Blog: Sydney (April 30, 2010-May 5, 2010)
Sydney is a really awesome place to be. It reminds me a lot of New York City, but on a smaller scale. There are plenty of things I found enjoyable such as using the public transportation (mainly the ferry service which acts like a bus) and exploring around Circular Quay. There is great food to be found throughout the city and entertainment to do at almost any hour. It was a bit pricier and I did not realize how fast I would be draining my fund. I would recommend to be conservative when it comes to money and buy and prepare food to save money where at least 75% or more of my money was going. For a large city almost every place closed early and by 5PM there was barely any place open. I had to get whatever I wanted to do done by a certain point of the day or I would not be able to do something because of the times the businesses were operating.
Blog: Canberra (May 5, 2010- May 6, 2010)
Canberra is a lot smaller than I expect and is also in the middle of nowhere. I will admit I had an enjoyable experience in the city but there was little to nothing to do. I did learn quite a bit about Australia on this day and feel it was very informative. There was a substantially large mall located in the center of the city that did provide something to do but that was about the highlight of fun activities in the city in my view. Like Sydney, everything closed very early and there was barely anything to do at night. I had to venture off to find food as there were few places open and managed to find food after venturing deep into the heart of the city. Canberra did not put a hole in my pocket like Sydney did and I got a few bargains while I was here.
Blog: Brisbane/ Frasier Island (May 6, 2010-May 12, 2010)
Brisbane was an adventure. I liked the koala sanctuary very much and made a few friends along the way when it came to the kangaroos and koalas. I really liked the hotel we stayed at and I think it was my favorite place to stay at as I felt like I was in a hotel and not a backpacker's hostel. Brisbane would also be the first place I bought and cooked food in. I did found this to be faster, easier, and cheaper than finding food throughout the city. The city itself was very easy to navigate and on my free day I found the city outside/indoor mall. I caught part of an NHL playoff hockey game which was playing at an outdoor bar. I just took a seat and watched the last period and then walked around and did some souvenir shopping. I found some pretty good deals here and bought some gifts for people back home. Overall I enjoyed Brisbane and thought it was a very nice place to be. Frasier Island caught me by surprise. I thought I was going to absolutely hate the place as it was outdoors and there was no technology and very little civilization. I was completely wrong and think I had so much fun. I really enjoyed our guide Russell. He knew his stuff and made our outing there very enjoyable and memorable. I believe Frasier Island is one of my highlights for this trip.
Blog: Cairns (May 12, 2010 –May 18, 2010)
Cairns reminded me of a typical beach city such as Atlantic City (minus the hundred of casinos). This would be the place I did a lot of shopping. I got my girlfriend her birthday present here (a pair of pink ugg boots). I was going to get them in Sydney but got such a deal on them ($94, while the same pair went for $135 elsewhere) that I just got them. I also got my friends boomerangs, although I don't know how much of a good idea that was. Aside from that I also learned that I do not like the water or really being in it and would rather be skating on a frozen sheet of it then swimming in it. I did have fun at the Great Barrier Reef and at my free day in the Tully River rafting in crocodile infested waters. Once again I found myself in the water and did not really enjoy being in it. I did also try to get a tan as much as possible while here all over as my dad and cousin who were in Iraq told me it was a good idea to before heading out in the desert, so the desert sun would be less brutal on my skin. We also had a trip to Cape Tribulation which was a pretty fun but very long day. Most of the information I had gathered as an outcome of this trip I had already learned from Russell on Frasier Island. I did however see a Cassowary a very rare bird that is almost extinct and it was a very cool sight to see.
[Charlie's note: I do not know who posted this.]
