Australia – Day 1

We love our hotel. Our room (on the 8^th floor) is clean and spacious, and the building is slightly modern and very cool. Our exhaustion may have aided in our appreciation, but the bed was fantastic and comfortable.

The staff is attentive and helpful, but that is definitely the normal Aussie personality. Their friendliness precedes them, and it’s quite refreshing in such a fast-paced city environment. You really get the impression that they love life, truly—they’re gregarious, outgoing, and have a zest for life. They don’t have the same sense of urgency that we seem to.

We began the day with a “Brekky Wrap” and small Coke at Hungry Jack’s, the Australian version of Burger King. (We’re trying to be as economical as possible, so we can enjoy better Aussie lunches and dinners.) The brekky wrap had egg, cheese, ham, and sausage, topped with barbeque sauce! Jay says that BBQ sauce is a very common topping for eggs. Also, you can truly see how global Coke is—it is the fountain beverage of choice everywhere. I am loving the linguistic differences and “quirks” of the Australian version of the English language. Instead of “no problem” it’s always “no worries.” I am sure I will encounter more fun signs and words: Rubbish (trash), take away (“eat in, or take away?”), Way Out (exit).

Even at 10 a.m., at the beginning of Sydney’s winter, it was only slightly chilly. As the day would progress, the temperature would reach about 60*. I am a very cold-natured person, and I was fine in a hoodie, tee shirt, and boots. Jay stuck out in a sweater and…shorts! Aussies were dressed in heavy coats, scarves, and jeans—this is cold weather to them!

We may our way over to the Circular Quay (pronounced “key”) and The Rocks, the oldest part of Sydney. The sun came out, and the water and all of the al fresco cafes looked so inviting. Got a fantastic view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge—truly a breathtaking sight—and the Sydney Opera House, an architectural landmark. Two of the most beautiful and quintessential Australian sights. There are so many places on the Quay to sit down, to eat, to take in the view.

We picked up our tickets to the Opera House.

Toured “The Rocks”…lots of the older architecture. Very quaint. It’s interesting that Australia is such a young country, but they have preserved a LOT of their historical buildings. Very European feel, to be understood since it still a British commonwealth. Saw the Holy Trinity Garrison Church, the very first church in Australia dating to 1840.

Had lunch at the Piccadilly Eat In – Jay had fish and chips (9 AUD) and I had Pad Thai (7.90 AUD). Both are very big dishes in the region—Britain (pub fare) and Asia (sushi, Thai, Japanese) are heavy influences.

Did a bit of shopping and shopping is everywhewre– a rugby shirt for Jay, some cool Australian dinner napkins and a down-under shirt for me (both from Done Art & Design store. Ken Done http://www.kendone.com/ is the modern Australian artist). Very cool, non-cheesy Aussie souvenirs, housewares, and art pieces.

We had an absolutely fantastic time at the Opera House tonight. We went to the finale of the International Concert series, and saw three separate orchestras perform. The first was a group of 8-12 year olds from Singapore, and they were MIND-BLOWINGLY good. Every note perfect, every breath precise. It was surreal to hear classical music so expertly played from such little bodies. The final group was, go figure, an orchestra from California! The San Luis Obispo Orchestra was absolutely fantastic. They were thrilled to be in quite possibly the most famous opera house in all the world, and it made it all the cooler that we were a part of that experience—we were the rapt audience making their dreams reality. They played, among other selections, “Summertime” by Gershwin and “Don’t Mean a Thing (If it Ain’t Got that Swing).”

One of the coolest things about the orchestra was the motley group of people comprising it – most musicians I have seen have that kind of stuffy, artistic look to them…ya know? And this group had a few of those, but it had several older people in their 60s and 70s (grandpa rocked it out on a saxophone solo!) who looked like they could be your neighbor, someone who could be a bus driver, or a teacher. All who came together to make beautiful music! Afterwards, we were able to get some beautiful shots of the Harbour Bridge and the buildings with all of the lights.

All in all, a perfectly fabulous first day in Sydney!