After finishing my last final on November 14th and having to move out of my flat on November 15th, we said goodbye to Wellington, the city we called home for the past four months, to leave for Australia very early on November 16th. The first stop was Sydney. While the hot, Australian climate and busy, touristy vibe of the big city was a huge change from what we were used to in New Zealand, Sydney was definitely fun and exciting, and I hope to go back one day because there was definitely a lot of stuff that we didn't have time to do! While in Sydney we also took day trips to the nearby beach town Bondi, and national park Blue Mountains, both of which were highlights of the Australia trip for me.
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| Wellington waking up as we headed to the airport at 4am. |
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| After landing in Sydney, we strolled along the harbour and through the botanical gardens towards the Sydney Opera House, which can be seen in the distance in the center of the photo. |
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| The famous Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge. |
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| I was surprised to find that up close, the peaks of the Opera House are actually several separate buildings. |
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| On our second day, we took a short trip outside of the city to Bondi Beach. Unfortunately I didn't get to swim in this awesome pool, which was at exactly sea level so that waves would come over the sides and allow sea water into the pool. |
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| A panorama of the pool and Bondi Beach. |
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| Enjoying the beach day with a new book from a cute book store we went to on our way to Bondi. |
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| Some shots of the cute beach town as the sun began to set. |
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| The next day, we took the train to Blue Mountains, a national park outside of Sydney. |
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| The Three Sisters, one of the famous rock formations in the national park. |
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| Standing behind the Three Sisters, looking out over them. |
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| The Three Sisters from a distance. |
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| After a beautiful hike along the cliffs and through some forest, we got to this waterfall and hopped over the barriers to get up close and personal. |
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| One of the many steep staircases we had to walk down and back up on our way to and from the waterfall. |
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| On our fourth and final day in Sydney, we met up with some friends from our UCEAP program and explored the city a bit more. |
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| A very unusual but fun modern art museum in The Rocks, an adorable cultural/historical area of Sydney. |
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| A last look at the Opera House before packing up and heading to the airport. |
