Today has been mainly a travel day. Neither one of us really minded because of
how busy our last few days have been.
Even though it was a travel day we still had a few memorable moments.
Our plane left at noon so we had plenty of time to get
packed up and find breakfast somewhere.
Our hostel was located just outside the neighborhood of Surry Hills, so
we decided to walk towards the center to find a café. It is Anzac day, which is the Australian
equivalent of Veteran’s day in America. Quickly
we noticed the lack of activity in the city, especially for 8 am on a week
day. Eventually we found the perfect
little place, FourAteFive, with seating just outside on the street. Here we enjoyed a toast and poached egg brunch
with a lovely cup of coffee; one of my favorite meals of the trip so far.
The flight was uneventful, but enjoyable. During takeoff we flew past downtown Sydney
and right before landing we flew along the coast. I did not expect there to be mountains right
on the coast, but there were and it was beautiful. They aren’t the kind of rocky mountains you
might see on the west coast, more like the mountains in Hawaii covered with
lush green vegetation that is a rainforest.
Honestly the land reminds me of
the landscapes in Jurassic Park. If we
had more time in Cairns we have heard there are some amazing tours into the
rainforest. Maybe next time.
As we got off the flight we immediately noticed a difference
in weather. It was no longer a pleasant
75 and sunny; it was a hot and muggy 80.
I mean we are 1,500 miles closer to the Equator so we should have
expected it. It feels more like Indiana
summers; it will take a bit to get used to, especially since our hostel room
does not have air conditioning.
We made it to our hostel, The Traveler’s Oasis, via shuttle
bus, which consisted of a really dopey van with a cranky driver. Despite that experience, this hostel seems to
be great. Everyone here is happy. I could make lots of friends here if I really
wanted to. Simple tasks like filling up
my water, going to the toilet, and walking through the kitchen warrant a
conversation or a friendly hello. It is
not that I don’t want to talk; it just requires a lot of extra energy that I am
lacking at this point. We have met a few
people from the states, so it has been nice to hear their stories. When booking a room, most places allow you to
choose a male or female dorm. Traveler’s
Oasis only has mixed dorms. As a
consequence, Syd and I have two dudes sleeping in our room. This is the first time I’ve experienced
this. They are really nice guys, it is just
different than I am used to and they make our room smell. Silly boys.
Despite my frustration with hostel life, it is crazy how
quickly I can snap back into it. Once I
got back into my routine and accepted that I will not have any personal space
until I get home, my metal state improved dramatically. Traveling is awesome, and it is also hard
work. The awesome most always outweighs
the hard work; at the end of the day it is always worth it. While I am enjoying this trip more than any
of my travels thus far, I still have bouts of missing home, mainly the people
and comfort. I love it though, because
when I get bored with the routines of working every day back home, I can think
about Australia, and South America, and World Tour, and be reminded of why I do
what I do. I work so that I can live a
life most people in this world cannot. I
am so incredibly blessed by the big man upstairs it does not seem fair. This
realization makes everything worth it.
After we were settled into the hostel we headed towards the
main drag of Cairns to find some dinner. Hot and hungry, we settled on an Irish Pub
that had patio seating and AFL (Australian Football League) airing on a big
screen outside. As it turns out, Anzac
day is a huge day for AFL. Think of it
like the NFL games on Thanksgiving Day in America. While Syd and I ate, we tried our best to understand
the sport. It seems so much more
exciting than NFL because of the lack of rules and fast pace of the game. Speaking
to the friendliness of this place we chatted with a few new friends while
eating. We met a Patriot’s fan from
Boston. I told her jokingly, “I will be nice
to you, but we can’t be friends”. She
was with a guy from New Zealand who was wearing a Chicago Blackhawks hat. I asked if he was a fan, and he said, “Well
honestly I just thought it was a cool hat.
It is a baseball team in Chicago, right?” Facepalm.
After dinner we walked down to the boardwalk and explored the city
before calling it a night back at the hostel.
It seems like a cool little town with plenty to offer to the many
travelers that come through.
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