Sydney

When I first landed in Sydney, my initial reaction was huh?  This was strictly due to the fact that after we came into our gate at the airport, there wasn’t the mad dash to get off the plane.  Everyone was mandated to sit in their seat while the flight attendants opened the overhead bins, and sprayed an aerosole insecticide throughout the cabin of the airplane.  You then had to sit for 5+ minutes while the spray settled and had time to work.  It was disconcerting to say the least.  But then the go signal was given, and the mad dash to get off the plane commenced J.

Sydney is a beautiful and vibrant city.  It’s clean – or at least the areas that we’ve seen are.  I haven’t seen a lot of garbage around the city.  And it’s green – the amount of park space is amazing.  And what’s more – people use the parks.  As we were walking thru the Royal Botanical Gardens, I was amazed at the amount of people who were enjoying the park on a cloudy day.  There was an incredible amount of people jogging, participating in fitness classes (Jackie – they make our boot camp look like playschool), enjoying a leisurely stroll, or just enjoying a picnic in the park for lunch.   Chrystal and I probably spent a good 20 minutes sitting on a bench looking out over the harbour, marvelling at the fact that we were actually finally here.

And then you round a bend in the path along the harbour, and you see it – that iconic site that I’m sure everyone who has been to Sydney has seen – the Opera House, with the Harbour Bridge standing behind it.  It sounds corny, but there is something about it that takes your breath away.  And it just keeps getting better the closer you get to it – the sun makes it shimmer. 

We’ve spent an incredible amount of time just wandering around the city centre and it’s neighbourhoods.
 

Dorm Life?  Well, it’s good and it’s bad.  Our first 5 nights were spent in a 4 person dorm with an Irish & German girl – it was quite nice.  Quiet and some really good Australia tips were shared.  Our last night in Sydney – we have had to move into a 6 person dorm with 3 girls from Sweden (this is purely a guess as they’re not the most friendly of sorts) and one lone German guy.  It’s only for one night, and we fly out for Darwin tomorrow.  In a most inopportune fashion, we booked our air tickets, and then realized that it’s the beginning of the Wet season.  Wish us luck!

It Begins

When I was 18, my parents took my sister and me to Mexico for Christmas.  It was my first time in a country where English wasn’t the predominantly spoken language, and where people didn’t live like we did.  It was fascinating to me.  Then, in my third year of university, I had an opportunity to do an internship in Malaysia for 6 weeks.  It was an eye opening experience, filled with sights, sounds and smells that were completely foreign to me, and one I loved.  As a result, when I graduated from University, the plan was to get a “big girl” job, work for a couple of years, save my money, and then get out and see the world.  Not to tick the places off on a list, or to collect the stamps in my passport, but to revel in the experiences that were outside my sphere.  It was a wonderful plan, and it sustained me through many an hour sitting in a cubicle, staring at a computer screen.  But then being what is typically viewed as a “grown up” got in the way.   The goal switched, from a rootless existence travelling to setting down roots and building a career and a life.  I’d get that restless feeling about every 12 to 18 months, at which point, I’d take a 1 to 2 week vacation in Mexico, China, or South East Asia to sate the urge, and then go back to my nice little life.

                And then, I found my journal – the journal that I’d written in when I first graduated.  And I spent an eye opening evening reading it.  And thoughts started to niggle in the back of my mind – how could I just put these dreams to the side?  And how could I, for all intents and purposes, put my “grown up life” on hold, and take a year to even live a portion of my dream?  Those niggling thoughts wouldn’t go away, and I’d find myself talking about them with friends – almost looking for an answer one way or another.  Am I crazy?  Or is this the sanest thing I’ve ever thought of doing?  And the more I talked about it, the more I realized that this is something I have to do.  And from there, plans and logistics just seem to have fallen into place.

                The long and short of it is, on October 25, 2010, I’m getting on a plane to Sydney Australia.  Is there a plan for the year?  No.  There is a list of things that we’d like to see and do, but no schedule.  And at this point, a rootless existence appeals to me.  I want to see things that aren’t in my realm of normal.  In fact, I want to redefine what I view as normal.  And as of right now, it starts with a backpack.