travel dairies, Australia

Sydney, Australia. 

I’ve spent the last 6 days in a YHA hostel in the Rocks in Sydney. Which is about a 10-minute walk to the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, and the view from the roof top is incredible. I sat up there one afternoon eating sushi in the sunshine, it was divine. Sydney is a beautiful city with everything you could imagine, and with it being by the water makes it easy to travel by boat. The first couple of days after me arriving weather was crap, cloudy and raining. Which was really unfortante as it puts everything at a standstill, I still braved the weather and went out and explored the city. What I soon discovered is that everything is very expensive, because the GBP to AUS dollar is really good it means everything is more expensive. So, don’t expect your money to go far. I was buying things for dinner, as you have to cater for yourself in a hostel and it was $20 was some baked beans and bread! So, make sure you’re budgeting sufficiently and you’re sticking to it.  This is the first time I’ve had to be careful about money and really cautious of what I am spending it on. Travelling by yourself in a place far from home is not like going on holiday with your mates to Maga or going away with your family. This is different and you have to land on your feet immediately. Even with the journey over to Aus its so different. Dubai airport is absolutely massive and is very easy to get lost. 

After the rain in Sydney cleared, the weather was pleasant and got warmer. Before I left the UK, I had organised day trips and the first one was Blue Mountains. I organised mine with Andersons Tour, and they collected me from a nearby hotel at 7:20am. We first went to Scenic world, which is a tourist place in the mountains and has some rides- such as railway and skyline. This is a fantastic way to see the mountains. After this the tour guide took us to some look outs where you got away from the masses and saw the real mountains and rainforest. This was incredible and was truly breath-taking, the view that goes on forever. The drive to Blue Mountains was about a 1hr drive and the tour guide was very entertaining and gave valuable information. After going to all the lookout spots, we went for lunch, which was included in the price- and to my surprise there was a vegan option! It was quinoa salad and was very nice. We went to Featherdale Wildlife Park, where all the animals were rescued. They had all the typical Australian wildlife such as: kangaroos, koalas and crocs. They also had Dingo puppies, which were adorable.  

The trip to the Blue Mountains lasted about 10hrs and ended with a cruise through the Harbour, which was beautiful, as the sun was setting, seeing the city by boat.

The next day I went to the Royal Botanic Gardens, which are behind the Opera House. These were beautiful and the weather was perfect. I walked about 3 miles to Mrs Magcuires chair, who was the governor’s wife and she liked to sit there as it had the best view of Sydney. This walk was about 3 miles and took about 1.30hrs. 

On the Friday I went to Bondi Beach, and walked along the coast to Coogee Beach, was about 6miles and took about 2.30hrs. This walk is all uphill and is very tiring! This was lovely though to see the colour of the water, even in the winter.  I got to Bondi by bus by using an Opal card, this is a cheap way to get around the city. At Bondi, I have never seen such blue water in my life. 

Sydney is such a cool, cosmopolitan city. Everyone is friendly and helpful and is easy to navigate once you know how. I got around mostly by bus or UBER, which was easy and the cheapest way to do it. A taxi ride from airport to hostel was $70, and an UBER was $30. I would highly recommend Sydney to anyone, you don’t always have to spend a fortune to stay in a city. Hostels are good as they allow you to stay right in the city centre really cheaply. 

The next stop is Adelaide, the journey continues.