After paying 70 pounds at Bangkok Airport for a visa we didn't realise we needed, we arrived very early on day 27 of our travels. On the plane, Wedge had been talking about how friendly ALL Aussies were. This was not confirmed for Jen when we were terrorised through Sydney customs. 'Stay together in the que in future' (we were one person apart), 'Please be organised when travelling the world girls, you should have included your middle name on the visa', 'let me see the bottom of your flip flops'. We felt like we were on Nothing to Declare.

We got the ferry across to Manly in gorgeous weather as the sun rose above the Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Jen spent 3 days convinced she had Malaria, which actually turned out to be a hangover. After catching up on a bit of jetlag we headed to the beach for a bit of free body boarding. Here we were told off for swimming in the professional surfers' area by a lifeguard who blew his whistle at us: 'move along and then come and get a drink with us'. We had every good intention and headed to the bar that evening but were at a bit of a loss as every single Australian man looks the same (blonde surfery hair).

The first thing that struck us in Sydney is how very expensive it is. We were pretty shocked to be paying 20 quid for a gross sheet in a shabby dorm. We were used to a luxurious suite to ourselves for like 2 pounds in Asia. One evening we spent about 20 minutes searching along the street for the cheapest restaurant (we were sick of pasta and sauce) and eventually settled in a burrito bar. Whilst Sam was calculating the damage on her iPhone, a local, elderly couple took pity on us and gave us their remaining fajitahas and a bottle of Corona each. They were lush but we were pretty shocked at how obvious we were being!

The weather stayed pretty grim for a few days, resulting in Jen stating she hated Sydney, much to Sam's dismay. She soon changed her tune though. We even went to the extent of buying some kind of family package deal to the aquariums, wildlife center and Sydney Tower. We also hit up a free art gallery. We went to local fete before heading back to the hostel for goon o'clock. That evening we ended up Australian wedding reception - just like wedding crashers, we were the only ones on the dance floor. It was pretty weird, one of the elderly guests was trying to marry Sam off with her son, and upon Jen apologising to the bride for being at her wedding she was asked 'were you at the ceremony then?' 'Err, no'.

Hungover, we headed to a local cafe and treated ourselves to brunch. Sam was in her element with a bowl of Kellogs Coco Pops, and Jen had avocado and eggs. We borded the ferry back to Sydney and checked into Chili Blie Backpackers in Kings Cross. That night we headed to The Gaff with everyone from the hostel (after a game of goon pong), and had to walk home half an hour in torrential rain. We bought ourselves a midnight feast to cheer us up. This a included not a Freddo but a 'Caramello Koala'.

Despite waking up to an actual thunder storm we decided to head out and explore the city in our waterproofs. We looked cool. This was anopther day which facilitated the use of our family pass, and we happily trotted around the aquarium with all the young families. During the afternoon it suddenly cleared up so we went to the top of the Sky Tower for some amazing views. That evening, as recommended by our adoptive couple, we watched a light show at the Opera House, whilst sipping on a glass of bubbly in Opera Bar.

The next day the weather started to improve so we hit Bondi Beach followed by a trip to Maroubra to see the lovely Freddie and his girlfriend Anna who Jen worked with at Fatface. They were very accomodating and took us to the beach before treating us to a bottle of wine in the best local burger bar - Moo. That night we went out to World Bar which was awesome. You got served shots in tea pots. To cure our hangover we met one of Wedge's mum's friends (one of our primary school teachers) in Darling Harbour for a steak and another bottle of wine - such a treat. We were so grateful.

Whilst running for the airport bus, Wedge fell her arse in a pile of berries and we arrived at the airport to find our flight didn't exist. Only kidding, the Daylight Savings meant we had an extra hour (luckily) before take off. We borded the plane to Fiji, where the host and hostesses wore flowery shirts and flowers in their hair. To Jen's surprise she was ID'd for a glass of wine. He got down to her level and said 'I have to ask you mam, are you 18?'.