Sydney Part 1

The view from my exam seat

SYDNEY! Yes we are now in Sydney and it is just as amazing as I imagined.  First stop after checking into the hostel... A view of the Opera house and the Bridge!
Unfortunately the fun had to be paused after our first afternoon in the city. Midterms started the next day (Friday) but they were over by Sunday and then it was time to enjoy the city.  We did however miss St. Patrick's Day which was Saturday because we all had to study but we could hear it going on all around us (Sydney LOVES St. Patrick's Day).

Found some white wine and fresh basil in the free fridge!
So we made shrimp for dinner with rice YUM!

Anyway to the fun stuff! After exams Paige and I walked to the Apple store to get my phone unlocked and to get a sim card (yay now I have a phone that works!). Along the way we pasted a large shopping area of the city and made note of some places to stop by on our way back. Also I should mention that the Apple store was 3 stories tall!!!!!! On the way back to the hostel (aka YHA) we stopped in a few shops and I got a dress, so now I have a dress to wear!

Walking through Hyde Park on our way to an Art Gallery
(from left Lyla, Eric, Hilary)

We didn't spend too long in the city and other than my Apple store outing I didn't really go many places other than the grocery store. But we did have class outing to the Australia Museum in Sydney and an art gallery.  In both places we saw Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art. In the art gallery we got to see some contemporary styles of art now done by Aboriginal people that was mostly political or activist work.

A sailboat on the harbor and the view from the Manly Ferry

The gallery also had a few works by some of my favorite European artists that I got to see as well.
Following the art gallery a bunch of us went to the famous Manly Beach via the Manly Ferry (which has free wifi).

Canoeing in the Royal National Park

After a few adventures in the city it was time to get back out into the bush so we headed to the Royal National Park for a canoe and BBQ. We also got to go for a swim on a beautiful beach and no bush adventure would be complete without some bush tucker (that's bush food) and a talk about how the Aborigianl people of that area used the land.

Canberra: the Capital City

So Canberra had potential to be awesome and parts of it were but unfortunatly we all decided to study for our mid terms coming up instead of going out and exploring the city. Paige and I did make a few friends in our short time there. The wonderful Nate and Jake, friendly desk workers at the Canberra YHA. We had fun standing at the desk talking to them until their shifts ended. Also YAY first Aussie facebook friends.

Laura and Sophie enjoying a drink for Ian's birthday on the last night of break.

But Canberra was not all studying we went to museums and the War Memorial and Museum.  Needless to say it was a great few days of reacquainting with the group after our break.

Unfortunately I was a bit of an anti shutter bug so I have almost no pictures from Canberra but here are a few I managed to snap while out and about (please note: "out and about" is always said with a Canadian accent).

Parliament! This is the House (the part that the government is formed out of).
Yes I did learn something here.  

Tassie Adventures!

It is the end of our first break and I spent it in Tasmania with 5 other girls.  It has been quite a week. 

First it was my first experience in a hostel and our one in Hobart was not the nicest one out there so it was a bit scary at first, but soon we made friends.  

But lets start from the very beginning... Our taxi to the hostel was paid for by the couple we shared with because they were dropped off after us. The next morning we got the lay of the land so to speak and when out for breakfast.  Pancakes yum! The rest of the day was pretty laid back as we enjoyed the free wifi at the hostel and explored the Harbor. 

The next day we took a shuttle up to the top of Mt. Wellington and hiked down.  The top was colder than I ever imagined it could be and it was so windy you almost couldn't hear people speaking right next to you. But it was worth it for the views as we starting hiking down.

Hiking down Mt. Wellington

Paige and I on Mt. Wellington

We had lunch next to a waterfall and then took the public bus back to central Hobart.  

Tuesday was our adventure to Port Arthur a former Prison colony known for being one of the most feared prisons in Australia in the 1800's.  We enjoyed our day despite the cold and rain.  The bus driver or rather van driver was crazy and we had fun answering his Aussie trivia along the way.

As we left Port Arthur we ran into the couple that paid for our airport taxi! 

Friday we left to go back to Hobart.  After the long drive and the fact that we didn't have much left in the way of food we decided to get dressed up and go out.  We went to a seafood restaurant on the harbor and enjoyed fresh fish (well most of us we did have one vegetarian with us) and a bottle of Chardonay and after all that dessert. YUM

Welcome to Freycinet

Water, wine, and coffee

Hiking girls!

the wild wallaby

On Hazard Beach during our 22km hike

Playing Aussie pool at the only bar in Coles Bay

Wednesday we left for Coles Bay and Freycinet National Park.  We had a tiny cabin to ourselves with a kitchen and a full bath.  We enjoyed movies and wine both nights.  On Thursday we went on a 22km hike through the national park and it rained off and on all day.  But the views and wildlife were worth it. I got to pet a wild wallaby! 

My Orange gluten free cake with chocolate ice cream after dinner our last night in hobart.

We left the next morning at 5am after a small taxi disaster where the taxi we ordered didn't show.  We were all relieved to reach the YHA in Canberra to finally nap (after we waited out side for 4 hours because our room wasn't ready).  And to finish off what the boys were calling 8 day vacay the 6 of us went out for pizza and beer for dinner.

Back to Melbourne

When we returned to Melbourne we stayed in the CBD or downtown.  Our adventures included taking the train to class, wandering around the city and going to the market for food, and an Aussie rules football match!

First stop Penguins!!!

Cuttle came out and put on a show for everyone around his tank.

HUGE rays being fed by divers! We saw some of these in the wild.

Aussie rules Football!

We went to the aquarium one morning which was fun not only because they have some amazing creatures but also because it allowed us to escape the heat.  Our last 2 days in Melbourne had temperatures in the upper 30's C.

The Great Ocean Road

On our way into the camp where we were staying for the next few days we saw dozens of Koalas. This one was down near the ground so I was able to get some good shots of it. As we walked by the tree he was sitting in he moved his head and watched us walk by.

 Here is the mother and baby we found about 100 yards from where we all were sleeping.  The two were high up in a tree and started eating leaves as we sat there watching.

 On our last day out before returning to Melbourne we stopped at the 12 Apostles Eric and I had fun taking pictures with our Nikon cameras. Also it's great to have another nikon person ont the trip to trade camera lenses with depending on the shots we want to get.