People always wonder how I have cousins elsewhere, and that's how. While I've met most of my extended family members, I never had the chance to meet my two cousins in Australia... until just recently! (I've met their parents a few times when they visited the U.S.)
When my cousin, Julie, told us about her upcoming nuptials, we all decided it would be a great excuse to finally visit family and Australia. Working around the wedding date, I scheduled our 2-week vacation to the Land Down Under. Since I was trying to make the most of our trip, we decided to hit up three main locations: Sydney, Hamilton Island (Great Barrier Reef) and Melbourne.
Micah, my sister and I went on the 1st leg together (while my mom and several other family members went to Vietnam first). For me, I was debating whether or not to add Hamilton Island to the roster due to timing but I figured it's now or never to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef. Humans, stop destroying the world.
1st Stop: Sydney
The Basics
Time there: 2 nights
Where we stayed: Capital Square Hotel (right next to Chinatown)
Highlight: The diversity!
There were moments when I would step into a building in Sydney and thought I was in Tokyo! Kaiten sushi, ramen houses, Japanese cakes, matcha ice cream, the list goes on and on!
Since there is such great Asian food in Sydney, we did eat a lot of Asian food while we were there.
We landed at Syndey airport around 7 a.m. and made our way to the hotel. After freshening up, we decided to head over to Marigold Dim Sum, which was right around the corner from our hotel, to get some food. Marigold was probably some of the freshest and tastiest dim sum I've had.
After getting food into our belly and perusing our map (I love using real maps when I travel to a new place. It allows you to get a lay of the land without depending on a cellphone) we took the subway up to The Rocks area where the ferry terminals.
My favorite area was The Rocks neighborhood of Sydney. The old stone streets are so quaint and cute!
The area is also going through development woes as well.
We then made our way down to King Street Wharf where we stopped off at another brewpub. We took a breather, ate some fish and chips and took in the Sydney sun from the wharf.
Instead of taking a train back to our hotel, since we were already half-way back, we just walked back to the hotel.
Since we were all jetlagged we ended up crashing that night after Micah I couldn't get into a club because I had sandals on.
On our second full day, Linda and I started our day off with breakfast at Single Origin in Surry Hills. This place had great reviews on Yelp and I wanted to see what all the fuss with flat whites were.
The place, while small, is efficient and nicely decorated.
I got the beet hummus and Linda got their famous banana bread with cappuccino butter (or something like that).
My beet hummus on toast was art on plate and it was perfection. This beet hummus was creamy and earthy and once paired with the avocado and fresh ricotta, it was scrumptious. I want to recreate this beet hummus at home! Give me the recipe if you have it.
And about these flat whites. Why don't we drink those here? It's more coffee than a latte and frothier. I fell in love with flat whites after drinking this one.
After breakfast, we made it up to Manly Beach with the help of Tiffany (friend from Houston who was also in Sydney at the time) and her friend. While it was a COLD and cloudy day, we still jumped into the ocean because the waves were so enticing.
The brewery is situated right across the street from the ferry landing that takes you back to Sydney.
After enjoying the little bit of sun and brews, we took the ferry from Manly Beach back to the main city—we even lucked out and got a free ride back because the ticket machines were broken!
The ferry is great way to see the Sydney Opera House, which in my opinion isn't that interesting.
To make our way back to the hotel, Micah and I went through the Botanical Gardens.
It ended up being kind of dreary the second night, so we had dinner at a nearby Thai place and called it night before out next city!
2nd Stop: Hamilton Island
The Basics
Time there: 2 nights
Where we stayed: Air bnb condo - Poinciana 106
Highlight: Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef (obviously!)
Tip: There aren't really any hotels here, just apartments/units for rent.
Hamilton Island is an interesting place because it's a privately owned and developed island. There is NO FREE wifi on this island. Really. And there are only a handful of actual vehicles on the island, the rest of the transportation is done by golf carts/buggys. I love this island life!
The condo we rented was a great 2br/2ba unit in an older complex but it still had a great view of Catseye Beach. This was our view:
The unit also came with a brand new buggy! Everywhere on the island you'll see plenty of white cockatoos and wallabys. There's a harbor area where the main market, bars and restaurants are located.
On our first day there, we hung out on the beach, played some beach volleyball and we did get to do some hiking up Passage Peak (about 740 feet above sea level). The hike is a good 45-minute hike to the peak, with the last section that is quite steep.
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| Catseye Beach looking towards Passage Peak to the right |
We were all sweaty and exhausted after tackling the hill. Whew.
We actually did this hike as the 2016 U.S. election was being called. By the time we came down and got back to the condo and turned on our TV, Donald Trump had won the presidency. That happened and we didn't even know it for hours. That's how disconnected we were!
My sister opted for the diving and Micah and I chose to just snorkel. If you've never dived before, have no fear, they'll train you for a few hours the day before your trip.
This was Linda dive training (with ze Geramsn) the day before our boat trip. That background though.
I can't recommend this excursion group enough! The trip was amazing and the service was top notch! You get fed and they'll answer any questions you have about the fish and corals.
I had an underwater camera on my head but my hair kept getting in the way so in a lot of my video clips, you see some fish, some coral and a whole lot of hair.
The chance to swim among beautiful fish and corals was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me and I enjoyed ever bit of it!
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| Having an adult beverage at One Tree Hill |
We also got a big ass plate of seafood for one of our meals. It was glorious. Do you know what baybugs are? They're like mini lobsters!
If I had more time, I would've booked at least 3-4 nights on the island. It's that relaxing and beautiful. I will see you again Hamilton Island...
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