The travel bug bites everyone at least once in their lives! Whether it’s a quick weekend trip or traveling overseas many find themselves in desperate need to explore. Being in my early 20’s – and quite unattached to any responsibilities  – I find myself constantly thinking about just booking a trip and leaving everything else behind. However, it’s not that easy as we all know, but, I do think it’s necessary to take it upon yourself to try to make things happen!

Lucky for me I ended up graduating from college a quarter early – probably the only time I have ever been grateful for the quarter system. Graduating a quarter early meant moving home and spending three months to try to find a job. I ended up landing an Internship which didn’t start till June and found a temp position that would allow me to start whenever convenient. So what was my first instinct? Book a trip. Not just any trip, the trip I’ve been waiting my entire life for.   Australia!  Now, let me start off by saying that; now that I have been there I realize the trip of a lifetime will be the next time I go. I will plan it so I actually have the time to explore – having already seen the basics.

My dream to travel to Australia is one that stems from the fact that my mom’s family is from there. My cousins actually live in Northern Beaches right outside of Sydney – A two minute walk from the beach, and a short drive into Manly.   I had been corresponding with my mom’s cousin for sometime about my potential travel plans. With a place to stay and tour guides of my own I decided to book a flight.  Right after I booked the flight I realized that this experience was something I wanted to have with my mom – or “mum” in Australia.   Not having been to Australia since she was little girl, she jumped at the opportunity as well.

One major deciding factor for our travels was cost.  I’m sure it’s something that runs through everyone’s head as well.  Flying from California to Australia is super expensive. There really isn’t a way around it, especially if your like me and will only fly on a trusted airline.  The airline we chose was Qantas, my reasoning behind this was that I had traveled with them to Canada once, they had great service and a great safety record.  I checked prices for a few days and when it finally got down to $900 round trip I purchased the tickets…of course the week after we got home from the trip prices dropped to $780 but that’s to be expected – because life does that to you.  We did not travel during peak season. By the end of march early April it’s still nice weather but the seasons are in transition. And, being that they are on the other side of the equator they were headed into Autumn and Winter. From what I have seen the most expensive time to go there is during our Winters, around the holidays. Who wouldn’t want to spend New Years with an outdoor BBQ and pool party? My advice would be to find that sweet spot in between seasons. You still get nice weather without the huge dent in your wallet! Also I highly advise you plan on staying two weeks minimum for a trip like this. Especially taking into consideration travel time.  I made the mistake of only going for 10 days (-2 days for travel) and wanted to cry when it was time to head home – there was so much left to see!

Red-eye flights are your friend for this trip! Flying out of SFO at 10pm was great, there were little to no lines and by the time you were ready to take off, you are tired and ready to sleep.  My mom and I we were in a row with three seats and just the two of us. On a long flight like this stretching out is necessary, so having the extra space was a huge plus! Once we landed we made our way through customs and were picked up by my cousin. I wouldn’t advise having a rental car just because they drive on the other side of the road and it took me a solid three days to get accustomed to it. 

First Stop Manly

After dropping off our stuff, greeting family and washing up, we headed into Manly for lunch. The beach town was a hot spot for locals. With plenty of food places and nightlife you could easily enjoy a week spent here. On one side you had the ocean and Manly Beach and on the other side you had the bay/harbour. Not only was Manly full of life but it’s also where the ferry boat picks you up and takes you into Sydney!

We ate at a nice but casual place called Manly Grill. The food was perfect especially after the airplane meals. Manly has all sorts of things to do – it’s up to you to explore! The nightlife in Manly was a huge highlight of my trip. There is a place for every age group and Aussies are pretty nice – I still keep in touch with some of the people I met there! Oh by the way, they have a Starbucks. Enough said.

There are great trails along the beaches too.  We walked from Manly Beach to Shelly beach along a paved walkway.  We didn’t have time to explore the many beach walks, but from what I have read you can walk from beach to beach along the Northern Beaches trail walks in a couple of hours.

Sydney – The Tourist Way

Sydney is a one-of-a-kind city, and quite iconic. From the Opera House to the Royal Gardens and all the unique and innovative architecture, it’s definitely a fun place to spend the day.  Like most tourist cities, the Hop-On Hop-Off bus tour is available to use – dropping you off and taking you through some of the prime locations around the city. But, how do you get to sydney if you aren’t staying there and you don’t have a car? Public transportation! I know, sometimes the idea of taking public transportation in a different country can be frightening…especially if you barely use it in your own country. But trust me, it will be your friend. Australia’s bus system (at least in Sydney area) is relatively easy to understand. When we were in Manly the day before we went to the Ferry Building and bought an Opal Card. This card allows you to take the ferry and busses around Sydney – and there are awesome benefits, like the travel cap!  The travel cap makes it easy to travel.  You can travel all day on trains, buses, ferries and light rail and pay no more than $15.80 a day for an adult.  From Manly we took the Ferry to The Circular Quay (pronounced Key).  It is the main transport hub of Sydney Harbour.  From the Quay you are right near two of Australia’s most famous landmarks; the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge.  Photo ops of these two monuments from the Ferry into Sydney are spectacular.

Another must see in Sydney is The Rocks Market. This Market is a fun Friday or  weekend activity.  It is located just outside the ferry and train drop off at Circular Quay.  As you walk down cobblestone lanes to the tent covered booths you will find handcrafted jewelry, crafts, gourmet food, music and more!  You really only need a few hours to see the Markets plus travel time so I would suggest going in the morning to get your day started. 

I ended up with the beautiful photograph below of the beach near my cousins house.  This was taken by a local, Matt Pearson, http://mattpearson.com.au/ . My mom ended up with some souvenir boomerangs made from an aboriginal center that helps the aboriginal communities.

Weekend Getaway – Blue Mountains

Who doesn’t enjoy a little weekend away? The Blue Mountains were a nice escape from  the city life of Sydney.  Here you can enjoy some amazing scenery and local shopping. I’m told a lot of Aussies camp down in the valley here and at sunset loads of Kangaroos can be seen hoping about!

Bondi

Bondi Beach is one of Australia’s most famous beaches.  If you go, you must have lunch as we did at the famous Bondi Icebergs .  The food was good but, what was even better was the view. Our table looked over Bondi Beach and the saltwater pools below.  I could sit and people watch here for hours.

               

Overall Experience

Honestly Australia is awesome. I highly recommend taking a trip there in your lifetime. Just remember, it’s a big country and you will likely need more than two weeks to fully explore! I only got to see Sydney area and was there for 10 days.  My next trip I plan on staying for three weeks to be able to see as much as I can.