Paddy's Market

Our second to last day in Sydney we decided to hit some of the classic tourist spots. The first was The Chinese Garden of Friendship. After a big pancake breakfast that left us a little over stuffed, we waddled over to the garden looking for some soothing atmosphere. Little did they know that they were going to charge some big bucks just to let us in the door! So we did what all good tourists do, we refused to pay and just took some pics from outside to park.

Then it was off to Paddy’s Market. The Asian souvenir mecca for all things Australian (or Asian). To say it was visually over stimulating would be an understatement. This place was filled with pretty much everything you would expect to find at a Chinese counterfeit market. Fake designers, fake jerseys, fake bags, fake cell phone cases, and of course the all time favorites, fake sunglasses and fake watches. It was fun to walk around and look at all the goods, although we did get yelled at for taking some pictures (can't have the feds seeing photo proof I guess.) It was a cool little day, but to be honest we are just getting super excited to make it back home!

proof we were there

the pics make it look like we were there but we chose not to fool you

small doorway is quite deceiving given the multiple costco's that could fit in there

an entire Ace's Hardware store in a 10X10 cell

predictable

wearing his new goodies- hasn't taken off that damn jersey since

drinks while watching the NBA finals

Bondi Beach Blows?

The most famous beach in New South Whales is Bondi Beach. Of course we had never heard of it before arriving here, but hey- what do we ignorant Americans know? Bondi Beach is on the must see list of every informational brochure, tour guide, or book on Australia. So off we went for a cloudy day at the famous Bondi.

A train ride, bus ride, and walk later we both stood dumbfounded- is this seriously it?? Don’t believe the hype people, Bondi Beach is not all its cracked up to be. A beach surrounded by concrete and an endless parking lot, completed with a trashy main drag. The run down surf shops and cafes left little for the heart to desire and we quickly headed home.

Our recommendation: If you find yourself in Sydney and want some beach time, head to Manly Beach.

unimpressed

Add caption

Karen O in Stop the Virgens

Even after days of fun activities, our tour of The Opera House was still one of our favorite things. We figured that 10 full days in Sydney meant we wouldn’t be coming back anytime soon, having seen most of what there is to see, so we seized the day and booked a show at the Opera House.

As mentioned in previous posts, the Vivid Festival is taking place, including many funky shows at the House. Karen O, the lead singer of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, created her own modern version of an opera: “Karen O in Stop The Virgens”. Imagine if Lady Gaga made an opera but without her catchy dance music… It was bizarre to say the least. The “virgens” were girls in ragged white underwear that wore creepy blonde wigs and literally seized on the floor for the entire show. Of course this seizing was perfectly choreographed and went nicely with the random screaming that occurred.

That all being said, it truly was a work of art. It included 50 musicians on stage from a string section to multiple drummers and an electric guitar. Karen O has a phenomenal voice and the costumes she wore were fascinatingly beautiful. The simple experience of attending a show at the Opera House was enough within itself and we enjoyed the whole thing.

(I don’t know how you were raised, but I was taught that going to the theater means you dress accordingly- well apparently an “opera” by Karen O attracts all sorts of hipsters who were adorned in ripped t-shirts and dirty jeans… we felt more than a little out of place. Sorry for no pictures!)

Our pre-show dessert was consumed before a picture could be snapped- typical

Drinks in the foyer

this one shot was all the rule breaking my conscience could take but at least i tried

a look inside the theater seating, very comfy seats btw

tidbits

Below are a couple of randos that have not quite made their way onto the blog yet, but definitely deserve some mention. One of the coolest little eateries we found was in The Rocks. It was on the same street as the market and had a 2^nd story balcony to eat on. This meant we were free to people watch to our hearts content, while the people we gaped and stared at walked by below without a clue. The place was run by an old Irish women and she only serves tea, coffee, and scones. Pretty classic. Tea was great, scones were delish, and the passersby below kept us plenty entertained.

Another day we set off for a bit of a wander and found ourselves in what must officially be the vintage store capital of the world. No joke, there were at least 15 vintage stores side-by-side, and they were all packed with awesome stuff. It was like a clothes museum. Below are two of the better finds we had, although we regrettably bought neither. One more side note is that Oakland Raiders and Oakland A’s gear is absolutely everywhere here. The same was also true for New Zealand. Kiwis and Aussies seem to love wearing Raider and A’s stuff, and while the Raiders clearly have the best logo and colors in the NFL, we still aren’t sure why it is so popular to wear apparel for a sports team you have never seen. Needless to say, Raider Nation is alive and well!

rookie

view from the top

could have used these vintage shops in college

Raider Nation

 

tidbits:

• Australians call Pharmacists, Chemists
• when people take a cab alone, they ride in the front seat- weird
• Starbucks is the only place you can find Brewed Coffee in this city
• our roommates don't think we are real backpackers because we eat out every meal
• I'm dying from living in a hostel for 9 days- our roommate has lived here for 8 months!
• NZ & Australia don't have any coins below 5 cents- so much easier.  time to do away with the penny America!
• Tipping is not customary in Australia unless your service actually was exceptional... what a concept!
• if you like eggs and come to Australia, be sure to order them DRY otherwise you will receive yellow soup.
• the 7-11's here just got Krispy Kreme Doughnuts- it is on every poster, billboard, and bus. Can't blame them, Krispy Kreme's are definitely something to get excited about. 

my pancake craving finally fulfilled

this is what you get when you order an iced coffee...

cheers

Kyle's first stein

breakfast on the harbor- Real black coffee and award winning banana bread!

no this is not fake, that really is the name of the store

Watson's Bay

At the recommendation of our baller travel agent Leslie, we hopped on the ferry again to spend a day at Watson’s Bay. Watson’s is much quieter than Sydney and Manly. It is a wealthy little town right on the Pacific that was perfect for a relaxing day. After exploring the area and seeing some impressive cliffs and a school of dolphins (they came and went so fast we got no pictures, sorry), we basically just hung out in the little park and read and napped the day away. After taking the ferry back, we realized that in all our leisure we had not eaten lunch. A little waterfront sushi took care of that, and another successful Sydney day was in the books.

The ferry

Suuuuuushi

Manly Man Beach

So Sydney’s most famous beach is Bondi, but after hearing from multiple backpackers that it is overrated we decided to spend our warm weather day at Manly Beach. Manly is by no means a “hidden gem,” or “locals” beach. Despite being a thirty minute ferry ride from downtown Sydney, it was packed with tourists. That in no way dampened the mood though because we had an awesome day there and would love to go back before we have to leave. While Olivia read and lounged about on the beach, Kyle got a two hour surf lesson and is now borderline hooked. Manly had great shops and great food, shockingly Olivia food fantastic Thai curry…Overall, Manly was a sweet day trip and Sydney just keeps on showing us a good time.

The Ferry Building

empty beach to ourselves

heading out

kelly slater?

baywatch ready

pirates headed to Sydney

So Sydney’s most famous beach is Bondi, but after hearing from multiple backpackers that it is overrated we decided to spend our warm weather day at Manly Beach. Manly is by no means a “hidden gem,” or “locals” beach. Despite being a thirty minute ferry ride from downtown Sydney, it was packed with tourists. That in no way dampened the mood though because we had an awesome day there and would love to go back before we have to leave. While Olivia read and lounged about on the beach, Kyle got a two hour surf lesson and is now borderline hooked. Manly had great shops and great food, shockingly Olivia food fantastic Thai curry…Overall, Manly was a sweet day trip and Sydney just keeps on showing us a good time.

Simba Was Majestic

So having seen the SF, San Diego, and Oakland Zoos, (Yeah I added Oakland, it has great elephant, otter, and bear exhibits and is wildly underrated) it was going to take a lot for us to be wowed by the Sydney Zoo. We were not disappointed. First of all, as you can see below, the ferry ride was gorgeous. After that we got to take a gondola ride up over a hill and into the zoo. The ride took us directly over the elephant enclosure. Kyle was pretty bummed that the enormous platypus exhibit was closed, but besides that, the zoo was pretty cool. We watched an impressive seal show and then were absolutely wowed by the lions. It was nuts. There was one adult male and two adult female and they walked straight up to the glass and basically just did epic stuff for like 15 fifteen minutes straight. You can check out the photos to try and get a feeling for how close these things were. Right after that was the tiger enclosure that had an adult female and three adolescent cubs. They were all out right in front of the glass rolling around, posing, and wrestling. The rest of the zoo was great and we caught the ferry back just in time to grab a bite from the Vivid festival and pop over to the harbor near our hostel to watch a free fireworks show.

To conclude, we absolutely beastmoded Saturday in Sydney. In case you are trying to keep count at home, that was one weekend market, two ferry rides, one zoo, bomb food, and a free fireworks show, all in one day.  

Hanging out above the elephants

That is not a statue

Decent views

Just a seal doing a handstand on command. No big deal.

Cali mascot

Not sure what this thing is

Posing hardcore

This is the wiseman pose

The girls got involved too but...

You can't beat this

or this

Little creepy when they stare you down

Cubs cuddling

Add caption

Boom

And a little vivid to round the day out