caw caw RAWR!!

Day 2 = ADVENTURE!  Today was a great day.  It started at 7am (noon at home).  The time difference is a beautiful thing in the mornings.  Woke up, got ready, sweated my makeup off as I put it onJ.  I went to breakfast in the dining hall (I’m staying in some dorms on the Macquarie University campus for the week).  They had normal cereal!  I was so excited.  And I had the most delicious pear.  After that I went and met Holli and we both bought phones.  We got the same provider, so we can text as much as we want to each other for free… it’s so nice to have her in the same country!  On our way out of the “center”, we stopped at Hello Happy (a super cute, sunshine, smile, bakery) and I bought a birthday cupcakeJ.  After we took some stuff back to Holli’s room, we were off!  We rode the train downtown and ended up walking around ALL afternoon.  My feet are super tired, but it was awesome!  We saw so much.  We started at St. Andrew’s cathedral and then walked to Darling Harbor and saw the Chinese Dragon Boat races for the Chinese New Year.  After that we found our way to the Chinese Friendship Garden… SO beautiful.  It made me think of the Summer Palace in Beijing – peaceful, tranquil, a hidden treasure.  We then walked through Chinatown and ate lunch at a small Chinese restaurant – delicious!  We crossed the street and entered Paddy’s Market (like Pike’s Place) and wandered through the rows of booths.  When we came out, we decided instead of taking the tram, we’d walk to Glebe (a neighborhood with a cool Saturday market)… it was a LONG ways, but we got to see a lot of really cool residential areas and other fun things we would have missed had we been more direct.  And we actually never made it to Glebe, but we did make it to the Sydney Fish Market… VERY fishyL.  The smell was super strong, but it was cool to see, as seafood is a big deal here.  We saw a ton of seagulls on the dock and all I could think of was Finding Nemo and “mine, mine”.  It made me smileJ.  We walked back to the train station and rode to Circular Quay (the waterfront).  We walked over to the Opera House and took pictures and then made our way to the Rocks neighborhood.  At this point it started pouring rain, but we powered through.  The Rocks was really cool!  Lots of old pubs and cool shops.  There was even a great street market for part of it.  We ran out of places to seek cover, though, and weren’t hungry enough to stay for dinner, so we made our way back to the train and back to campus.  Holli and I are headed to a restaurant just down the road for my birthday dinner.  I figure I’ll officially be 21 at 7pm (midnight in the states) so a later dinner is perfect – ring it inJ.  It was a big day, but SO much fun.  It was the perfect “get out, explore, experience, enjoy, adventure” kind of day.  Can’t wait to do it again tomorrow!

PS: Interesting observations… not only do Australians drive on the opposite side of the road, they walk on the opposite side of the sidewalk.  They all walk on the left side!  It’s so strange… I didn’t realize how much a habit that is until it switches.    

Also, pictures to come...