Sydney wasn't originally part of the plan. It was supposed to be a layover. However, about halfway through it became something more and we're so glad we made the change. Asia was fun for what it was. It was certain type of adventure that helped you appreciate what you have and what's important. Like a cool room without ravenous insects crawling over your lifeless body as you sleep. We were happy to leave Indonesia when we did. Months of traveling in foreign countries can be wonderful, but also taxing after extended periods of time. I've learned that there is a limit to how long I can be away from the familiar.
First thing to note if you're flying to or from Australia and using Virgin Australia as the carrier, download the entertainment app before you get on the plane. That's something I wish they had told me while I had been spending hours in the Bali airport. Almost got it right. It was very strange going from summer to winter in a matter of hours. Even stranger is people talking about winter in June. The oppositeness of this country is something I've known about but didn't really pay attention to. As I changed from my flip flops and frantically pulled on a hoodie in the airport I tried to remember everything I could about this country that I hadn't seen in a movie.
Sydney is full of beautiful people. Beautiful, well dressed people, who are in a hurry to be somewhere. I was suddenly aware of how much of a country bumpkin I looked like. The clothes I had for Asia had seen plenty of wear and weren't really suited for the men in suits. The first order of business was getting a few essential pieces of clothing to get us through the next week. It's when we were downtown that I noticed things felt vaguely familiar. The city feels like a combination of San Francisco and Vancouver BC, but that wasn't it. We were in The Matrix. That building over there, that's where Neo fought Mr Smith. Over there is where he saved Morpheus. I half expected things to go into bullet time when crossing the street.
This part of the trip was different also because we had someone here we know. A local! A town is so much different when you know someone there. An added plus for us is that she is an aggressive tour guide so we're packing in all the highlights Sydney has to offer in a short amount of time. With our new coats we walked into the botanical garden and kept marveling at the fact that we we're in Sydney. There are some places where movies make it seem more magical than it really is. Sydney isn't one of those. Everything feels like it's out of a postcard. The Opera House is exactly like I imagined and now I understand the seagulls from Finding Nemo. Those guys are crazy lunatics, who are willing to crawl over someone's head in order to get a piece of discarded French fry.
The accents here are confusing and that's from a guy who loves accents. I can't tell where anyone is from because it's all so muddled. Thankfully though everyone we've run into is nice and helpful. It could be because this is a town of great food and plenty of drinking. It's easy to be nice when you have a belly full of deliciousness and half the bottle of wine has disappeared. It's amazing how this has become a place full of people from other places. I think about one in five people we've met are actually from Sydney, much less Australia.
Today is our last day here and we're both excited and sad to be leaving. The town is amazing and full of great things to see and do. On the other hand Facebook cuts both ways. While we've been here our friends and families have been posting things that we didn't get to be a part of. We're missing the people in our real lives and it will be good to get back to them, even if the upcoming week is really an intermission on the trip before we head off to Alaska. Our own bed. Our own kitchen. Not having to ask for the wifi password. Being able to drive yourself to the thing you want to do whenever you want to do it. These are a few things we really appreciate now that we've been away from them. At least now there is no question the things that are important in our lives.
