shopping.
In the evening we headed to Darling Harbour to visit the Hard Rock Cafe, a must see in any city Wayne visits. Then we enjoyed a great dinner at Hunter and Barrel, one of our favourites in Sydney. Wayne and Webster shared the King’s Feast - lamb, ribs, chicken and steak! After dinner we walked around the harbour into some shops and people watching. Then at 8:30 we watched the Darling Harbour fireworks! It was a great way to end a long day.
On Sunday, we woke up even earlier to head up to the Blue Mountains. It takes about 3 hours to get to the Blue Mountains from Sydney on the train and we knew it would be busy on Easter Sunday so we decided to get an early start. We arrived at the National Park around 9:45am and immediately headed for the first lookout near the Three Sisters. We spent some time exploring and then took a bus up to a higher viewpoint over the mountains. We enjoyed an iced coffee with great views! Then, we embarked on the Prince Henry (aka, Prince Harry) walkway all the way back to the Three Sisters. We were really lucky to walk the trail before it got too busy. We were able to enjoy the scenery and stop for photos along the way. It was a 3km trail with lots of stairs, but worth all the narrow pathways for the sights. We ended up back at the train station by 2pm to head back into Sydney.
We spent our evening chilling out at the hotel, having a swim at the rooftop pool, and then heading out to Circular Quay to see fireworks over the Opera House!
It has been so nice to share our short-time home of Sydney with some family. It makes Australia seem not so far away. This week we are headed to the Great Barrier Reef for one more week of fun before Mom and Wayne fly back. We are so excited to scuba dive, see the rainforest, and explore all Cairns has to offer! We will share photos next Sunday!
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