Our days in Brisbane, Gold Coast and Byron Bay were over and it was time to move to our last destination. It was nothing else than the most popular Australia´s city – Sydney. We were supposed to stay for 5 days. I have never stayed at the same city or place more than 4 days so I was scared that there won’t be anything to do for such a long time but according to my cousin Marek and his girlfriend Monika is was barely enough to see the best what Sydney has to offer.
One of the first places we visited was the oldest Light house in Australia called Macquaire Lighthouse near Bondi, home to Marek and Monika. After a long period of sunshine and high temperatures, we suddenly find ourselves in rainy and very gloomy weather in Sydney. If the weather had been better I am sure the view from of Sydney skyline from the beautiful Camp Cove Jumping Rock would be much better. The whole area of Watson Bay is really beautiful and I definitely recommend to visit.
The next day Marek decided to show us an opposite side of cliffs we saw in the first day and we headed to Manly. Weather got finally better and once I found out that on Shelly beach you can snorkel and see some cool fish and sea creatures I was pretty mad I didn’t bring snorkel gear. Manly was really nice suburb with plenty of bars, restaurants and shops which reminded me of Surfers paradise from Gold Coast. To save some time we took car but it is advisable to catch a ferry from Circular Quay. That is supposed to be the most scenic view of both the Sydney Opera, Harbor Bridge and the surrounding parks.
One day we also reserved a visit to an aquarium that I could not miss as a great lover of underwater creatures. Until recently it has been possible to buy even more favorable tickets for several attractions at a time, but at least since March of this year the prices have risen. Three other famous attractions are Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, Sydney Tower Eye or Sydney Wild Life Zoo. However, we chose only one attraction and therefore Aquarium for AUD 33 per person. I would recommend to pay extra and add 1 more attraction which would be Tower Eye in case of good weather and visibility.
Definitely you can’t skip Bondi Beach while in Sydney. From there get on the Coast walk which stretches from Bondi all the way to Coogee beach. Beautiful reefs, artificial pools, great beaches and bars. After another great day we ended up eating dinner at very interesting place called Coogee Pavilion Restaurant which besides great food also offered various games where customers could shorten their time while waiting for a table or meal. Very interesting restaurant style that I personally liked a lot.
For me personally, one of the most beautiful parts of Sydney was Royal Botanic Garden. Entrance is free of charge and the view really stands out. Wherever you look you always see a stunning beauty. Sydney skyline, beautiful park with flowers, trees and ponds or the iconic Sydney Opera House with Harbour Bridge in the background.
But we did not even know how and it was already our last night. After a previous agreement with Patrick back in Brisbane we met with him and his girlfriend Mira on the terrace as if our good-bye party. I must point out that it was not just any terrace. It offered a beautiful views of the vast part of the city and it was only for us. We met 5 nationalities and had lots of fun and great grilled food that could not be lacking kangaroo meat. For locals quite a typical meal but for us tourists certainly something exotic.
Last day in Australia, Marek lent me his car and together with María, Monica and her roommate Arnold we went for a brunch. “The Grounds of Alexandria” was one of the most amazing places I have ever eaten at. It is basically a restaurant with impressive decorations and beautiful surroundings. There are a number of shops, stalls with various goodies, flower shops and so on. The whole idea is to represent a farm lifestyle and you can find there a pig with the coolest name ever “Kevin Bacon”.
After delicious brunch we headed to “Bare Island Fort”. It is a military fortress and serves as a great example of the coastal defense of the late nineteenth century. From here we moved to a nearby beach to have a swim but after a couple of warnings from locals for jellyfish encounters we switched to another place. We didn’t know where were we going and finally we got to Little Bay beach. For me it was probably the most beautiful beach we visited in Sydney and this time I had snorkel gear with me. The beautiful, small, quiet and unobtrusive beach has almost forced me to think staying there forever. After 15 days spent in Australia we really didn’t want to go back home. We had a great time and I have to admit that although I was never actually thinking about Australia as my trip destination I am very glad due to some circumstances both me and my girlfriends were able to travel there and visited all those beautiful places and met all those great people. Thank you!
