25,000 Steps Around Sydney

Last weekend we flew to Sydney to meet up with our friend.  She was headed home to San Diego from Thailand and stopped here on the way.  We're very glad she thinks Australia is on the way home from Asia, though considering her return flight was cancelled and she had to fly back via Canada I'm not so sure she'd think that any more :)

 The view from our flat
Saturday morning we met up with a couple Sydney friends and went for a stroll in Manly.  It was a beautiful morning, warm but not scorching (unlike Melbourne that day) and the water was nice and clear.  We walked along the coast to Shelly Beach and then went up onto the cliffs for a bit.  Then we had morning tea at a cafe across the way.

With our friend in Manly
Sydney friends
Walking along the cliffs
Shelly Beach
For lunch we stopped at Four Pines Brewing and had some tucker and a few bevies.  Thoroughly sedated, we said goodbye to the Sydney friends and went back for an afternoon nap.

At Four Pines
For dinner we headed into the city and found some tasty Indian food in Darling Harbour.  There was a row of nice restaurants looking out on the water, and lots of people were out enjoying the evening.  It was a great vibe, and at 9 we got to watch a nice fireworks display.

Darling Harbour
Fireworks at Darling Harbour
Then we walked to the revolving tower.  Once we convinced the guards our footwear was accessible, we rode up to the top to enjoy some drinks and the nice view.

The Sydney revolving tower
We started Sunday off with a run, then went into town and walked.  We started by walking through the Botanic Gardens, then headed to the Rocks where we grabbed a bite for lunch.  Then we walked across the Harbour Bridge and explored Luna Park on the other side.  It's an old school amusement park that feels like you've stepped back in time. After grabbing some ice cream for the road, we walked back across the bridge and back through town.

My absolute favourite view of Sydney (from the Botanic Gardens)

Sydney skyline
The Harbour Bridge
The entrance to Luna Park
We ended up walking down Martin Street and passed the Lindt Cafe.  It was still boarded up and there was an awning with guards standing out front piled with flowers.  It was a somber walk through the area, seeing that building that we had watched on tv so tensely just a few weeks before.  It was a good reminder that life is short and to live every day to its fullest.

Inscription along Martin Place
Exhausted after our 25,000 steps, we dropped our friend off and headed to the airport.  Just as we dropped the car off we got a message that our flight was cancelled, not the best time for that considering it was the end of a very busy holiday weekend for air travel.  In order to get back that night we ended up on a flight to the Melbourne Avalon airport.  We had never been to this airport before, and for good reason.  It's a small regional airport in the middle of nowhere.  Once we landed we had to catch a bus into the CBD and then another bus to the other airport to get our car.  All up this took an extra hour and a half, but at least we were able to get home that night.

Avalon Airport - looked a lot like middle of nowhere, Arizona
It was great to catch up with our friend and a thoroughly enjoyable weekend despite the fuss.  Now just a few more months until we get to see her, and our other friends, again :)

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