Hello from Sydney,

So after arriving late into Sydney, we found our hostel and crashed for the night excited to start exploring the city the following day.

Once fully recharged after a long lie in we decided to follow the walking tour around the city to get our bearings and get our first view of the city in the day light. We walked through the main CBD and shopping districts to Nikki's delight before heading through Hyde Park (passing the Anzac memorial reflection pool) and up passed the Australian Museum. The city was lovely with a great mix of modern buildings and old churches and period features. We then walked up through the Botanical Gardens before getting out first sight of the Sydney Opera House across the water with the Harbor Bridge. It was amazing after seeing the same view on TV so many times to actually be there. We did the typical tourist pictures with the scenery behind us before walking around the bay to get a close up of the Opera house. The building area was having some building work done so some areas were closed off but still we got a great view of the building and its unique roof design. By this time we were getting hungry so grabbed a snack from circular quay before heading to the public library to seal some internet and check emails. In the afternoon, we wondered around some shops and before grabbing some noodles for dinner and an early night before heading to Mark's the following day.

The next morning we checked out of the hostel at 10am and got picked up by Mark (My cousin), his wife Joy and 3month old Jonah. They had very kindly offered to put us up at the house for the week. Once we packed all our stuff in the car, we all headed over to Bondi beach for some breakfast and a quick tour as Nikki and I hadn't been there. Bondi beach was lovely and summed up the typical Australian lifestyle - sun, sea, surf! After a whistle stop tour in the car of Sydney we headed to Mark and Joys house approx. 10min train journey outside the city center. We were introduced to Sheila (a very excitable dog) and Ruby (the exact opposite to Sheila - timid cat). Mark's house was lovely and Nikki and I had our own double room with bathroom in houses extension under the kitchen on the ground floor. Once settled in, we chilled out with Mark's family before they very kindly took us out for dinner to their favorite Japanese restaurant.

Sunday morning started with Breakfast with Marks Dad and family which was a huge treat as I couldn't remember the last time I had a cooked breakfast in a house. Our relaxed Sunday was spent walking round New Town - a suburb of Sydney, a quick trip to Ikea (to satisfy Joy and Nikki's shopping needs) and a visit to the local supermarket. In the evening, Mark very kindly cooked a lamb roast on the BBQ and Nikki and I bought pudding of strawberry cheese cake. It was great to have a home cooked email after spending so long cooking two pan meals or buying a cheap meal.

On Monday we headed into the city to meet Debbie and Ben for lunch before they headed to New Zealand. It had been great travelling down the coast meeting up with Ben and Debbie who were very similar to us. We grabbed some lunch near town hall before heading to a few bars in Kings Cross, near where Ben and Debbie's hostel. They were on a budget like us so we went to bars with Happy hours and cheaper drinks. After we said our good byes, we got the last train to Mark's house and crashed for the night.

The following day, after a lazy lie in we decided to relax and sort out our plans for Melbourne, do some washing and generally enjoy being in house and not a hostel. We booked our hostel in Melbourne for the first few nights as we were undecided how long we would be spending in the city. In the afternoon, we invited Joy and Jonah for a picnic on the park but she suggested something better - fish and chips by the beach with Jonah and Sheila. The beach was lovely and Sheila enjoyed the fresh air and running around the headland. We grabbed some fish and chips and walked around Coogee Beach. In the evening we helped out Joy with the dinner as Mark was at night classes till late and relaxed in front of the TV.

On Wednesday we headed into the city for some much needed retail therapy (Nikki's words not mine). We headed to the Paddies market to grab some small souvenirs and a small suitcase. We thought it would be a good idea to get a carry-on sized suitcase as our bags are now getting very full and means we can separate the weight from our bags. We also walked through China town before heading to some of the shopping arcades. Nikki bought a very nice skirt from Billabong as a present for herself. In the evening, we chilled out again, saving the pennies before Melbourne.

The first point of call was to go to the doctors to get our jabs and malaria tablets before South Africa, which were unfortunately very expensive. After we thought we would treat ourselves to a day out at the aquarium. I couldn't remember the last time I went to an aquarium so thought it would be great fun. It was great, with such a wide variety of fish and under water species. The only downside was that both Nikki and I's camera's didn't take very good pictures threw glass so a lot of out pictures were ruined. After wandering round for a few hours we headed up the Harbour Bridge to walk across and get some pictures of the city skyline. The bridge was spectacular and the walk showed you why Sydney is such a great place in the world. As we were leaving Marks house the following day we bought the guys a few presents to say thank you. In the evening we relaxed at the house, repacked our bags and got our stuff sorted before heading to Melbourne.

Our final day started with thank you and good bye to Mark and his family for putting us up for the last 6 days. It was incredibly nice of him and was a great break away from hostels. We grabbed the train back into the city and checked in our room in Base Hostel where we were being collected the next morning for our trip to Melbourne. At night, Nikki arranged to meet up with one of her friends from university who lived in Sydney for dinner and a few drinks. We met Stu in the city before catching the metro to central where were having dinner with his partner Sarah. We grabbed food at a very popular Mexican restaurant where we had chilli dogs and some nachos, obviously washed down with Corona's and Margarita's. After we headed into the city for a few more drinks, Stu and Sarah took us to a hidden cocktail bar which was voted the 2nd best bar in Sydney last year. The place was tiny but made some great drinks and had a great atmosphere. We decided to crash early as we were up at 6.00am so said our good byes after a great night.

From Sydney with Love

Ben and Nikki x