The rest of my stay in Sydney went really well. I stayed in Coogee with Brad and Nick, spent some time with some Australians that I met in Asia who happen to live in Sydney and also managed to meet up with my friend Annie's good friends from back home, as they were in Sydney for 2 of the days that I was there. I enjoyed Sydney and enjoyed staying with Brad in Coogee. I was a bit more dependant out there as it'sa ways out of the city, so by the end of the week I was definitely ready to try somewhere new.
I visited Canberra, Australia's capital city, for one night to visit a man that I met in Vietnam, as he had been wanting me to visit for some time. He and his girlfriend showed me around the city, took me for dinner and I left the next morning for Melbourne. It was a very short visit, and although I felt the city wasn't nothing too special, it was important to see the capital.
After a full day of travel, I arrived in Melbourne the next evening. Other than checking into my hostel, I just rested. I ventured around the city the next day. I went to the Melbourne aquarium, which was pretty cool. I also visited the Crown square, which is a conglomerate of shops, food and clothing, a casino and hotel and it's right along the Yarra River, which runs through Melbourne. There were some great views of the city from this place. I decided to check out the casino, lost $50 dollars at the blackjack table and won it right back on the slot machine. I took that as a sign and left. I ate dinner at the Crown square and had a coffee by the water. I wanted to get some rest as the next day I had a city tour, 6 hours long, which had I not done Melbourne would not interest me as much as it does now. Melbourne really is an AWESOME city with hidden gems down every alley way. It has a very underground vibe; hidden bars, restaurants, pubs, amazing graffiti in most of the alley ways. An awesome music scene, great culture...just a wicked city altogether. I really haven't seen anything like it before. A lot of the good bars and pubs don't advertise or even have signs up for that matter. If I didn't do this tour there would be a lot of places I wouldn't know existed. The architecture is a mix of old and new, but generally the city gives off a older feel. After 6 hours we were all fairly tired, but since I didn't have much time left in Melbourne a few of the girls that I met that day decided to check out one of the bars in the city. This bar was said to be a brothel, owned by Madame Brussel in the late 1800's. It is super cute; fake grass inside with patio furniture that you would picture a little girl to have and the servers are dressed up in tight tennis shorts and t shirts. The bar is located on the roof of the building, half of it's inside, the other half is outside. What a great way to end a great day.
My last day in Melbourne I decided to do a tour of the Great Ocean Road, a must see if you are in that area. The road hugs the coastline and has some amazing view points. We left at 8 in the morning and didn't return till 8 in the evening. We drove all day and were able to see 9 wild koalas from the bus which was pretty cool. I'm glad I got to see this.
Yesterday I left Australia, which was sad but it was time to start a new adventure. New Zealand so far is great, although I haven't done much since I arrived in Auckland mostly because I want to experience a lot with my mom and Aunty. Besides, I don't mind resting. I leave Auckland tomorrow morning to meet a friend from my old job in Piha, then back to Auckland to meet my friend who is flying in from England. Once he arrives, it will be go, go, go until my mom arrives in January, which I'm excited for. I'm trying to rest up as I am definitely feeling run down these days.
I'll post photos as soon as I can.
Write soon!
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