“Can I pet it?”
“You can go right on up to him and take a pic!”
***
My road trip up the east coast of Australia is going great! It’s been quick, but I’ve still been able to experience this beautifully weird country.
So I’ll begin where I left off! We hopped in the car on an early Sunday morning and drove and drove and drove until we got to Sydney. It took about 11 hours. Woof. Along the way we saw a bunch of country farms, a giant ram and lived off gas station food.
We were pretty delirious by the end of it, so I booked a room at the Hilton Sydney (part of my Christmas present from my mom & dad) and enjoyed a little (much needed) luxury. Ugh, that place is nice.
Sydney is such a sick city. I totally fell in love with it (I’m sure our nice accommodation had something to do with it). We walked around the city all Monday morning then took a ferry ride through Sydney Harbour to Watson’s Bay and jumped a bus to Bondi Beach (my favorite spot!).
Bondi is one of those places where you walk around and think “wow, everyone is so much cooler than me.” If you get the chance to visit Sydney, take a day trip to Bondi and check out the Icebergs.
From Sydney, we drove to Port Stephens, a little fishing town north of Newcastle. I had read about Port Stephens because it’s supposed to be a great place for whale watching. But unfortunately, we just missed the season for it (whale watching is May-November). Port Stephens is also home to the largest sand dunes in the southern hemisphere! They have these massive sand mountains that you can go sand boarding down or ride ATVs through. We didn’t get a chance to do any of that, BUT I did see a camel and went right on up to it to take a selfie.
Then we jumped in the car and drove 8 hours to Brisbane. I’ve been to Brizzy a few times and I really like the city! Lucky for us, the Commonwealth Games are being held in Gold Coast (an hour away), so we spent a day roaming around the games site and checking out some live music and events on the beach.
After Brisbane, I had the ultimate treat of experiencing the Australian bush. I’m talking middle of no where, real country type of place. We spent two nights in the small town of Monto at Jack’s mom’s pub. It was such a treat because I really felt like I got to experience authentic Aussie bush culture. Mungungo Pub is an old school type of place that has the regulars who stop by to drink a beer an hour, a jukebox machine and cheap, ice cold beer. It’s awesome (check it out if you have a chance!).
Now I’m in Gladstone, Jack’s hometown. It’s pretty small but has a nice charm and it’s right by the beach (so I can work on my tan, woo!). Tomorrow, we’ll head off early in the morning for a grueling 9 hour drive to Townsville — the final stop! Then we’ll dedicate the week to finding a place to live and getting ourselves a jobs. That’s going to be real challenge…
[…] a HECTIC week we had here in Australia! Although we were delirious by the end of it, our road trip ended in Townsville, Queensland on April 16 and now (a week and a half later) we are finally, FINALLY […]