We finally made it to Sydney!

I am a bit behind on my blogs, so you are getting two that are essentially back to back. All of you are just going to have to deal with that! :) This trip was back in the beginning of June, when our friend Emily came out to visit. Her one request was to go visit Sydney while she was in Australia, and since we hadn't been before, we decided to go with her! I think we managed to hit all of the touristy highlights . . . the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the opera house, a cruise to Manly so we could see the skyline from afar. But I must admit that my favorite part of Sydney was just being able to enjoy some nice meals while looking at some absolutely fantastic views. Everything else . . . well, you have seen it in pictures a million times before, and honestly, it is a bit anticlimactic when you see them up close. Not that I wouldn't recommend seeing them, it is just a bit surreal when you do. We also took the opportunity to hit the Blue Mountains while we were in the neighborhood. These are some beautiful mountains about an hour outside of Sydney. There is this tourist attraction called the Three Sisters, but in reality, it was just 3 big rocks you can see at a lookout point. As one person standing within earshot said perfectly . . . "Now, don't those Americans who flew all the way over here to see this feel pretty stupid right about now!" But the views were spectacular. Unfortunately for me, I had miscalculated what the temperature would be in Sydney and had not packed appropriately. And guess what! When you go into the mountains, it gets even colder! So Jason and I spent about 5 minutes admiring the view, before we ran to the warmth of the car, while Emily actually got to enjoy a bit more. There were all sorts of hikes and such that you could take, including one that someone just got lost on for about 12 days (I would avoid that one), but because I'm an idiot, we didn't get to enjoy that part. Instead, we headed for the warmth of the beach . . . Bondi Beach to be exact. I don't know if that means anything to you, but over here, it is a pretty famous beach. It was gorgeous, but it seemed to be more appropriate for people who are more fit than us! There were people running and working out all over the place, including this one guy who must have swam across the length of the beach about 2o times (no small feat I assure you). He did that while we just sat on our backsides and ate lunch! :) I mean any beach that has an Olympic size pool right next to it is probably not the laze around in the sun and do nothing kind of beach!

The Most Annoying Phone Call Ever

So what do you do when you get a phone call from someone saying that they are currently sitting on the Great Wall of China? Yea, instead of actually going to China and sitting on the Great Wall myself because someone (who shall remain nameless) is supposed to be working not sightseeing, I just get a phone call. Maybe we should just all think of this nameless person as pathetic . . . because of all the things to do while sitting in this absolutely fantastic setting, he gets out his blackberry?! Maybe I'm just bitter. :)