Top Ten List Vol I

Knock Knock....who's there....Kanga.....(your turn).....what accent did you just say Kangaroo in?
yea...lame jokes...that's what happens to one's brain on vacation x 2 months!!
My side-kick "Lone Asian" has already provided a description of our happenings for the first few weeks. But I will add to it in traditional "TOP TEN" format:


TOP10 EXPERIENCES IN SYDNEY (Vol I):

1. running on Manly Beach with the smell of salty air and sights of surfer dudes, not to mention the gorgeous scenary, and laid back culture!

2. feeling a lump in my throat, gasping for air, and thinking to myself - "wow...this is the best city I have been to", as my eyeballs jump out of their socket after the opera house and sydney harbour slowly reveal iteself as the ferry turns a corner.

3. waddling alongside a pelican (it was the same size as me!), to race to the fresh BBQ muscles and prawn stand at the Sydney fish market!

4. walking down...and then up 900 stairs (1800 total) at the magnificant "three sisters" in the Blue Mountians - sherpa style (lots of gear), and surrounded by very lush vegetation.

5. eating at a fancy-smancy restaurant in Sydney - in pitch black!!

6. being introduced to some really nice Aussies by Sarah & Geoff (who have been so great at helping us to get settled in when we first arrived), and chillaxing with them all at the "opera house bar"....in the pouring rain! (gotta love heat lamps).

7. eating fresh shashimi (RAW FISH) for the first time in my life! so fresh! mmm.

8. winning a beer drinking competition at a German restaurant in Sydney (I was competing with old ladies) - in case you think that I have become a lush!

9. being able to wear only a light sweater during the peak dead of winter in Oz - June 21!!

10. re-watching the Sydney Olympic opening ceremony on a tiny screen found in one of the 60 tall decorative posts on the Olympic grounds...its enough to give you goose bumps, and summon up a tear or two!

"good on ya mates",

-ISLAND RICE

First Impressions of Oz....

They say that first impressions are are lasting one. If this is the case then the term "gods country" sticks in my head when I landed in Sydney for the first time. Though it was a long and drawn out flight (mad props to Jean and Yang for our stopover in SF), our 6:30am arrival into the city was rewarded by a ferry trip that over looked the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. It was literarly the scene out of "Finding Nemo" when Marlin and Doree popped their heads out of the water was how we felt when we turned the corner on our ferry to discover Australia's most recognized landmarks.

Our first 10 days in this city has been a great start and I couldn't have asked for more. Major thanks to our current hosts Sarah and Geoff for putting up with us homeless Canadians.
My description of the city is that it's a cross between Vancouver, NYC, Miami, and San Francisco all in one. Sydney offers a bit of everything for everyone. Beaches for miles surrounded by cliffs overlooking the ocean, animal life for the nature lovers at the largest aquarium in the world, or perhaps a relaxing afternoon stroll in what seems like the upper west side in Manhattan.

My adventures thus far includes Darling Harbour, Paddy's Market, the Sydney Opera House, Blue Mountains, the three sisters, the infamous Bondi Beach, the Sydney Aquarium, the Olympic Stadium where we swam in the worlds fastest pool and who can forget my first time driving on the other side of the road.

The people here are something else as well. Everyone always seems to go out of their way to help you out as well as try and give you as much information as possible without looking for anything in return. For instance, the first day I went to sign up my bank account, within half an hour, the attendant helping me offered us a place to stay, weblinks to job sites as well as the local scoop on what's happening around town.

Other notables that have also been pleasant are the following:

1. Tipping is not required at all

2. Taxes are already included in the price and you don't have to pay another 15% (damn CDN gov't taxes!)

3. People don't like to waste food here so before they close, everything usually goes for more than half off so they don't throw it away.
stay tuned for more adventures...

- the lone asian