The flight was really quick and easy to Sydney and before we knew it we where at Coogee Beach. . . Em had a smile on her face, so I think she liked the place as much as I did. We got checked in to the Hotel, which was literally a stones throw from the beach and then proceeded to hit the beach. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t as nice as when I was herte last and Em got a little chilly on the beach, so we had a coffee and a bit of cake before heading back to the hotel to dump our stuff, as we had decided to do the 5km walk from Coogee Beach to Bondi Beach. . . . The walk was beautiful and it was really nice to do it again. The sky cleared to reveal a beautiful sunset before it got dark as we finally got to Bondi.

We taxied back to Coogee, showered and changed and chilled out for ages at the hotel on the balcony, before deciding that we should eat, so went up Coogee beach road where all the restaurants were and found a nice little Italian place. . . We were late getting there around 10ish and therefore were last in restaurant and cus we were talking a lot the staff hinted at us to leave as they were shutting. . . . This was a little annoying as we still had wine left but still, the food was nice!

To work off the food, we went for a little walk up to one of the points and sat and chilled for a bit before heading back on the beach. . . . Em burst into Swedish song, as she does randomly on occasion! I found that a lot of the words sounded rude though. . . . But they weren’t! We got back to the hotel and had a quick beer before crashing out. . . .

Got up early and had brekky. . . Decided to get the bus to city, but didn’t realize it took as long as it did and had to run across the city to get to the bridge climb in time. We got there with 3 mins to spare, sweating profusely! We were soon changed into these attractive grey overalls and introduced to our guide (Bernie – Great guy). He was a funny chap and made everyone feel welcome. We got all out gear on and headed out. . . . The walk was awesome, as you can imagine. We had the weather on our side, not a cloud in the sky, but a nice breeze to keep us cool. . . As I said, the climb was awesome, it wasn’t really a climb as such, mainly walkways and steps, but you did feel it on you legs afterwards. Towards the top, Bernie took some photos (they try and sell to you these for an extortionate price afterwards). Then we hit the peak, wow. . . Wow. . . Wow! Sorry, but wow! What a view, you could see about 100km visibility, probably the best, we were told, right out across the city to the Blue Mountains. We headed across the bridge and back down the other side to the start, chatting to Bernie a lot (funny guy – I liked him). We got back, got rid of all the gear, got a complimentary photo of the group and said bye to Bernie!

After that we got a snack and headed to Manly beach on the ferry and got to see the whole of the harbour, it is huge! We got to Manly and had some really nice ice cream and then chilled on the beach all afternoon. Em had a swim and we both fell asleep on the beach. Before heading back we had a drink in a really nice bar / restaurant next to the water and watched the sun set! We headed back to the city on the ferry as it was just dropping dark. . . What a sight! Seeing the city at night and the Harbour Bridge all lit up with the Opera House! Splendid. . .

We headed back to Coogee for the evening, as we were both now feeling a little drained. As we were both tired and couldn’t be bothered getting ready to go out for a meal, we got a great Indian take away, a bottle of wine and a few beers and chilled on the balcony, ate and drank. . . Very chilled out evening! We crashed out reasonably early, ready for our last day in Sydney.

Got up in the morning. . . . Well I didn’t really. . . ! The weather wasn’t that brilliant, so Em decided to run to Bondi and back, remember the 5km walk we did, so 10km’s. . . . She asked if I wanted to join, but with my leg still being bad I declined. Stayed in bed and typed up my journal as I was a bit behind. Turned out to be a bit of an epic. . . . !

Em got back from her run looking like she was about to explode, talk about red face, Blimey! We then headed in to the city again and had a bit of a walk around, up to the Opera House, etc. We then got a little grumpy as we needed food, but didn’t know where to go, but soon found this nice bar / restaurant next to the water, got some beers and wine in and ordered some food! We decided to leave there before we got to drunk and I received a call from Xanthe, so we arranged to meet.

Before we met Xanthe however, Em had been given a challenge from a friend in Sweden to find a statue and have her photo taken next to it. So after many hours on the internet, she managed to track down roughly where this statue was. . . . We headed up George street in to the city and eventually found the 2 figures. . . . Called ‘Walking in Time’ by Dominique Sutton. We took the photos and then found Xanthe. It was great to meet up with her again and we all had a good laugh. . . . After a few more beers, somehow we got onto the subject of Karaoke, now don’t ask me how, but before I knew it we were in one of them Karaoke booth places, like the ones I went to in New York with Sue. . . . . oh God. . . Needless to say it was emotional. . . . . ! Funny though. . . .And Em does like to sing, bless her!

We stayed there for an hour, before heading off for another beer, before home. . . Well, I never actually made it home! Hmmmm. . . Stayed with Xanthe and got a taxi back to the hotel in the morning before jumping in another taxi with Em to the airport for our early flight to Brisbane! Happy days!

So that was Sydney with Em. . . . Most enjoyable! Lets see what Brisbane has to offer. We are staying with Gemma and Josef, Em’s friends, so should be fun. . . Will let you know soon.

Ciao for now people!