I'm still partial to Melbourne coffee, but Sydney's wasn't too bad, and the baristas are good at free pouring (which creates the cool artwork on top of the drink.)
We purchased bus tickets, or what we thought were the right bus tickets, at the local convenience store, and walked a few blocks to the nearest bus station. We quickly spotted a bus for Bondi and hopped aboard. The driver told us we had the wrong tickets but told us not to worry about it, so we didn't. After about 30 minutes, we reached Bondi Beach, arguably Sydney's most famous beach, though locals don't think it's the "best" beach. It's certainly the place for people watching though. And the girls were dying to get in the water.
Mom had other plans though, specifically the Bondi-to-Bronte Beach Coast Walk. It's about a 2 k walk, mostly along the cliffs, and has spectacular views. I knew that if we let them swim now, they'd end up cold and tired, and we wouldn't get our walk. So, mean mom that I am, I wouldn't let them go in, but promised they could swim at Bronte beach. And we headed off on our walk.
Checking out the Bondi Baths, home to the Bondi Icebergs club. In the winter, they put a ton of ice in the pool to kick off the season. No thank you!
A scenic spot to exercise, wouldn't you agree? Australian parks and walks often have these exercise stations, though you can only see a bit of it in this photo.
Overlooking Tamarama Beach. Probably should have stopped there for a swim...
...because when we got to Bronte, most of the beach was closed to swimming due to dangerous surf conditions. Boo hoo! Kids were extremely disappointed. They cheered up a bit after a snack.
Fortunately there was an area at the far end of the beach where they could swim. Even without ice cubes added, it was pretty cold, so I was happy to be photographer.
Alanna almost looks like an amputee in the pic below!
And Aliya looks like she can walk on water!
After a short swim (the water really was cold, even for them) we got changed, and awaited a bus back to the city. Luckily our stop was the beginning of the line, so we were able to get seats. Aliya slept most of the ride home, exhausted after the walk in the hot sun and some swimming!
That evening, we continued our quest to try out all the public transportation in Sydney. Next up, the monorail. The nearest stop was just around the corner from our hotel.
Sydney folks don't really like or use the monorail (more of a tourist thing,) and there's talk of getting rid of it. I just read that the city of Hobart (in Tasmania) is asking Sydney to donate it to them! Regardless, it was perfect for us as it took us right to our destination, Darling Harbour. The girls were happy to be there!
We had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. Alanna was thrilled to see one of Taylor Swift's dresses as we walked in.
And Aliya thought it was pretty cool that there was no real sink in the bathroom, so she made me take a picture. Comes in handy when people ask about the bathrooms at the Hard Rock Cafe in Sydney, I can just show them this picture. Saves a lot of time!
Holding a bag of lollies, waiting for the free fireworks to start.
When the show ended, we took the monorail back to our hotel. Another great day in Sydney!
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