The Great Australian Adventure, Part 3!

I'm pretty sure I missed my deadline for this last entry, but I wanted to make sure that Kirsty didn't mind me posting pictures of her and her family on here. And it was Saturday night and I lost track of time and... I'll stop making excuses now. Back to the adventure!

We awoke our third morning in Sydney to the most beautiful weather the entire trip! What an awesome way to start our day with Mark, Kirsty & the girls. Taking advantage of the weather, we walked from our hotel to Circular Quay. The city was gorgeous and set the perfect background for our walk. It only took about 15-20 minutes to reach Circular Quay and once there, we had to snap a couple of pictures.

Here we are in front of the Sydney Harbour bridge.

Here we are in front of the famous Sydney Opera House. In person, it's HUGE! I didn't expect it to be so big, but it's monstrous.

Me, Caroline, Addy & Kirsty in front of the Sydney Opera house.

Me, Caroline, Addy & Kirsty in front of the Sydney Harbour bridge. If you click on the picture, you might notice what looks like little groups of ants crawling on the bridge. Those ants are actually people! You can actually take a tour where you get to climb the huge bridge! We'll have to do that when Caroline is older.

Kirsty had the fantastic idea of bringing bunny ears for the girls! Caroline was a little grouchy that morning, but we still had fun posing.

Us with our little Easter bunny!

After posing for pictures, the plan was for Mark, Kirsty and the girls to meet us at the zoo. They had a rental car and were going to drive and we were going to take public transportation. We said our goodbyes, planning to meet up soon. Then Benjamin and I did the bravest thing we had done all day... boarded a ferry with Caroline. Yes, the way you get to the zoo from there by way of public transportation is a ferry across the harbour. You may remember how on the boat ride out to the great barrier reef, Caroline got seasick and vomited all over me... I certainly remembered. We found a seat at the back of the ferry, hoped for calm waters and crossed our fingers.

Ten minutes later, we arrived no worse for the wear. Caroline was sporting a smile and I wasn't sporting any vomit, so things were fantastic! Unfortunately, things for Mark, Kirsty and the girls were less fortunate since they couldn't find a parking spot. After almost an hour of searching, they called it a day and we planned to meet up later. We missed their company but there was so much to see and do at the zoo that it all worked out.

Here's a picture I took of the harbour while we were exploring the zoo. Isn't it absolutely gorgeous in Sydney?!

Ben & I in front of the gorgeous Sydney backdrop. You may be wondering why Caroline isn't in the picture. Well...

she slept...

and slept...

and slept!

She eventually woke up and got to enjoy more of the zoo.

We had a wonderful time and the Taronga Zoo was absolutely gorgeous! I highly recommend it even though they don't have any epic crocodiles like Rex.

The next day Kirsty met up with us at our hotel and we took a bus to world famous Bondi Beach. The weather looked less than stellar, but we knew we'd have a great time anyway.

Some menacing looking weather in the background, huh? Luckily it lurked behind us but for the most part, we stayed perfectly dry.

We walked along the gorgeous scenic pathway along the beaches, starting at Bondi. It was so much fun! Kirsty was an incredible tour guide and we had a blast. Mark and the girls met us along the way and we all ducked into a beer garden for lunch. (Ben was in Heaven! Remember, he just came from the desert where they weren't allowed to have alcohol!)

After lunch, we set our toddlers loose after the seagulls. The girls had a great time running around and playing.

Caroline & Adelaide, playing with twigs they found. The twigs, in typical toddler fashion, were the most interesting objects in the world to the girls.

Addy with her twigs. Isn't she beautiful?

Me & Kirsty!

The girls weren't exactly cooperating with our attempts to take a picture!

Sadly, it was time to say goodbye to Mark, Kirsty and the girls. Our time together had come to an end! I think we all played it off well, but it was sad saying goodbye. Mark and Kirsty are great friends and well... I'm never good at goodbyes. But they invited us to visit them when they move to Perth, Australia shortly and that made saying goodbye a tiny bit easier! I know Benjamin will probably be pretty busy with work, but Caroline and I are definitely planning to visit later this year!

We were pretty worn out from the beach, but we managed to do some souvenir shopping. We shopped all over Sydney, including at the Queen Victoria Building, which is gorgeous! The QVB's construction was finished in 1898 and it's quite impressive. It even has underground tunnels that take you to other shopping hubs around the city. That satisfied the shopper in me and the explorer in Benjamin! Here's my favorite picture of the QVB, taken in 1900. It still looks exactly the same... just surrounded by a metropolis instead of horse-drawn buggies.

Not only was the QVB amazing, but the things inside of it were too! The mosaic tile work, the railing, the huge (32 feet tall and 8,000lbs!) clocks hanging... incredible! The only thing I didn't like was the letter Queen Elizabeth II wrote that is behind glass. The letter was written 24 years ago and the Queen requested it be kept sealed and unread until 2085. Why did I find that irritating? Because I'm one of the most inquisitive people you'll ever meet and the fact that I will probably not find out what is written in that letter in my lifetime is frustrating. I mean, I'll be 104 if I'm alive when it's read and I'll probably be so senile that I won't even care. Queen Elizabeth II, why did you do this to me? On the off chance my mental faculties and health are still in tact in 2085, that letter had better be amazing. Amazing.

After lots of looking throughout Sydney, I had finally decided what souvenir I wanted -- a pair of authentic, Australian-made, Australian-sheepskin Ugg boots. I don't care what you say, they are comfortable. And mine are pretty darn cute! Can't wait to wear them... err, but I'll have to since people would question my sanity and fashion choices if I wore them in Guam. But once I get back to the States, I'm rocking them.

After the shopping trip, we made our way to China town for dinner. You just can't beat the food there -- it's delicious! (Even if you can't get Sesame Chicken and Fried Rice.)

Caroline was not a fan of China Town's food, so we got her some french fries. She was pretty pumped up about that and we got a pretty cute video of her eating fries and dancing:

We relaxed, worn out from our full day and got a good night's rest.

The next morning we slept in a little and then, since our plane wasn't leaving until the evening, we had a whole day to hang out in Darling Harbour. The weather had cooled some and we got to finally wear the sweaters we had packed. There was a gorgeous carousel next to the water and we thought Caroline might enjoy it. Keyword, might. The last time we rode one was a disaster though -- the things nightmares are made of to be exact. Here's a visual refresher:

Caroline was literally shaking with fear. And I was beginning to question my judgment as a parent.

But I'm happy to report that round 2 went much, much better.

Okay, so she wasn't very animated, but she wasn't trembling.

She waved at Dada.

And look, she smiled! Told you she liked it! As we left, she said "Again, again!" with tears, the way only a toddler can. By the way, that carousel is 118 years old and each horse was hand carved from wood. It runs by steam engine and is one of the only remaining carousels in the world to operate with it's original bearings and one of only a handful left from the 19th century. Pretty amazing, huh? Imagine how many children, in 118 years, have enjoyed that carousel. I think that's pretty magical.

We stopped at a Tapas lounge for lunch on the harbour but as you can see, Caroline was pretty worn out.

We enjoyed a fantastic lunch and within time, Caroline woke up and guess what she ate. Go ahead, take one guess and then scroll down....

Yep, fries. Her diet at home is not like this, I promise.

Here she is, posing in front of her favorite restaurant.

After eating, she caught me putting on "yipstick" and begged me to put some on her. "Mama, peeeeeeas, yipstick? Mama, I yipstick? Peas pease peas?"

Seriously, you just don't get any cuter than that.

While Caroline played in the grass, belly full of fries and lips "yipsticked," Benjamin and I took a couple of last snapshots.

Afterward, it was time to go back to the hotel to pick up our bags and head to the airport. We found a cute stuffed Kangaroo toy for Caroline, deemed the trip a success and prepared for the flight home. Sitting in the plane, with the AC turned on and afterglow of our amazing trip eminating, we looked at each other and there was a silent, new understanding between us. We love Sydney. We love Australia.