I'm holding on
Why is everything so heavy?
Holding on
So much more than I can carry
I keep dragging around what's bringing me down
If I just let go, I'd be set free
DAY 6
Bondi to Coogee walk / A fish called Coogee / Aqua S
So keep your eyes set on the horizon
On the line where blue meets blue
Is Bondi mainstream and full with tourists? Well, perhaps a little.
Is it worth the visit? Well, the answer is definitely a resounding yes.
Many places look so picturesque in brochures/travel blogs but they look a little disappointing in real life because... Photoshop.
Bondi beach looks as beautiful or perhaps even more beautiful in real life.
We did the Bondi to Coogee walk which was very manageable (5km, not a lot of stairs I think).
Crash and burn
Look guys, a picture of the iconic pool at Bondi Icebergs. If I were to return to Australia (Sydney), I would want to swim here 😍
Picture worthy rocks? Haha.
50 shades of blue
I always thought of myself as a city girl. But this trip in Sydney made me realise perhaps, I don't mind being a beach bum.
And the abundance of seafood there? Definitely a major plus.
A fish called Coogee
Medium rare salmon
Typing this makes me realise how much I miss my fish and chips. Sigh, went to Big Fish Small Fish at Punggol East container recently, it's so disappointing?
I miss this medium rare salmon as well. 😞 It's not easy getting the right texture for salmon (I think) because a lot of salmon seems to be too dry?
Tip: You can always consider doing the route the other way round i.e., Coogee to Bondi because Bondi beach seems to have more water activities (surfing?)
We also headed to Chinatown again because Chinese pride we felt like it? Tried this famous custard puff from Emperor's Garden Cake and Bakery.
Yum; three is not enough lah
Poached eggs with smoked salmon
All them breads and pastries; I loaf you and knead you💗
Next up, wine tasting at Gemelli Estate. Gemelli means twins in Italian and the owners named some of their wines after their kids hahaha.
Aqua S sea salt ice-cream
Being the typical basic bitch, I had to have this haha. Nah, but this not only looks good but taste pretty good as well. It's slightly salty which makes it refreshing because a lot of ice-cream is too cloyingly sweet...
DAY 7
The Grounds of Alexandria / University of Sydney
I have heard so much about this cafe from people, ranging from ex colleagues (internship days, sigh) to friends who have been to Sydney. So how could I not go there right!
But warning, this cafe is quite out of the way. I would compare it to Jurong West/ Woodlands of Singapore (hahaha). I think we walked about 1+ km from the nearest station to get to this place. Indeed, I do travel for food. 😄
Flat white
Yup, first thing first, coffee. Especially on work days because it gives me the courage to leave the house to face 💩 HAHA.
I know some friends are probably going to say that eggs is the WORST thing you can ever order from the cafe menu because it's easy and cheap to prepare... But what to do? I just have a soft spot for eggs benedict 😶
This was not too bad.
Oops forgive me for the bpuns. Sadly, I didn't manage to try the pastries because the mains were very filling. Well, at least I tried the sourdough bread, which came in the big breakfast and it's really quite good!
After being stuffed with food (haha), we had a stroll around the place, which also includes a garden and The Potting Shed.
Them flowers
Us and Kevin the Bacon
Other than Kevin the Bacon, they also have a few chickens (which probably is where the free range eggs come from hahaha)
DAY 8
Hunter Valley Tour
Since Australia in general is well known for vineyards (okay actually I only Melbourne's Yarra Valley and Sydney's Hunter Valley), what's a trip without wine right? (says the person with terrible tolerance hahaha).
I am not exactly a hardcore fan of alcohol and wine so I decided to go for Kangarrific Tours, which included a visit to a wildlife park, cheese tasting and chocolate factory on top of all the wine tasting.
The bad thing about following tours? The need to wake up at weird timings 😖 But on the brighter side, there was a rainbow!
If there's a rainbow every morning
First stop of the trip was Australian Walkabout Wildlife park, which was quite a distance from Sydney city (1+ hour drive?). Would not have visited here if not for the tour. This has to be one of my favourite part of the trip because I got to interact with some of the animals in close proximity!!
Koala beary cute😍
This is the MOST active koala bear I have ever seen, moving around and refusing to stop for photos haha. So cute though hehe.
Other than koala bears, there were kangaroos and emu. And I got to pet a snake cause I am brave like that 😎
Hi kangaroo,
why you step on your own poo
Hey emu, look here for a picture, I don't mean to ruffle your feathers
After the interaction and tea with the animals (actually just a cup of coffee and tim tam biscuits), we headed to a tiny chocolate shop/factory. Really liked the chocolate coated coffee beans, it's like my favourite things in one.
Next up, wine tasting at Gemelli Estate. Gemelli means twins in Italian and the owners named some of their wines after their kids hahaha.
Then it was time for cheese tasting. So yummy omg.
The second winery we visited was Mount View Estate. Let's just say sweet alcohol (sparkling wine, moscato etc) is worse than bitter tasting alcohol cause... you don't even feel that you drank too much lol.
DAY 9
Sydney Fish Market / Cow and Moon Gelato / Australian Heritage Hotel
View around Darling Harbour
Several people told me that one of their favourite places in Sydney is Darling Harbour. Guess I am not one of them, because it's really too touristy for me. 😨
After a long walk, we finally arrived at Sydney Fish Market which was quite disappointing in my opinion? The sashimi was decent but it didn't feel out of the world? Perhaps the fish market at Tokyo has spoilt me too much haha.
Tip: DO NOT SIT OUTSIDE. The aggressive seagulls will eat all your food.
To end off our Sydney trip, we had gelato again. Award winning gelato from Cow and Moon. Trust me, I am a foodie.
Mandorla affogato (this is the award winning flavour) and vanilla ice-cream
My favourite nut with my favourite drug (coffee), what's there to not like! Please try this if you are in Sydney because how often can you say you ate award wining gelato... Haha and also this is really nice? Thick and creamy but a bit pricey.
Emu and Kangaroo pizza
Went to the Australian Heritage Hotel bar for dinner cause they offer pizzas with game meat. Oops sorry kangaroos and emu... But did you know, there might be too many kangaroos so the eating of kangaroo meat is kind of encouraged? (See link here)
But the kangaroo and emu meat don't really taste fantastic so I can understand why kangaroo meat is usually used to feed dogs...
However, the Australian Heritage Hotel has really nice garlic bread (sadly no pictures) and would say it might be a good place to chill and watch rugby (there were many people watching that) with a huge group of friends.
Okay, with this, I have come to the end of my Sydney posts. Do read Part I (Sydney Opera House, Chinatown etc) and Part II (skydiving, Bondi, Manly etc) if you have not done so 😉
And I miss my good cup of joe and amazing fish and chips.
DAY 3
Manly Beach
Yup, we spent almost the entire day doing the Spit Bridge to Manly walk (10km walk).
Tip: Do travel to the further locations on Sunday because the transport is capped at a maximum of AUD$7.60. E.g. A ride on the ferry to Manly already cost $7.50.
Actually, I planned for another hike to North Head Sanctuary (but nope didn't do it cause tired af and the sky doesn't look promising) Apparently, North Head Sanctuary has whale lookout points...😞
Nonetheless, this walk was pretty amazing because it is challenging (some of the steps are quite steep), the views are breathtaking and it is not a very "touristy" hike (probably because of the length of the walk).
The huge waves; I wonder if they can bring away my sorrows/trouble along with them
Just keep going
Can I have a holiday home along the coast?
There are a couple of houses with their backyards leading straight to the beach. Never knew that I am a fan of the beaches (don't even like going to Sentosa lol). But the idea of living at the beaches in Sydney/Australia is really tempting.
I can spend my day looking at waves, clouds and watching the sun set
Ocean pool (doesn't look as blue because the skies are grey haha)
After the long hike of about 3-4 hours (average okay), we went to get lunch from Fishmongers. This place can be a little bit hard to find as quoted from online "low key space" but it's worth the search!
Mongers' Box
While this may not look very big, this is quite filling. And there's something about their fries, they all taste amazing (can taste the potato in them) 😍
So ending Day 3 post with another tip.
Tip: Travel from Spit Bridge to Manly Walk may be a better idea because most of the food options are located at Manly beach area
DAY 4
Skydiving
Yup, time to face my fears HAHA. I kind of always wanted to try skydiving (cause of the pictures of the birds' eye view of places I have seen online).
E.g. Dubai
So since Australia offers it (and in fact think it's the first country that I went for a visit that offers it), so yeah why not cause YOLO.
There are quite a few companies that offers skydiving and I went with Skydive Wollongong cause it's the only one that offers a beach view... nope, I just happen to see this company first and I like what it offers haha. I communicated with this company over email a couple of times (rescheduling of dates mainly) and they were very prompt 👍
Sadly, I don't have much photos to share because due to some miscommunication, I have no photos of my jump 😢 Shall use a thousand words to describe my experience then since a picture is worth a thousand words, ok not funny.
Given that Wollongong is quite a distance away from the city, we opted for the free transport which was only available for skydives scheduled at 11am. 11am was a quite popular time so the wait for the skydive was quite long.
So was I scared? Hmm I guess I was scared since the moment I signed up for the skydive haha but the scariest period was probably when the airplane was ascending. My thoughts were probably 'Oh no, it's okay pilot, there's no need to ascend higher, can we just fall from here instead of 14,000 ft?'
Then you see the instructors checking their alto-meter, discussing about something that you don't really understand and then the door is open. And my thoughts were probably 'Ok this is it. Shit. I will just scream my head off'. And then you watch people getting out, ok flying/dropping out of the plane and before you know it, it's your turn to slide to the door (okay I was probably dragged to the door) and sit at the edge of the aircraft.
Sitting at the edge of the door, you are supposed to position your legs properly but the wind was so strong that I couldn't even do that properly and before I could sat anything, I am out and falling 😅
Then the free fall begins and you accelerate and hit the speed of 200km/h. During this stage, all you can see is white clouds. Nope they do not feel like cotton candy. You scream but you are not making any sound (actually I think it's cause the wind is too loud?) And then you finally see the ground below you. In my opinion, this is the BEST moment (a close second has to be the free fall cause I love free falling haha). And then the parachute opens and you are being steered towards the drop zone. This is probably my least favourite part cause it makes me dizzy...
Oh and I was probably the most irritating person ever cause I kept asking my instructor a million questions once the parachute opens e.g. 'Ooh is this Blue Mountain?' 'How was your first skydive experience?' See how I really don't shut up oops.
So will I do it again? The price is a major deterrent so maybe only at Dubai? But Dubai isn't exactly on the top of my to-visit place so... Haha.
To reward myself for ticking something off the bucket list, we had dinner at Hurricane's Grill at Circular Quay (actually just wanted to tick off more food from my list).
To reward myself for ticking something off the bucket list, we had dinner at Hurricane's Grill at Circular Quay (actually just wanted to tick off more food from my list).
Garlic mushrooms as appetizer- my favourite dish
Pork ribs and Portuguese chicken (spicy sauce) with sweet potato fries
DAY 5
Blue Mountains
Before researching on Blue Mountains, I always thought that there's only one location- the Mountains to visit haha. Blue Mountains actually has plenty of activities and attractions ranging from numerous walks and water falls to Leura Villages. So I would definitely recommend people to spend maybe two days here instead of just doing a day trip!
I got the Explorer Lyrebird Pass, which comes with unlimited rides on the bus, the skyway, scenic railway and cableway.
World's steepest railway
Fun fact: The railway was used to transport coal previously.
Other than this railway, we took the cableway and skyway as well, which gave a good view of the Three Sisters, Orphan Rock, Katoomba Falls etc.
Katoomba Cascades
So after taking all the three rides, we grabbed lunch at Echo Point before continuing with the rest of the attractions.
Sorry not sorry to disrupt the post with a picture of these cuties spotted at Echo Point
If you only had time to only visit one attraction (which should not be the case), you must definitely visit Echo Point, which provides a great view of the Three Sisters and Jamison Valley.
Meehni, Wimlah, and Gunnedoo
Jamison Valley
Leura Cascades
Blue Mountains is indeed one of my favourite attractions for this trip 💓 While it may be thronged with tourists, the feeling of standing in front of Three Sisters and Jamison Valley is amazing (sorry lack of vocabulary). The world is so huge and we are really just a small speck of dust in the universe.
That's it for part II. You may read part I here if you haven't. Shall blog about the rest of Sydney (Bondi beach, Hunter Valley day trip etc) soon!
Till then, going to be the best speck of dust in the universe.
DAY 1
Ginger brulee tart and chocolate berry muffin (yum)
While everyone raves about the pastries, the star of the show has to be the coffee. We only got one cup of latte to share cause it was quite late in the day. Regrets. This is probably the best coffee we had in Sydney. Not sure if the latte is memorable because it warmed us up in the chilly weather, or it warmed our hearts (you know the warm fuzzy feels good coffee gives?) but am guessing it's a combination of both.
Paddy's Market
DAY 2
Skydiving / Hyde Park / St Mary's Cathedral / Black Star Pastry / State Library of NSW / Royal Botanic Gardens / Sydney Opera House
Cappuccino while waiting for bus to skydiving location
Queen Victoria Building
State Library of NSW
Heaven for book worms please
Sydney Opera House
Sydney Harbour Bridge
Tiramisu; cause ice-cream in cold weather is a brilliant idea
Sunset over Sydney Harbour Bridge (wonder how it will feel climbing the bridge then)
Bourke Street Bakery / Central Station / Market City / Paddy's Market / Chinatown
Bourke Street Bakery's exterior
First thing first, pastries and coffee. Okay maybe not.
After a long (and pretty uncomfy ride cause budget airlines) and topping up our Optus prepaid SIM (1 GB/day for $2 for new SIM cards but 500MB/day for top-up), we were all prepared to take the train to where our Airbnb is at... Guess what? The train fault followed me to Sydney 👏 So we took a small van instead (the online reviews does seem varied).
View from Airbnb
Didn't take any photos of the room but the apartment was pretty decent I guess. Pantry was stocked with cooking necessities e.g. oil, salt, pepper (if you really want to cook), room was clean, the view is pretty good (can see airplanes haha) and the apartment is ~ 15 minutes walk away from Central Station.
So after nua-ing admiring the apartment, it was time to check out places on the my list.
Bourke Street Bakery is top of my list, given how much I have heard about their pastries particularly the ginger brulee tart.
Look what we got
Saw a couple of locals getting their pastries/caffeine fix from here 👍 This outlet at Surry Hills isn't exactly accessible (see the construction barricades in the background?) but there's quite a sizeable crowd so we had no choice but to sit outside lol.
Both the pastries were good. Ginger brulee tart like its name suggest, has the texture of creme brulee but infused with ginger. The ginger taste is strong but not overpowering (think something similar to ginger beer) and the tart is topped with pistachio (yum). The muffin despite being made of chocolate was not jelak.
To walk off those calories (sidenote, why do I gain weight in cold countries), we walked to Central station and checked out several shops.
Tip: Get your Blackmores and Swisse supplements in Aussie! #auntiemode
Tip: If you want to getcheapaffordable typical souvenirs (e.g. koala key chains, magnets), this is the place to go.
Think I am born to be an auntie, cause I do like looking at supermarkets HAHA. Yup other than souvenirs shop, they sell shades (cheap as well) and also contain a market.
Next to Paddy's Market, there is Market City, the only outlet store in CBD (quoting from the ad I saw there).
Tip: If you are looking for Havaianas, nuts & nougats to bring back home, this is a good place to visit!
Since we had an exciting activity planned for Day 2, we decided to have dinner and go back rest. Being Asian, we decided on ramen in Chinatown for dinner. Nah, it was because of food recommendations ok (see this).
Gumshara Ramen at Harbour Plaza
The serving was huge (suitable for sharing) but the broth was too thick for my liking. Yup, it did feel like half a pig was used to make the broth lol. The gyoza however was very yummy! The chef is a Japanese so I guess quite authentic hmm. And obviously nothing wins Ichiran ramen sobs.
Yup, the exciting activity was skydiving which didn't happen on day 2 cause of the strong winds. And we didn't realise till it was like half an hour before the pick up time...
So, we decided to proceed with another day's itinerary (yea, cause I cannot stand not having a planned itinerary ooops)...
First up, Hyde Park (which was actually very near to our Airbnb).
Captain Cook and gorgeous St Mary's Cathedral
There's something amazing about Australia's skies (such a pretty shade of blue) and their gorgeous architecture. 😍
And then, time for food at the renowned Black Star Pastry.
The famous watermelon strawberry cake and eclair
See, the perks of being my travel buddy? You will never have rack your brains to think about what to eat cause I am well-read on food.
Okay, the cake really does deserve the hype. It's refreshing (different in a good way from the normal cakes) but the strawberries were sour?! The eclair was delicious as well (think generous portion of chocolate cream).
Told ya, their architecture is picture worthy (and ignore the human head please lol).
Interiors were also picture worthy.
After reading about State Library of NSW (or more like seeing pictures), I wanted to visit this library...
State Library of NSW
Are you thinking "Nah, what is so fascinating about this". Well, wait till you see the interiors drum rolls
Well while Melbourne has State Library Victoria, Sydney has this. Will totally visit this library very often if I am working/studying in Sydney.😝
Just opposite the library was one of the entrances to Royal Botanic Gardens. It was heartwarming to see families/friends having a picnic gathering. Ahhh how I wish our weather (and our pace of life) allows us to just lepak on the grass patches HAHA.
At the other end, the entrance leads to Sydney Opera House/Circular Quay area.
So yup, say hi to the Sydney Opera House which is definitely a must-see I guess.
We thought of visiting The Rocks market since it was still quite early but the market was cancelled... cause of the wind. LOL cannot skydive, cannot go markets as well.
But at least I had yummy icecream from Gelato Messina.
And then, sun set! (Lucky the sun sets early in winter, if not what else can I do at Sydney Harbour while waiting for the sunset view😅).
Bye Sydney Opera House
That's it for Day 1 and 2 of the trip. Stay tuned (like this is a show haha) for posts on Blue Mountains, the beaches and sky-diving.
