My 1st Epic Trip Chronicles – 6 Days in Australia

Last updated on January 8, 2024

“It’s not as big as I expected”, was the first thing D said. I had no idea what she was talking about.

We flew overnight on Asiana Airlines from Incheon to Sydney. This was the first time that an airline offered slippers in economy class. They also offered earplugs but I declined.

I’d made the mistake of requesting a seafood meal. This meant a tasteless meal of salmon with pasta, while D had what she described as the best airplane food she ever had, which was Korean food. I don’t know why I ordered a seafood meal; some misguided reflex from when I was pescatarian I guess.

Day 1 in Sydney

We were at our hotel by 10 or 11 am after a quick train ride from the airport to Central, followed by a less than 5-min walk.

We didn’t think it made sense to pay $40 to check in early so we went exploring Surry Hills, where our hotel was located. We walked around to get our bearings and shake off the trip before stopping at Piano (?) for lunch.

After lunch, it still wasn’t time to check in yet so we went to Chinatown. We both like going to grocery stores, so we visited a couple and marveled at the expensive fruit. 😂 Then we found a bench to sit and people watch. A man on his lunch break was sharing the bench with us and shared some suggestions for sightseeing spots.

After checking in, we went for dinner in the neighborhood. We both opted for the special of the night – steak and fries. They were both very good.

Day 2 in Sydney

On our second day, we decided to take the hop-on hop-off bus. Stop number 12 was only 6-min walk from our hotel. We got on and went to Sydney Harbour where we enjoyed the views of the bridge and opera house. At first glance of the opera house, D observed that it wasn’t as big as she expected.

We also took a ferry to Manly Beach. Since neither of us enjoy sand, we took the opportunity to have lunch and do some more people watching.

Back at Sydney Harbour, we visited the Sydney Opera House. While we didn’t do a tour, we did go inside and visit the shop.

Since we’d had a late lunch, we chose to have ice cream for dessert before heading back to the hotel.

Day 3 in Sydney

We started our day 3 adventures by taking the hop-on hop-off bus to the fish market. After that, we separated because I had an appointment at Bondi junction to get my hair done by a loctitian living there.

Once my hair was done, I walked through the mall on Bondi Junction. I wasn’t sure if it was worth the trip but since I’d heard a lot about Bondi Beach, I decided to catch the local bus to visit. It seems a good chance to have a late lunch there.

I spent $36 on fish and chips at North Bondi Fish. I didn’t enjoy it and so to me, it wasn’t worth the price. However, my first and second choice restaurants from reviews were both closed until dinner.

After my early dinner, I headed back to Central. We had plans that evening to see Wicked. It was my first time seeing it but D said some of the performances were the best she’s ever seen, and she goes to a lot of musicals, on repeat! I loved it! I thought the performers did an excellent job and the singing was magnificent. I’m so happy we fit this in.

Day 4 – Sydney to Canberra

The Bahá’í temple in Sydney is on the outskirts and takes 1.5 hours from Central. I only had about an hour to visit but I enjoyed the serenity of the spot. There was no one else visiting but me and no human sounds to be heard while sitting inside.

There was so much sound in the temple and grounds. I forgot to ask but it sounded like cicadas.

Day 5 – Canberra

The bus to Canberra took just over 3 hours. We drove past many farms with sheep, cows, horses and beautiful countryside.

We had many plans for the next day but then we let ourselves have a lazy morning. It was 1pm by the time we left the house to go to the National Museum of Australia.

The museum is quite big but we knew that we wanted to focus on Aboriginal history. We spent a little bit of time in other galleries but the bulk of our time was in the First People and Back to Blak galleries.

I found those two galleries engaging. I enjoyed the contributions of Aboriginal people in their own voice, their own words. D kept observing how many similarities there are between Australia and Canadian histories.

We were starving by the time we finished visiting the museum, so we headed to Canberra Centre and had a very late lunch.

Day 6 in Canberra

We stayed with friends of D’s in Canberra. On Saturday. I woke up early because I was promised kangaroos in the wild. We went to Mount Ainslie and did a short walk. At one point, someone pointed out a kangaroo. Imagine my delight to find 3 kangaroos. I walked towards them and they stood, unmoving, watching my approach and D’s. Promised and delivered!

After our morning adventure, we had a lovely family breakfast. Then, D and I went to visit Parliament House and Old Parliament House. The latter is a museum since it is no longer used. You can visit both places on your own or take one of the organized free or paid tours.

It was interesting seeing the old house. It’s of a colonial style and given that it’s a museum, you’re free to wander everywhere. For the active house, you can visit both the Senate and House of Representatives but there are also private areas such as the prime minister’s office where you can’t wander. The system of government is very similar to Canada. It borrows elements from both the British and American methods of government.

If you visit Parliament House, don’t forget to go up on the roof, and to roll down the hill at the front. Apparently, that’s an unwritten tradition for visitors 😂. Of course, I tried it, but you’ll just have to take my word for it.