After our first day in Sydney, I have finally hit my breaking point. This sort of thing tends to happen when I know I’ll be gone for a long period of time. My anxiety about my environment goes up so I have a heightened sense of inferiority and I just feel really out of my element. In Sydney it is cold and cloudy leaving commonsense to tell me Wollongong, situated south, will be even colder. It’s a terrible feeling to know that almost everything you packed for six months is the WRONG SEASON! Plus I failed to pack my black flats, tights, and winter scarves limiting my wardrobe to some extent. Oh and dull winter colors? Yeah right, not here. I’m happy to report that after my breakdown at the hotel, I am way better!
If I had to describe Sydney, I would say it has the San Francisco summer climate, with the hustle of a Chicago Christmas shopping season, architecture of Boston, and the European feel of London. It’s a powerhouse! This city continues to amaze me with all the attractions and opportunities there are to explore. The Sydney Opera House is a breath-taking landmark. Situated on the Sydney Harbor it is a peninsula all of its own with easy access from all public transportation the city has to offer.
Public transportation is great; it has convenient stops and hasn’t failed me yet. But one thing that truly aggravates me is that there are no maps to be found of the rail systems leaving me at the mercy of rail assistance to tell me where to go…I hate asking for directions, call me stubborn! I’m just independent. And even with a map once it gets dark I am still helpless with direction. I usually have a pretty good sense of where I am, but here it’s a completely different ball game. We get lost everyday! Tonight we walked all the way to the next train station instead of our hotel just two blocks from the station we came out of…
After our second day in the city we have conquered quite a lot. We have seen Chinatown, Olympic Park, the Opera House, and Manly Beach.
If you have never been to an Olympic city, it is astonishing to see the work that is done to make the event happen. While in Innsbruck, Austria we saw the Olympic Ski Jump, but the venues were extremely spread out making it difficult to see anything else. The Sydney Olympics were much different. They kept almost all activities and stadiums together creating ‘Olympic Park.’ The aquatic center has been redesigned into a facility in which all can enjoy with a splash park, health center, and of coarse an Olympic size swimming pool. That would be unreal to have regular practice in that aquatic center. That visit made me really miss my swimming days! There was a huge plaza making the walk around various venues easy. This visit triggered me to add seeing the Olympic games to my bucket list.
Upon looking out onto the skyline, I understand why IU’s Kelley School of Business wants students to study abroad here. Three of the leading financial firms and the largest bank in the world have offices here. I’m impressed.
I cannot rave enough about Sydney. Although I had my moments at the beginning, I am more than warmed up to Australian living and now I cannot wait to have such a lively city just a train ride away!
When I am finally out on my own, I definitely want to live in a big city like Sydney. Life would have such opportunity it makes me excited to think about the possibilities.
Last day in Sydney tomorrow then off to Wollongong!
No comments:
Post a Comment