Back at Uni…back playing Netball…

After what seems a very long time (that’s because it was a very long time) I am back at Uni following the Australian summer. It’s definitely good to be back and all the courses I’m doing are really interesting so I’m excited about getting stuck into it all again!

 

One of my courses I have organised myself…pretty much just made up my own research project (doubt you could do that in Edinburgh!) which is really awesome. Wanting to do third year courses proved harder than I hoped with staffing issues, course cancellations and timetable clashes, after a concerned email to the head of history, he suggested that I formulate my own reading program, if only I could get a member of staff to supervise me. I did a feminism course last semester and wrote my research essay on anarchism and free love, a small part of this considered Japanese anarchism in particular which is just so interesting and different to anything else I’ve studied, the contemporary material on anarchist movements and the lives of women such as Ito Noe are truly remarkable so I approached my lecturer from that course…it was perfect, not only was she a self-confessed feminist anarchist (who has actively been involved in many protests regarding the plight of women in the 70s etc) but she specialises in Japanese history. After getting approval from both the exchange office here and my DOS back in Edinburgh, it was all arranged and I am getting stuck into the reading material which I love!

 

Netball was a massive part of my life at Edinburgh, particularly in my first year; it’s where I met most of my close friends and something that I always loved being a part of. This semester I have hung up my soccer boots and joined a Uni social team that plays in a competition on Thursday nights. Cathy, a recent veteran Edinburgh netball player, also plays which is awesome!  

 

I had the first game 3 weeks ago and it proved two points…not practicing makes you bad and my arms are WEAK. It was quite amusing how much my netball fitness had gone down but it wasn’t unexpected having not played since this time last year! The games vary in terms of standard, there are no trials or previous experience required, it’s all very much in the spirit of wanting to enjoy the game and have a run around. I played in an awesome game last night which got the blood pumping! It reminded me how much I love the game, and my skills had much improved since the first game so that was reassuring!!

 

 There are also mixed teams with guys in them which is a new experience! Although I have discovered that unless they are gay or old, the male netball players are ABSOLUTE HOTTIES. So that’s nice. As for my netball career back in Edinburgh…I have been awarded or duped into (depending on how you look at it) into being in charge of Sponsorship and Publicity for EUNC next year after my team mates back in Scotland INSISTED I go for a committee position upon my return. In all honesty I’m glad they suggested it (even though I suspect there were no other candidates and they were stuck for people!) because not only does it guarantee a ticket for the Sports Union Ball 2009 but it also gives me a definite spot back in a team, which I was a little bit concerned about considering my questionable performances in the past couple of weeks!! Ha!

Road Trip to Port Stephens Feb 08 – AWOOHOO

With a beast of a rental vehicle, directions printed out from the net and five intelligent young women in the car…we couldn’t possibly get lost…could we?

 

Short answer…yes.

 

The start of the road trip was perhaps the first sign that it wasn’t going to be as easy as we thought when Sarah pulled up nearly 2 hours late because she had got on the wrong train to pick up the rental after getting distracted by chatting with a lovely man, and then getting lost on the way to Cathy’s place where we wondering where she had got to! We did all eventually get into the car though to begin our adventure up the coast to a place called Port Stephens for the weekend.

 

First step…get out of Sydney. Harder than it sounds.

 

We were lost in North Sydney after driving over the Harbour Bridge for about an hour with numerous turn arounds, several phone calls and a couple of stops to ask for directions. A great start! The most frustrating thing was that we could see the road we needed to be on but we just couldn’t get there! Anyway, eventually we did make it onto the highway heading north.

 

We arrived at our hostel in a place called One Mile Beach at around midnight, and after a series of apologies about our late arrival and comic references to our directional instincts, we got settled in to our dorm and set the alarms for a bright and early start!

 

The hostel was absolutely amazing. I’ve stayed in a few hostels over the past few years and this is definitely the best one I have ever stayed in. The dorms were log cabins and the whole place was like one big tree house! It was awesome! Everything was so clean and everyone was so friendly. It was small as well and hidden in the midst of trees which just made it even cooler! Like an up market summer camp! The guy running the place was a real dude and helped us out in booking things and what to do over the short time we had.

 

Saturday was spent surfing. Well…it was by the other four girls anyway. I stayed on dry land, still not too convinced about the whole shark situation so better safe than sorry in my opinion. But did manage to get some great snaps of the girls and witnessed some sublime wipeout in between topping up my tan and strolling down the beach. Then it was lunch at a beach side cafe right by the sand dunes. The view was absolutely amazing, literally white sand against a perfect blue sky. The sand dunes seemed so random which made it all the more spectacular when you took it all in. They are the biggest sand dunes in the southern hemisphere apparently and there are 4WD tours and sand boarding as well as quad bike activities to do. Limited by time and a budget we went for the sand boarding option which was so much fun! We got driven out to the middle of the dunes in this massive 4WD beast of a truck and had about 45 minutes of boarding. It was so much fun and didn’t get too many mouthfuls of sand which was a bonus!

 

After that we headed back to the hostel for a shower and to get ready for the evening ahead. The owner recommended this pub in Nelson’s Bay so we headed there for the night. The food was spot on, proper comfort food; I had a stack of nachos which always goes down well! Then we all proceeded to try various cocktails. I love cocktails; they’re so fun…and potent. After a few of those we grabbed some beers from an off license and headed back to the hostel for a nightcap. Chilling out with a nice cold beer in your hand, pulling up a pew with some mates and soaking in the atmosphere of travelling Australia – nice.

 

The next morning we went on a dolphin cruise which was really cool. It was such a nice day as well, perfect for a bit of a sail. The free tea and biscuits on board was a welcomed bonus – yum. They guarantee you see dolphins and apparently it’s all good for this time of year, so we weren’t disappointed. Although none of our cameras managed to actually capture anything other than sporadic splashes, we spotted heaps of dolphins that came up really close to the boat. The cruise took about 2 hours in total and went around most of the bay which was really cool.

 

Then it was time to start heading home unfortunately…we only had the weekend because of work and the car needed to be back by 6pm. We decided to stop in Newcastle on the way back to Sydney for lunch. It took us a while to find “the nice area” of Newcastle…but we did in the end and had a great lunch with a sneaky bit of cake thrown in.

 

There was still time for getting lost again. We dropped Ruth and Aine off near Darling Harbour and then the three of us remaining went to return the car at the airport…so…obvious thing to do is follow the signs to the airport…but NO, that would be too easy according to Sydney city planners. Having crossed the bridge once already, we found ourselves going back over it and once again…in north Sydney, which was fast becoming our nemesis. So then we had to go back over heading into the city…paying the toll…again. We eventually got to the airport and returned the car!

 

All in all it was an awesome weekend. The weather was perfect the entire time which always helps and it was really nice to get out of Sydney for a couple of days. I would really recommend anyone who comes to Sydney to hire a car and try exploring the areas around Sydney and up the coast. There are some really awesome little spots and you can do it in a weekend – definitely worth the effort.

Lazing on a Friday afternoon.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s raining, cold and I’m skint…but I’m still having fun! I’m just back from paying my rent. I don’t think I’ve told you about the procedure before. Once you have a bank account with ABN AMRO, the housing association DeKey, will send you a giro slip each month. All you have to do is fill out your account number, sign it and drop it off at the bank. I’m mentioning this for the benefit of anyone who hasn’t lived away from home before (like me!) When you arrive at the university and register for the first time, they will ask you if you would like to open a bank account. They hand you a letter, tell you to go to the bank to make an appointment and voila, you have a Dutch bank account. They make it very easy for you.

It’s raining and I love it. I know, weird, but it reminds me of home! Usually it’s murder cycling in the rain because it’s accompanied by the lovely 70mph gales that blast you in the face with icy water.  Yet today there is no wind at all so I can zoom about Jordaan on the bike like a mad woman. The Kamikaze pigeons were out in force, yet I managed to avoid them.

Tonight, I’m off to the Pathe Tusinski. It’s a gorgeous art deco cinema near Rembrandt plein built by a Polish migrant in the early 1900s. I hope it’s as beautiful on the inside as it is outside. I’m going to see ‘The Other Boleyn Girl’ with Mariana as I loved the book and hope the film can live up to it! Ticket prices vary from five to seven euro though it is possible to purchase a monthly pass for seventeen euro that allows you unlimited access. Last week I was at the Kriterion, a cinema opposite the economics department near Sarphatistraat viewing the masterpiece that is ‘In the Valley of Elah’ by Paul Haggis. Sarphatistraat is home to the majority of economic and finance students in Amsterdam sharing accommodation and is well renowned for great parties. The Kriterion itself has a trendy bar underneath its screens for a pre-film drink. Next door is a wonderful café that serves excellent Panini’s )

Speaking of excellent cafes, I feel I must mention the small yet cosy venue found at the end of Hoogte Kadijk. Hoogte Kadijk is the location of the DeKey main office. It also runs quite smoothly onto Prins Heindrikade, where the ISHSS is to be found. The ISHSS is the International School of Humanities and Social Science and sits opposite this wonderful café! As soon as you’re in the door, there is a wooden bar to your right with chairs, cushions and tables to the left. You may notice a set of wooden stairs that lead upward to the balcony above the bar that you can trundle up in order to sup your tea from on high. I thoroughly recommend the orange tea and the satay tofu tapas!  

After a bit of courtly love, I plan to attend a party that is happening at the Aan T’ij club/pub next door. It’s tremendously convenient and aims to be a good night/early morning. Friday is my day off so I generally try to get as much work done during the day in order to enjoy the weekend to the full. I’m currently reading ‘Tristram Shandy’, ‘Evelina’, ‘In Memoriam’, Shakespeare and bouts of Dutch poetry for my various classes which I shall tell you about in a following blog.

I feel I should also tell you of my escapades in the economics building. As I am currently a bit low on cash, my flatmate suggested to me that I take part in the CREED experiments. I expressed my gratitude but I wasn’t interested in medical trials. She laughed it off and told me that the experiments were academic.  I could earn anything from fifteen Euros to forty! I signed up straight away. The experiments are anonymous. Nobody needs to know any of your details; all they ask is that you sit the experiment to the best of your ability. These experiments are generally to benefit the research of PhD students.  Mariana assured me that the experiment would have nothing whatsoever to do with Mathematics as I haven’t touched the subject in five years and hate it with a passion. And guess what?  It was ALL about mathematics!  Well, nearly. We had to chase a red dot around on the screen for twenty-eight minutes which wasn’t quite so taxing, but the majority of the questions were mathematically based. Needless to say I freaked out a little as the feeling is very similar to an exam! However, I did my best and somehow (God Knows) managed to leave the base with twenty five Euros! I was chuffed to bits as I didn’t have to eat pasta that week.  If anyone is in need of a bit of extra cash I would recommend these experiments. They only last around two and a half hours if that and you could make some money and learn something in the process to. It certainly refreshed my fear of equations.

All the best and till next time,

Kirst. xxx

Mardi Gras!

The bus routes into the city diverted…main streets blocked off…a buzz in the air…flashes of bright lights and even brighter hair…30 years young…Mardi Gras had arrived in Sydney.

 

Having finished work late it was a case of getting in and getting out as quick as possible, hopping on the bus and walking a fair old way to get to the parade. The glorious procession marched on Oxford Street springing from the city and heading towards the eastern suburbs. I’d been told that the parade would only last an hour so we were in a hurry to get there as soon as poss…Turns out…a lot of people had the same idea, also turns out that the parade went on…and on…and on, much to the delight of thousands of people who had turned out to see the show. Whether you were leaning out of your apartment window, up in a tree, sitting on the post box, climbing the gates, standing on a milk crate or simply on your tip toes, everyone was in for an awesome night!

 

I’d never been to any Mardi Gras celebrations before and didn’t know what to expect at all. Being the 30^th anniversary may have made in a more spectacular show that previous years, I have no point of reference, but I do know that my eyes sparkled (not as brightly as the outfits though I must confess) with awe as the elaborate marching performers proceeded down Oxford Street.

 

Fun… If I could sum up the event in one word it would be fun. So much fun! For the people watching, for the people dancing, for the people drinking, for the people running the street barbecues and I’m pretty sure no one was having more fun than all the people who participated in the procession itself. It was one big mad party with a Madonna and Kylie soundtrack. From the old age pensioner Gay and Lesbian bus to the lesbian lawn bowls club, from the tiny shorts to the big wigs – everyone was out for a fun night. They grooved their way through Sydney with unwavering energy and enthusiasm, although a lot of acts seemed a bit uncoordinated in their dance routines! Ha!

 

I felt very conservative in my outfit with a whole array of attire surrounding me. Neon, Goth, bare chests, bare bums, big lashes, leopard skin, glitter…you name it, you saw it. By the end of the night I had somehow claimed a pink wig which I came home wearing, so that brightened my look somewhat and will no doubt be a handy accessory in the future, one for the dressing up box for sure.

 

The night finished with a night dancing away in Scruffy Murphy’s, an Irish pub just off from where the parade was. Having been there the night before, we thought it was the best bet for an awesome night, although the band wasn’t as good as Friday night’s they still belted out some classics and the DJ was on flying form as well, all topped off with a YMCA performance by the bar staff! I’m pretty convinced the only people who didn’t enjoy the night were the people who were in charge of the cleanup which apparently went on well into the morning!

Good Vibrations Music Festival

The tickets purchased months ago sat quietly on the corner of the desk, eagerly waiting the 16^th of February. And at last, that day finally came and the dreary week welcomed Saturday with some much desired sunshine. The Good Vibrations Music Festival of 2008 had arrived in Sydney.

 

“Doors” (and by doors I mean vulnerable ticket booths that were to feel the force of the people later on in the day…) opened at 12pm. A few sneaky midday drinks followed by a bus ride to Centennial Park where the most blessed event was to take place, and we were vibing good. It wasn’t really hard to figure out which bus to get or which general direction to head in…The key was to follow the blazing light of fluorescent colours and neon attire.

 

With a creased last minute print out of the line-up stashed in the back pocket we headed to the bar before deciding on a plan of action. Thirst quenched, bearings got, sunny’s on, eyes bright…it was time to groove the day away. The first set we saw was a guy called ‘Pigeon John’ – neither of us had any idea who he was what he’d done, how he’d sound but the tent was vibrating and conveniently close. Turns out…this ‘John’ character was a bit of a dude. Quick fired lyrical genius slid off the funky beats like the condensation on my chilled Red Bull with witty commentary getting the crowd going in between tunes. It was a stella performance and awesome way to begin the day.

 

We then assured our position for Calvin at the main Good Vibes stage and managed to claim a piece of turf right at the front which was awesome. He did such a good set, rocked up and rocked out, loved it. The atmosphere was just so contagious, you couldn’t help but get swept away in the pulsating waves of dancers surrounding you, whether they were posing for the press in front of the stage or screaming on the shoulders of some random guy who picked them up!

 

I knew so many people going but with an estimated crowd of 80,000 it was pretty hard to locate anybody, not helped by the fact that approximately 79,999 people were texting and calling trying to get hold of their friends! Even if you sent or received a text it was delayed by about an hour by which time you’d seen 3 different acts covering the entirety of the Park! By chance though I ran into Cathy (2007 Edinburgh Graduate) and her mates which was awesome, and we had a few drinks followed by some grooving to various acts.

 

Cypress Hill was one of the headliners that everyone wanted to see, and that was pretty obvious. We spent 20 minutes fighting our way into the tent and an equal amount of time scurrying out with no time in between spent actually trying to catch the set! It was absolutely manic! We decided we’d be better off chilling for a bit and then getting a good spot for Kanye West to finish off the night.

 

I’m not gonna pretend like I was a massive fan of this kind of music before I went, but seeing these DJ’s and performers go live was just so much fun, I really got into it even though when it comes to music I’m more of a light rock, acoustic sounding kinda girl (never one to turn down a boogie to Spice Girls either). And so the night was drawing to a close and the “big” finale was Mr West himself gracing the main stage. I gotta say after seeing people up on the stage all day dressed like the people who had paid to see them, genuinely interacting with the crowd, never failing to say thank you, appreciating the atmosphere and ultimately delivering a dam fine show…it was hard to get excited about this Kanye fella who wore sunglasses at night, transformed the arena with elaborate stage decor, had about ten wardrobe changes and didn’t so much as say goodnight opting to leave it to the mammoth screen behind him to communicate. It may not have helped that I am not remotely interested in that kind of music! Having said all that (!) by that time I had had a few drinks and made it my mission to just dance and enjoy the final set.

 

All in all Good Vibes was a major highlight of the summer and I would recommend anyone who’s in Sydney for it to get tickets! V Festival in a few weeks should be another beauty!

Port Douglas

Ok, so most people do the whole east coast trail and the majority are likely to finish up in Cairns. That’s what I did three years ago. Cairns is awesome but it is definitely a place tailored to the elusive traveller I reckon. It’s the perfect place to fulfil the clichéd extreme sport activity check list that typically comprises of white water rafting, sky diving, bunji jumping and thunder boat rides. I would say though that it’s not really suitable for parental consumption so the option to head a little further north and stay in Port Douglas was perfect. But if you’re travelling by yourself or with mates then I would say Cairns is far enough for sure.

 

Unfortunately heading up north meant the humidity rose as well as the chance of rainfall in the midst of the wet season! My dad got a cold and crashed out for two days with “man flu” so it was a quiet beginning while he recovered!  We were staying on four mile beach with the main strip of shops, restaurants and bars only a few minutes away by foot.

 

Inevitably the highlight of Port Douglas was the trip out to the Great Barrier Reef. We went out with a company called Quicksilver who has a pontoon on the Reef. It’s a day trip with lunch included. So things you can do are snorkelling, scuba diving and submarine trip. Unfortunately for anyone reading this I’m not really the best person to describe the Reef as a phobia of sharks kept me from actually seeing it properly! Although I did make some progress from last time, I did manage to get all kitted up in the gear for a snorkel but a quick dip into the big bad ocean and look out to the mysterious blue was enough to freak me out and seek dry land…or at least a pontoon deck. I did however; take a trip in the submarine which was a take on a boat with a glass floor. The bottom half of the boat was underwater with transparent walls on either side. I guess the biggest thing that strikes you is the colours, not only of the Reef itself but all the fish flitting and flowing through the delicacy of rocks and plants. It’s like a whole other world underneath the surface! And you get so close in the submarine you almost feel nervous that you’re going to crash right into it! If you wanted to do a dive you don’t have to have any experience at all, you can literally put your hand in the air and an hour later, you’re scubed up and within in an arms distance of one of the world’s seven wonders (I think?).

 

The rest of the holiday was spent lazing by the pool (still getting sunburnt with a cloudy sky – watch out for that one, consuming an excessive amount of ice cream and a couple of small trips. One of which was “Breakfast with the Birds”. And yes, it is a literal translation. A buffet champagne breakfast in a bird sanctuary area where the winged creatures roam freely; ducking, diving and occasionally terrifying my sister who had to vacate the area after screaming one too many times and narrowly avoiding a head on collision with a budgie…first class entertainment.

 

We returned to Sydney in time for my housemate’s 21^st party at our house…a perfect way to send off Emma! Despite our best attempts though she did not have to endure a hangover for the 26 hour journey home. The final day of “Blenkin’s On Tour” was spent having lunch in the Rocks (Birthday boy Ben literally dragged himself out of his post-party coma state to join us and finally meet my parents) followed by an afternoon wondering around Paddington markets. My sister was pretty annoyed that she didn’t have ample time to explore every crevice and told me I should have taken her there before!

 

And then it was time to say farewell. After having Emma for a month and my parents for two weeks, I easily slipped into the familiar routine of ‘Blenkin banter’ and feelings of home. So it was tough saying goodbye. Ultimately though, after a couple of days of sulking I pulled myself together and realised that I only have about four months left here and that really is no time at all. So simultaneously I can look forward to seeing my family and friends soon whilst also making the most of second half of my exchange year.

North Queensland

The lack of time my parents had to travel meant that we flew to Cairns from Sydney this bypassing the famous east coast trail and places such as Noose, Hervey Bay, the Whitsundays and Fraser Island. From my point of view this actually worked out really well because I did that trip on my gap year but never ventured further than Cairns.

 

From the airport we travelled to the Daintree Rainforest which took two and a half hours by car…as with most journeys in Australia you find yourself journeying through sparsely populated land and we did at several points wonder where exactly the driver was taking us! To get to the rainforest you have to catch a ferry and then it was less than an hour to our accommodation. The forest seemed to go on forever and it was so dense with windy roads navigating their way through the seemingly unending vegetations.

 

Eventually we arrived at Coconut Beach where we were staying in log cabins! It was absolutely amazing with a beach right on the edge of the small resort. A beach that was totally deserted every time we went for a walk or just to look at the view. Far away from the tourist infested bustle of Bondi, the sweet serenity of Coconut beach was so calm and soothing.

 

Heading north also meant heading for humidity. It was such a dense heat and air conditioning was an absolute god send! And the insects…oh the insects…my dad looked like he had chicken pox by the end of the holiday he had been bitten so much by mosquitoes and other blood thirsty creatures! Whether it was huge green ants running along your door frame or a spider quietly waiting on the balcony (perhaps ready to pounce) you were never short of something to grimace or gawk at! My dad also has a hilarious phobia for frogs and toads…at night time as we walked to the restaurant for dinner you could hear the electrifying buzz of insects scattered around you and the acute clapping sound of the frogs, which was very loud!

 

On the second day we went on a day tour which was run by a small family company which made it a really awesome day as it was just us so my parents were able to hound Prue, our guide, on “interesting” questions about all the plants and animals. First stop was a river boat trip on the lookout for crocs! Despite the guide saying it was a bad time of year to see them we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse at one on the water’s edge. After lunch we delved into the depths of the rainforest from Prue’s home. Apparently out of all the people who visit the Daintree and Cape Tribulation typically only 2% actually penetrate into the actual rainforest, going beyond hotel boundaries, roads and the peripheries of human activity, we were lucky to be in that 2%. Prue took us on a walk through the rainforest land she owned. Although my sister and I were hardly the most enthusiastic students of fauna (my rents lapped it all up) I did find what Prue said about the Aboriginals who used to inhabit the land really interesting, perhaps my flare for history playing a part! How they lived, what plants and animals they used for different things, their beliefs, everything, I loved it.

 

The final leg of the tour took place at Prue’s home; in her gardens she had a fresh water lagoon! It was one of the most awesome places I’ve been too and the swim was amazing! We were giddy and couldn’t believe that it was their swimming pool! And to top it all off my dad, full of excitement, spotted the elusive Cassowary (a big bird…) wandering along the edge of the water!

 

We were only able to spend a couple of days in the rainforest; the following day we made our way to Port Douglas where we were to stay for the week before returning to Sydney for the family flight back.

New Years Eve Sydney Style

Sydney is now infamous for its firework displays on New Year’s Eve, being one of the first major cities to celebrate the New Year and the perfect setting as well as a now well established reputation to uphold, it’s no surprise it was an unforgettable night! With an estimated 1 million people surrounding the harbour, we were all thankful that we had pre-organised the night with a booking. We bought tickets to have a picnic in the botanical gardens, which sit in front of the Opera House, giving us an amazing, close up view of everything. The food was amazing, each getting a little hamper to munch through during the course of the evening. The “family fireworks” were on at 9pm which left us thinking “That was just the warm up?” Coming from a little village back in England, having never celebrated the evening in a big city, it’s easy to say we were impressed! Sprawled on a picnic rug enjoying the live music, we drank and chatted until the main event arrived. It was amazing, truly mind blowing, the bridge looked phenomenal with every blast of fireworks more spectacular than the last, after each you thought that must be it but they just seem to keep coming! After 12 minutes it was all over and people began to disperse…manic! A million people trying to get from the harbour to wherever…home…bars…clubs…friends…taxi rank…bus stops etc! All the roads were completely closed off all evening so it was just cascades of people through every street, in between blocks looking left or right, all you would see were waves of people heading the same way you were. Here’s where the parents became very useful. It would have been an absolute nightmare trying to get back to my house that night, so a short walk to their apartment was perfect and it just so happened to be a few hundred yards from the club where Ben, my housemate and his girlfriend were! After “dumping” the parents and “tired” younger sister I went to meet them to try and get in to the club. I was to find Ben and Cat waiting outside, or stumbling outside…holding a ticket for me which they had managed to blag! We danced and drank the night away. Awesome.

 

A perfect lazy New Years Day followed. My grandma had told us we had to go to a seafood restaurant called Doyles in Watsons Bay during our holiday and New Years seemed as good a time as any to check out the recommendation. Making our way there by ferry we arrived early afternoon, the restaurant sits right on a small beach, right by where the ferry drops you off. The weather was supreme and with a table on the balcony we had a picture perfect view of the Sydney skyline for the afternoon.

 The next day we made our way to Cairns in North Queensland.

The Rents Arrive…

After a couple of lazy days in Sydney, basking in the glory of Byron Bay, the much anticipated arrival of my parents on the morning of the 29th finally came. Mission: keep them awake for as long as possible so they get over jet lag!

 

Whilst my sister crashed at mine, my parents rented a small apartment for their Sydney stay right on Darling Harbour, good loco….very good loco. After lunch on Darling Harbour, a bustling two part avenue of cafes, restaurants, bars and attractions it was time for a quick tour of the city on the way to The Rocks. The market is on every weekend and is right by Circular Quay which houses the Opera House and views of the Harbour Bridge. After a wander through the market my parents were starting to fade…and fast contrary to their early protestations that they would be “fine.” Jet lag is a very strange thing, one minute you feel fine, the next you’re bowled over with fatigue! After bullying them to stay awake for as long as I could I eventually conceded and they went back to the apartment to sleep.

 

The next day we went on a lunch cruise of the harbour. The well known glimpses of the Opera House and Bridge are spectacular but the actual entirety of the harbour is a lot bigger than you would think. It’s definitely worth the trip, it gives you a much larger perspective of the city from a distance and the sky line in particular is definitely one for the photo album. Afterwards we inadvertently came across a bar during happy hour – 50% of all drinks and cocktails all afternoon, we made ourselves comfortable before the rents once again collapsed looking to reboot before our trip to the Blue Mountains on New Year’s Eve.

 

I think I’ve already talked about the Blue Mountains from a trip I did right at the start of the year…so I won’t go over that but we did different things anyway as this time we were all on an organised tour, rather than making our own way. Blessed with a really awesome tour guide who took it upon himself to show us the secluded and out of the way spots, away from the bustle of our tours; it was a great mix of spectacular views, comprehensive commentary, bouncing kangaroos and cups of tea. The tour took up the whole day so by the time we got back it was straight into getting ready for the big event…New Year’s Eve fireworks in Sydney.

Christmas Day in Byron Bay…

The first day was spent sussing the small town out — places to go out, where to get the best smoothies, what to do and where to go in Byron Bay followed by a lazy afternoon on the beach. I tried to lecture my younger sibling on the “Australian Sun” and the need for factor 30+ sunscreen at the very least, but I was told that that was not how to get a tan. Despite using the sun screen, we still managed to get painfully burnt – and in patches. This is of course an English tradition; at least nobody had to ask us where we were from. Sun care is actually a huge priority in Australian society with frightening statistics for skin cancer well known; it’s recommended on TV adverts you wear a hat, sunscreen, long sleeve clothing, sun glasses and be in the shade as much as possible!

 

On Friday we went to Nimbin on a day tour. I don’t know quite how to describe this place; you truly have to go there to really get an idea. It’s like an oasis, a random burst of colour in the midst of greenery and forest. Nimbin is most famous for its campaigns to legalise marijuana, and with this in mind, it is home to an eclectic mix of people ultimately dubbed “hippies”. All I can say is that it was an experience, and if you’re in Byron Bay I would say it’s somewhere you should visit, purely for its truly original and bizarre nature.

 

Another day was spent on a wildlife tour which my sister was keen to do. The lure of the elusive Koala was too much for us both. The tour guide was your typical Byron Bay dude, long blonde hair, enthusiastic, genuine and looking to give you a great day. Having said this the first creatures we went to see were “Flying Foxes” which we concluded were pretty horrific…they’re basically little foxes with bat wings, and for my sister in particular who has a fear of winged animals she was not impressed!!! We then went on to see all the familiar animals you associate with Australia, including Kangaroos, Wallabies, Spiders and Koalas.

 

And before we knew it, it was Christmas Day in Byron Bay. The day started early…we got up to walk to the beach and see the sunrise. The town was pretty much dead, although there were some random early morning wanderers who stumbled along the sand, and even a couple of people who had (planned or not) spent the night sleeping on the beach! My sister had brought over some presents from my family so it was really nice to have some things to open much to the annoyance of our fellow travellers in the hostel who were complaining they didn’t have anything! We then went out for a posh brekky before heading up the hill to see the view from the lighthouse. By midday it was scorching and the hour or so walk was a bit of a challenge, the thick novelty Santa helps probably didn’t help! It was not a wasted journey; the view from the lighthouse was awesome complimented by the pristine blue skies and sunshine. The festive and trek to Australia’s most easterly point was definitely worth the effort, and although we didn’t muster the early morning energy to do the walk in time for the sunrise, it was still worth the look, if only for the photos of a full view beach and Santa hat wearing tourists. The rest of the day was spent on the beach with some people we had met at the hostel, complete with “a few” drinks and the scent of bbq’s, it was indeed one to remember. The day was finished with a phone call from home and a traditional Christmas dinner of falafel and pitta breads at a place called “Orgasmic Food”. The next day we flew back to Sydney, soon to be joined by our parents in time for New Years Eve.

 

All in all, it will obviously be a Christmas to remember, completely unconventional, quirky and unique, I look forward to reminiscing about it come the 25^th of December this year, the words “This time last year…” will undoubtedly arise!