Quick side note about Koalas and Federalism (not a common combination I'm guessing): apparently rules on what you can do with Koalas vary by state. Wait a second, that sounded really dirty. What i mean, is in some states you can't even touch them, in some you can pet them but not hold them, and in Queensland you can hold them. I find these different koala-fications (har har) very humorous.
Simply because Cairns is more of a gateway to cool activities than a destination in and of itself going over what we'll be doing there was even more exciting than the prospect of petting a Koala (once again, NOT dirty). Friday we're booked for a jaunt to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree Rainforest where we'll get to hike, do a canopy walk, and laze on beautiful beaches. Saturday it's off to the Great Barrier Reef to chill with Nemo and his brethren. Everyone else in my group is doing the snorkeling option but I opted for diving since I took lessons this spring and just got a nifty waterproof camera that I'm keen to try out. Sunday will be quite the opposite of a day of rest as we booked an "X-Treme" White Water Rafting package. I've never white water rafted before but the lady at the travel agency assured me that i should be fine, although people are "tossed from the boats all the time" and sometimes the instructors try to tip the rafts "just for a more extreme experience." Great. Since we're flying back Monday we didn't book any activities and will probably just lounge around at our Hostel's pool which is supposedly pretty nice.
After talking travel, I met my friend Dan for lunch in the David Jones food hall - an upmarket gourmet haven that offers everything you could ever want to eat (besides normal iced coffee which i'm sad to report was not available). We're talking anything from Sushi to prepared Pastas, to Oysters and Chocolate Covered Fruit. Dan and I settled on the Noodle Bar where we had some delicious Asian fare while sitting atop fun swivelly stools.
Post-swivelling I walked from Central Sydney, through Darlinghurst - a funky area widely known as being the center of Sydney's gay community. Based on store names like the "pleasure chest" and "lick-her shop" instead of Liquor shop I definitely got the sense that it was sort of seamier than some of the other area's I'd visited.
I pretty much just strolled through Darlinghurst, stopping only for an american Iced Coffee (finally!) at Gloria Jeans, an american coffee chain that seems to be much more prevalent in Australia than anywhere in the states. Since Australia has such incredible coffee, I felt almost like an American seeking out a McDonalds in Italy. But the day was warm, and I was a girl with a hankering for some good ol' coffee over ice with milk, hold the ice cream, whipped cream, cream, and chocolate please.
Iced beverage in hand, I continued my stroll down Oxford street to Padington, periodically wandering into little shops and galleries. I spotted this sign above a pharmacy and realized that with my passion for rhyming and silly sounding names, I'm pretty sure I should just move here permanently.
After having a chuckle at Maddo from Paddo's creation, I spotted a huge guard booth surrounded by walls that i recognized from my guide book as Victoria Barracks. Here's what the first page in my lonely planet Sydney guide says about the Barracks:
"There are free tours of these stately Georgian barrakcs (built 1841-1845) that include a performance by the military band (weather permitting). It's a large complex, brought alive by the old soldiers of the Corps of Guides; expect good yarn. the museum is jam-packed with military paraphernalia. Disabled access is good."
"Sweet!" I thought. "Ill just take a quick peek around the barracks, maybe wander into a few old rooms. No big deal." Having seen three boys with matching backpacks stroll past the guard without being stopped, i thought he must be there merely as a resource for questions or directions. Consequently, i marched right in as if I owned the place, or at least was descended from someone who did.
"Um, mam?" He said as i started walking into the compound.
"Yes?"
"May i see some ID?"
"Sure," I said, thinking it was weird but he would ID little ol' me but not he boys with the backpacks that might have very well been holding bombs, or grenades or live snakes. I handed over my International Student ID.
"Um, may i see some military ID?"
Apparently the barracks were still in use, a fact that I would have realized had i looked at the 2nd entry for Victoria Barracks 4 pages later which helpfully reads :
This place is still an active Army base, so you'll have to catch a view of the impressive Georgian sandstone structure from the guarded gate."
Thanks lonely planet, thanks a bundle. Maybe you should consider switching those entries, eh?
Keen to get away from the guard house as quick as possible, i bid adieu to my dignity and the guard who clearly thought i was a total bimbo and hopped a bus to Bondi beach. Even though its only a few miles from Sydney's Business center, Bondi is a completely different world. The beach was teeming with runners, surfers, frisbee players and dog walkers all enjoying the late afternoon dusk. I stopped for a while at the Skate Park where i watched boarders shred some serious...umm...what do boarders shred again?
Somewhere near the end of the boardwalk I tripped over a loose dog and fell flat on my face, subsequently becoming a victim of its enthusiastic licks. After i peeled the pup off of me, and myself off the ground I tried to identify what kind of dog it was (one of my favorite pastimes since I used to avidly study dog breed books in 6th grade in hopes that my parents would let me have one. I probably shouldn't tell people that...) I guessed it was a Puggle but the owner corrected me rather disdainfully as if to say, "Puggles are so passe."
"Actually, he's a pug-a-lier. A pug crossed with a king charles cavalier spaniel." I guess the designer hybrid dog craze has hit Oz as well.
After saying goodbye to my friend (the dog, not the owner. I didn't like him.) I climbed up the hill to Bondi Golf Course - a course overlooking Bondi with views of the city as well. At first I was a little bit worried about walking around in non-golf shoes, knowing that a lot of golf clubs tend to be quite stuffy. Not wanting to risk getting kicked off before i got to see the sunset, I booked it to a stone fort I spotted that turned out to be tee 5. Thankfully no one saw me, or if they did, said anything to me and i was able to snap some great shots of the sun setting over the harbor bridge.
My Golf Club Inappropriate Footwear
Sunset over the Bridge
I needn't have been worried about getting caught as i realized when I saw golfers strolling around in flip-flops and jorts (jean shorts for all you ignorant folk), cells to their ears with their dogs running amok (and defecating amok. I almost sat it some dog poo in the fort). In addition to being laid back, members apparently have grand senses of humor as evidenced by this sign:
Very Helpful
I wish all American golf clubs could be more like Bondi Golf Club.
All in all it was a great day and I look forward to exploring more areas of Sydney this weekend and heading back to Padington for the markets on Saturday.
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