Sydney-ho!

We went to Sydney this weekend (for 4 days) to visit Paul & Teresa. They have an apartment in a fantastic position on the water. Every morning I would open up the balcony door and immediately feel relaxed as the sounds of lapping water washed over me. Paul & Teresa also took such good care of us that I felt as if I didn't have a single worry (other than losing at Scrabble).

[for more photos, see my Yahoo! album]

The first morning we were there, we walked along the water to Lavender Bay, then Luna Park, passing through several parks on the way. The weather was beautiful -- sunny and temperate -- perfect for enjoying the harbour. We finished off the outing with lunch at Paul & Teresa's local yum cha restaurant (aka dim sum). When we got back, Paul amazed me by falling asleep with his head, arms and feet hanging over the edge of the bed. My arms would go dead and my head would be pounding from the pooled blood!

The second day (Anya's birthday!) was another beautiful day. We drove into the Blue Mountains to see the Three Sisters, followed by lunch at The Conservation Hut at Wentworth Falls and a quick visit to Mt Tomah Botanic Garden. The garden was definitely the highlight of the day. We got a bit stuck in traffic on the way out of the mountains and had a very stir-crazy Anya to soothe with Wiggles stories, songbooks, and renditions of "Happy Birthday to You!" She *loved* getting serenaded and kept asking for it again and again.

Our last day, we flew back to Brisbane at 2 pm, so Paul took us to Bondi Beach for the morning. I haven't seen a wide tame beach like this since LA. The water was clear bluey green and I regretted not wearing my togs. (I'd thought it would be too cold.) Anya and I played in the sand while the guys bodysurfed. (Teresa had to go to work.)

The plane trip itself went very well. I guess 18 months of taking the train every week had Anya quite used to waiting and sitting and travelling. The only issue was that she didn't like having to be buckled into our laps. This was Anya's first plane trip ever and we'd been telling her all week, "You're going on a plane soon!" She absorbed the story really quickly and was telling all and sundry, "I'm going on a plane! Up high!" She even told everyone she was going to Sydney.

We liked our Qantas flight a lot better than Virgin Airlines. There was more leg room (we were seated right behind business class) and were in a row of two, rather than three, seats. Also, we received a "Freddo Frog" activity pack for Anya and the staff made sure to give her as much service as the adults for food and drink.