OZ Highlights

1. I got to meet my cousins for the very first time. My father's sister has 2 children, 1 who is a year younger than me, the other in her early 20s. My older cousin, Jo, opened her home to me for my entire Sydney stay. Jo and her husband Aaron were wonderful hosts who drove me around to all the little suburbs, to Hunter Valley, and everywhere they could think of that I needed to see. Aaron made these wonderful cappuccinos every morning we were together and I was treated like royalty. We got along splendidly and thanks to them I had the best trip. And Renee, the younger sister, came along happily to V-Fest with me, and we had a great time. She liked the Kaiser Chiefs! Honestly, how could you not?

2. I got to spend time with my beloved cousin John. He showed me the artist's view of Sydney, including this amazing exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art by Yayoi Kusama, an artist obsessed with dots.

3. Bondi Beach - lots of surfers all over, not a happening place in Fall, which is nice. Bondi is REALLY close to downtown, on the subway line, can you believe it?

4. V-Fest - concert in Centennial Park, starring Louis XIV, who rocked; Elbow, who were fantastically melodic; the Kaiser Chiefs, who ROCKED MY WORLD; the Killers, who surprisingly were fantastic, really, utterly fantastic; AND Madness who had the joint jumping!


5. The suburbs of Sydney are not like their American counter parts. They are vibrant, filled with cafes, cool shops, open air restaurants. Leichhardt, Parramatta, Paddington and Newtown
Paddington Market

6. Wine in Australia is bloody awesome! Took a trip to one of their valleys, called the Hunter Valley, went to 5 wineries, ALL of which gave free samples. And the sommelier at Tyrrell's is one hot Australian, who flirts like nobodies business. And the Australian white wine Verdelho is smooth and delicious
7. The architecture in Sydney is really unique, its like a combination of LA, Miami and London. Many houses have red stucco roofs, there are lots of trees everywhere, lots of purple flowered ones! And palm trees line the streets


8. The Rocks, the old part of Sydney, is really cool. The Rocks were founded in the late 1700s, so there are old buildings, winding alleys, pubs, cobblestone streets and the harbour bridge

9. The fish in Sydney is sublime. Barrimundi, Octopus, Prawns and Morton Bay bugs....wait, did you say BUGS? Yep, they're huge, and weird, but taste a lot like lobster

10. The big phrase that everyone says is 'Far Out', yep, you heard me, FAR OUT. That's the typical response to something exciting, interesting, new, different, etc.
11. The Royal Botanical Garden has trees filled with Bats, yes BATS! 100s of them, all hanging upside down in the trees, making these high pitched squeals as they slept. I did NOT enjoy, but I took some quick photos as I ran beneath them


12. The Bridge and Opera house are pretty awesome to see up close, and from the mainly angles you see them at....from the water, from Circular Key, from the North Shore at night. Just seeing them together makes you think, OH MY GOD, I'm on the other side of the world, in wicked awesome SYDNEY!

13. Melbourne can really not be seen in just 2 days. There have the old style trams running on the streets, they have cool pubs/bars with no names found in small alleyways, their sidestreets are filled with open air cafes and restaurants. They have shopping arcades like you find in London. And I really can't wait to go back to explore some more!

So all in all, the 2 biggest cities in OZ are really awesome. The weather was perfect, sun shining, warm fall weather. A country that prizes their cafes as much as OZ does will always hold a special place in my heart. I love Australia, every inch of Sydney, and I dream of what I missed in Melbourne. A trip that forced me to travel on 7 planes was totally worth it.