Having lived in Melbourne for 6 months, Gen had been making
a convincing case for the Melbourne side of the Sydney vs. Melbourne debate for
years. That said, both of us were pleasantly surprised by our Sydney
experience.
After two nights in a downtown hostel full of drunken
Australians, we were reminded that we are probably getting too old for student
slumber parties and found a great cozy studio apartment in Redfern, a formerly
shady neighborhood that’s become an up-and-coming artsy district. We were
virtually next door to one of the nicest farmer markets we’ve been to, so ended
up doing groceries and spending a few days cocooning in the studio cooking
delicious food and watching NFL football. Sometimes the simplest things in life
can be the most satisfying!
Ace’s dad also put us in touch with a long-lost friend of his
who lives in Bondi (a neighborhood in Sydney famous for its surf). John and his
wife Anne were away on vacation at first, but amazingly offered us their house in
the meantime (once again, we were blown away by how hospitable everyone has
been to us). So we had a house to ourselves for a few days before they returned
from vacation, then spent a few more days getting to know some of Chuck’s best
friends from decades ago, and were delighted to hear great stories and see some
pictures from the good old days. We also made sure to hit pretty much all of
the Sydney tourist “must-do’s”: the opera house and Sydney Harbor Bridge, the
ferry from the harbor to Manly Beach, watching the surf at Bondi Beach while
having lunch at the famous Iceberg restaurant, a visit to the “Sculptures by
the Sea” exhibition, and drinks and dinner in trendy Surrey Hills.
As much as we enjoyed Sydney, we were also very excited to
leave for Melbourne, a city that holds a small place in Gen’s heart. During our
week there we concluded that Melbourne is another one of those cities that has
more to offer those living there than it has tourist highlights. So we tried to
experience it accordingly – we rented an apartment for the week and tried to
live the life of a local: shopping through the beautiful arcades, strolls down
the Yarra river and through the little alleys to admire the colorful graffiti,
drinks at Young & Jackson for the super-hyped Melbourne Cup (great old
memories for Gen!), and a couple nights out on the town in Collingwood and
Fitzroy. Melbourne is often compared to Montreal, and the hip areas such as Collingwood
and Fitzroy definitely reminded us of the plateau.
Last but not least, the grand finale of our Australian
adventure included another road trip – this time down the Great Ocean Road – and
a few days in Barossa Valley. This was probably one of our favorite parts of our
travels so far… jaw-dropping scenery, camping parks full of friendly koala
bears (Ace heard Gen say “Ooooh, they’re soooo cuuuute” so many times that he
almost had to fight off some jealousy), picturesque vineyards offering free
wine tastings (the beauty of Barossa Valley is that you can do the wine tours
by bicycle… so the ride home gets a bit wobbly!), topped off with superb food
and friendly people. Can’t ask for much more J
Photos - October 27-November 16: Victoria and South Australia
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