Sydney and the end of the road

This is it. After all this time, all the countries, all the travel, I'm here in Sydney. And a few days later, I'm home. For Good. But I can't think about that now. I still have Sydney for my last hurrah! Sydney actually ended up being the perfect place to end my trip. Its a beautiful city that actually reminds me a lot of San Francisco. Also, I have a couple of people here who I've met in Argentina and China so it was really really good to see some familiar faces.

I got into Sydney late in the afternoon and I headed directly to my hostel, Wake Up. And I would like to say a few words about the hostels in Australia. Australia is sort of backpacker central and the hostel system here is the most complex I've ever seen. Its definitely a machine with necessary reservations, key cards, mega-bathrooms, and towells, sheets, cutlery and anything else for rent. Instead of intimate places where fellow travelers can meet and exchange stories, the hostels in Australia become total party zones where its a bit more intimidating to meet people. But the hostels in Sydney are in a class of their own. Checking into Wake Up was like being ... processed. They might as well as barcoded my forehead and put me on the assembly line. And they also have this what they would consider cheeky theme that in reality makes me want to throw up. The hostel is called Wake Up!, the sign above the public phone is Call Up!, the cafe is called Fed Up!, the bathrooms are Wash Up!, etc. It was like being in a Target ad where they idealized a college dormitory. Sigh. At least it was clean and the beds were comfy.

But I had little time to think about my hostel. I immediately left to meet with Stephen and Jamie, 2 of the 3 British guys I met in China. It turned out that we were all be in Sydney for a couple of days randomly so we had promised that we would keep in touch and meet up again in another continent. They had been in Sydney for a couple of weeks, staying with some of Stephen's family so they were willing to show me around a bit. We started at a pub right at the base of the Harbor Bridge, giving us beautiful views of the Opera House despite the rain. We had a great time, catching up and swapping travel stories since we were together in China. I would like to take a moment to say how great it was to see familiar faces and hang out like normal people. It was also great since I had such a great time with these guys in China. We ended up drinking quite a bit of beer and even went to one of their friend's place to drink some more, including some disgusting boxed wine, which Aussies charmingly call goon.

My first (ghostly) view of the opera house.

Goon - why does it always seem like a good idea at the time?

It was so good to see Stephen and Jamie!

Dancing the night away.

Though I only had a couple of days in Sydney, I found it imperative to spend the next morning lolling around the hostel, recuperating from quite a nasty hangover. Surprisingly, goon is not good for the constitution. But after plenty of fluids, I finally got myself out of the hostel and into the city. I was meeting Stephen and Jamie for a tour around the Opera House, apparently a sight that is absolutely not to be missed in Sydney. I was impressed that the guys made it as well considering the night we had but they were there, Mickey D's in hand (who says there's no good food in Australia?). The Opera House was pretty magnificent, I have to say. I also did a tour around the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires and this was the complete opposite. A beautiful space but totally modern with interesting spaces, beautiful lighting and not a single piece of marble anywhere. The guys and I completed our quintissential visit with a walk to Mrs. Macquaire's Chair for the classic bridge and opera house view. We were able to also catch the sun setting over the whole scene - truly spectacular.

There she blows! The. Opera. House.

It really is that impressive. I was waiting to be disappointed but it truly is an architectural marvel.

The rumor is that these are meant to look like sails as to blend in with the harbor. True or false? Who cares! They were beautiful.

Not to be outdone - the Harbor Bridge! I've seen better bridges but its so iconic for Sydney.

The inside of the Opera House was just as impressive as the outside. I can really appreciate the architectural design of the place.

And its completely different from Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires and the Metropolitan Opera House in New York.

The Opera House was definitely in commune with the harbor.

I was impressed that the guys made it out as well though a little worse for wear :).

The next day (after watching the season finale of the O.C. the night before - Marissa is so overrated), I met Stephen to go visit the Sydney fish markets. Not usually the top of everyone's list of things to see in Sydney but after all it is a harbor town and supposed to be renowned for their fish. Its no Pike's Market in Seattle or even Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco but there were a couple of small fish markets selling fresh fish, oysters and probably the best fish and chips this side of England. I'll be honest that I was there to get my fish grub on and we were definitely not disappointed. And after saying a very sad goodbye to Stephen, I decided to round out my fish-themed day at the aquarium. I would have liked to take a ferry across the harbor but with the nasty rainy weather (I've been sooo lucky with the weather in Australia!) the aquarium seemed fitting. I've been to some great aquariums in my young life but I have to say that the Sydney one was pretty amazing! It funny to think that I also saw so many of these fish up close and personal while scuba diving but it didn't make the experience any less beautiful. Ahhh, those gigantic sting rays... There were as big as my car!

The last person I had to see in Sydney was Dean, a guy that I met in Argentina all those months ago. We met in Spanish class and it turned out we were both investment bankers who quit our jobs to screw around on the other side of the world. We hit it off instantly. Anyway, Dean's back to being a big-time banker guy so he took me out to dinner with promises that if he ever comes to SF, I'll return the favor (seriously, Dean!!). We went out to get some sushi in one of the trendy, posh neighborhood. The fish was absolutely fantastic and it was great to actually go to a real restaurant and have some real conversation.

And that was it. I packed my bags, went to the airport and took a 13 hour flight back to San Francisco. Can you believe that?? I'm still in shock. It hasn't really hit me yet that my trip is over but there you have it. I'm sure once I settle in at home and start planning for school, I will feel better about being at home. But first, let's take a moment to commemorate this moment. Sigh, I can't believe I'm going home!!