Australia Day 6 and 7

Saturday was a very chilled day! We had a late start followed by a very large breakfast of toast, avocado, bacon, scrambled eggs and halloumi. We then headed to Chatswood which is the next town so Dan could buy some things for his Tough Mudder experience on Sunday. I took the opportunity to quickly get my nails done in the local Westfield's mall. We then set off for the long drive ahead down South to Bundanoon where we had booked to stay in a little hotel. It was a very quiet but cute little village and amazingly the hotel was actually very English! The outside was a mock Tudor design and the inside had these dark wooden beams everywhere, red carpets and vintage bedrooms, it very much had the characteristics of a little cottage. As there wasn't much to do in Bundanoon we ventured to Bowral, the next town, to grab a bite to eat where the boys could watch the rugby. We headed back for an early night ready for an early start on Sunday, after having a quick ping ping tournament in the games room of course! 

On Sunday we were up and ready to leave the hotel by 7.30am ready for the check in at Tough Mudder at 8. Even watching everyone getting pumped up by the MCs to the sound of Eminem made me want to join in!! After seeing all the obstacles the runners had to face, not too much!  

To make it clear, Tough Mudder is a worldwide event which stems over 20KMs made up of running/jogging and assault courses. By assault courses I mean HELL!! Including crawling through muddy waters unable to stand up as barbed wire is hanging above you, climbing over slippery mud hills into muddy waters, swinging through hoops and falling into dirty water below, pulling yourself through tiny muddy tunnels, jumping from a plank into waters below, sliding down a water flume (yes sounds fun!) but there's fire at the bottom that you slide through, running up a mud ridden slide to cling helplessly to the top and pull yourself and team mates over and finally run through some electric cables!! I know that sounds horrific but the team work, success and ultimate enjoyment that you see when the competitors cross the finish line made me smile from eat to ear! 

My favourite obstacle was 'Everest' - a very steep slope covered in water and mud which required the teams to sprint and run up to the top, cling on, pull up and arrive at the top ready to assist the rest of the team and pull them to the top! 

I was so surprised and moved by the help and support the mudders gave each other! It really was touching to see everyone helping one another rather than selfishly ploughing through the obstacles, it's sad that we feel this is now a rare occasion! Nice that Tough Mudder recognises team work rather than fastest times. Well done to Dan, Anisa and their team for taking part, absolutely amazing!!! 

After the prize giving we headed back to Bowral, had a bite to eat and drove to the Hunter Valley ready for our wine tasting day!! Woooo!! 

Lexie 

xxx

Australia Day 5

It only took us 5 days but today we finally climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge! Typically we had picked the hottest day (probably why we managed to book so easily less than 24 hours before!) as it was set to be 36 degrees! Luckily as we were so high up there was a nice breeze.

 

Don't be freaked out by the price of the bridge climb as it is 100% worth it. All of the staff were fantastic, very enthusiastic and knowledgeable and the professionalism, security and safety consciousness of the whole attraction was of an extremely high standard. The climb itself is amazing, to walk over one of the world's most famous bridges and take in the spectacular views from above was a surreal feeling.

 

There are also various climbs that you can participate in. The full climb to the top takes around 3 1/2 hours so you really need to put aside a day for it. However we actually opted for the express climb which takes roughly 2 hours and you still get to climb all the way to the top so I would highly recommend that if you have a busy schedule. There is also a taster climb session for those who want to simply try it out or maybe are afraid of heights as this climb is much shorter and only goes half way to the top. At the end of the climb you receive a certificate and group photo and there is the option to purchase a personal picture too!

After all the climbing we had worked up quite an appetite so headed to Pancakes on the Rocks - A great little sweet and savoury pancake house in the Rocks district, the food was delicious! 

As the weather was so nice we decided to take full advantage and headed to Bondi beach - as did the rest of the world apparently, it was packed! We didn't have much time to spare so we did about half an hour on either side and then headed home. I have to say, if you want a kick up the bum to join a gym and keep fit, head to Bondi beach as everyone is so toned and tanned that the first thing I will be doing when we set foot in the UK is join a legs, bums and tums fitness class and a session on the sun beds! Very jealous! 

We made a quick dash to dinner in Newtown at the Animal at the Newtown Hotel. Another great restaurant, very meat orientated, we ordered some BBQ ribs, chicken, beef and pork slices to share (don't worry we had some salads too, WE HAD JUST BEEN TO BONDI REMEMBER!)

Lexie

xxx

Australia Day 4

So today we thought we would climb the harbour bridge, however there were no spaces left for climbs today so we rescheduled for tomorrow (although it's forecast to be 36 degrees!!) Instead, we ended up with a free day! We decided to head a little out of the City centre and explore some other towns. We set off to Manly, a little beach town which is actually mostly English! My old school friend Rachel currently lives there whilst on her travels so we took the opportunity to catch up with her too at the local Bavarian Beer Bar on the beach. 

Guess which one's mine?? 

Me and Rachel

Manly was a very nice little town, a few nice beaches and waterside restaurants and bars as well as local shops (including a Movenpick ice cream store which we of course visited!) 

We opted to get the ferry back to Circular Quay in central Sydney, there was a bit of a wait so we bought our tickets and killed time in the local Wharf Bar overlooking the harbour. 

We now know a little more about our surroundings so navigated our way back to busy George Street where we met friends at The Ivy Pool Club. We had planned to meet Fay and Mayada - friends of our Australian flat mate Tugba, the girls stayed with us a couple of months ago so it was a bit surreal to visit them in their hometown this time! The girls suggested the venue and my gosh was it a great pick! 4 floors above the City on top of one of the most prestigious hot spots sits a glamorous roof top pool surrounded by bars, luxury pool side booths and a DJ box pumping anthems. A must visit on the Sydney to do list!

We ended the evening with a trip to Bondi beach to visit our friend Craig who spent many years in London. We walked from his home just 3 minutes down to the famous beach and ate dinner at a beach front restaurant called Bucket List. You must get any kind of sea food on the menu as it is so fresh and flavoursome! We were lucky to catch some live music too! 

Another successful day of sightseeing, relaxing and catching up with friends and we're off to bed to prepare for the climb tomorrow! 

Lexie

xxx

Australia Day 3

The week is going so quickly :( luckily we are managing to fit everything in! 

Today Freya drove us to the Australian Reptile Park in Somersby, about 45 minutes from North Sydney. It was a little smaller than Taronga Zoo but known for its hands on petting of the animals - perfect for tourists who have a love of furry friends (like me!) but also great for children, there were actually quite a few school trips when we were there. 

We began with looking at the platypuses and then onto the alligators who had a massive enclosure to roam around in. 

We then ventured to spider world where there were live red backs, funnel webs and a selection of giant tarantulas which made my skin crawl! The park is actually low on funnel web spiders to milk and make life saving anti venom which they produce at the farm to send to hospitals. So please, if you do find a funnel web and you're in Australia - pop it in a container (ensure there are holes in the lid so it can breathe and it has a bit of dirt to hide in) and take it down to the Australian Reptile Park! 

Following spider world we thought we would head to something cuter - there is a little picnic area in the centre of the park where the kangaroos can roam free and you can pet them. They were so friendly and a bit lazy too! I think they knew they were adorable so were happy to laze in the sun and be stroked - I was actually surprised how soft their fur was! 

I literally could have petted them all day! We headed around the rest of the park and saw a variety of exotic birds, Tasmanian devils, dingos, wallabies, wombats, a giant tortoise and even Elvis the alligator - we were lucky enough to see the keepers move Elvis to clean his enclosure which was quite an experience to see the aggression of these wild beasts! 

Throughout the day there were various talks about the animals which were interesting and informative to watch and at 3pm we were lucky to hold some of the animals. It was about $20 a photo or 4 for $60 - I of course took full advantage and opted for all 4 - a python, a baby alligator and 2 koala pictures. It was amazing, definitely worth doing!! 

After another busy day we were starving so lucky Dan had booked us a table at a special place for dinner! We headed for a couple of drinks at the Opera House and watched the sun set behind the bridge. 

After a couple of drinks we ventured to Cafe Sydney, an amazing restaurant with terrace overlooking the harbour. On entering there was a glass floor looking onto a mini model of the City which was fun! 

The food was amazing! We had beef waygu and a goats cheese tart for starters followed by Beef Tenderloin. Mmmmmm! When it got a little chilly the staff provided blankets to keep warm - cosy! 

Lexie 

xxx