2.9-2.16.2016

Tuesday–
A day of goodbye’s…our first experience saying farewell to our new friends that we met on the road. We imagine it will be our first of many and just as always, saying goodbye is never an easy thing to do. We cleaned the room and made sure that is was ready to go for Linley and whoever her next guests may be. We were on a mission to find the perfect parting gift for the family, so we headed to town and fueled up on miso soup and a couple sushi rolls! David and I were searching for something personal that they could always remember us by. We found a small globe that I used as a card, mapped out where we met and left behind a fews words that expressed our gratitude for the kindness they showed us during our stay. They truly went above and beyond! The Lee’s also enjoyed tea, so we found a special box and filled it with an assortment of different flavored tea’s. Then we added our favorite box of good ol’e American Oreo’s, milks favorite cookie.

Our train was scheduled to leave at 7:50pm, Linley and Bin insisted on leaving work early so they could take us to the train station. Originally, we planned on going to the city a couple hours early to grab a bite to eat before the long train ride ahead. But, to our surprise they planned a farewell dinner to send us off with full stomachs and smiling faces. After all the wonderful home cooked Chinese meals that they spoiled us with over the past few days, they chose an American style meal for our last supper. They prepared juicy steaks, delicious lamb chops, a fresh green salad, and just to top it off they added an egg-tofu dish and shrimp dumplings! Let’s just say, the whole week we ate like kings and queens… thanks again Linley!
 It was finally time for our departure and we were off to the train station where we said our official good-byes before boarding our 11 hour and 3 minute train ride to Sydney.

  Over the past few days we were able to experience the exciting city of Melbourne and spent time with a lovely family. It helped us realize how important it is to embrace what each new day can bring and to thrive off the unexpected experiences. Fate truly brought us all together, but we must keep moving forward to see what the rest of this beautiful country has to offer…until we meet again!

Wednesday and Thursday–

After a decent nights sleep on the train we arrived to Sydney Central Station at 7:15am.

  
Thankfully, we only had to walk a couple blocks until we saw the Maze Backpackers hotel sign.

   With wishful thinking, we entered and asked the receptionist if there was anyway that we could check in early. She pointed to the large sign that said, “Check-in time, 2:00pm“…we took that as a firm “NO“. We both felt a bit delirious due to the lack of quality sleep on our overnight train ride. We were in need of a serious re-charge and off in the distance, we spotted the Kaz Cafe, perfect! We sat down and ordered a hot breakfast and enjoyed some much needed caffeine.

  After spending two hours at the cafe, we figured it was time to move on. So we headed toward the city park that we passed near the train station earlier that morning. We found some shade under a beautiful tree and rested our eyes 🙂

 David and I caught a second wind and found entertainment people watching for the next five hours. While sitting on our blanket in the middle of the park, we became fascinated with all the commerce that surrounded us. We saw all walks of life… fellow backpackers, individuals living in tents, business men rushing to their next meeting, girls on holiday taking endless amounts of “selfies”, and families strolling by with far too much luggage.

We knew at this exact moment how fortunate we were to be able to just sit back and relax as the hustle and bussle of life was surrounding us.
   Before we knew it 2:00pm rolled around, so we headed back and checked into our room. We dropped our bags on the floor and caught up on some much needed sleep, in a real bed. We woke up to our stomachs growling at 6:00pm…when its time to eat, it’s time to eat!!!

We found a perfect Vietnamese restaurant nearby.

  We started off with a salad that had the most delicious sesame dressing and then I set my eyes on a colorful bowl of vegetable ramen and David the chicken katsu.

  
  After dinner we walked up, down, right and left- taking in the vibrant night lights of the city before returning to our cozy room for the evening.

 

Thursday–Bondi Beach, Bondi Icebergs and the Sydney Opera House, here we come!!!!!

What an action packed day!!! As soon as we woke up we headed to the nearest bus station to make our way to Bondi Beach. I had been telling David about this special pool for weeks now and I couldn’t wait to get there!

  

We grabbed a quick lunch and headed to Bondi Icebergs. What made this saltwater pool so uniquely beautiful were the rolling waves that literally crashed right into the pool. We spent the next couple hours there soaking up the sun and enjoying the views.

  
  

Longing to feel the sand between our toes we took a walk along the crescent shaped beach. We found our perfect rock to sit on where and watched the happy dogs leap into the water after their favorite ball! Life Is Good!

  
  

Handmade yogurt and sushi rolls were our snacks of choice before we boarded the bus to the Sydney Opera House. As the sun was setting, we arrived at the most unbelievable harbor that was filled with beautiful boats, busy cafes, live music, waterfront restaurants, and cobblestone streets in every direction. In search of the perfect view, we headed toward the iconic viewpoint from the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

  

As we wound up the streets we finally found the footpath that took us across the bridge.

  

We made it… and captured our pictures of the stunning building from above.

As we continued our walk along the bridge, we enjoyed the breathtaking skyline view of the city.

We made it back to our side of town in search for dinner. We ended up at what we thought was just an ordinary pizza place where I found myself pleasantly surprised by the most delicious gyro! With happy stomachs, it was time for bed.

Friday and Saturday–

We didn’t want to lose our key deposit for checking out late, so we were out of the doors at 10:00amsharp!

  

Coffee and breakfast at the nearby Kaz Cafe, then we loaded up at the local grocery store Coles, for some snacks to take with us on the long train ride. We sat on the bench in the park for one last time before boarding our train at 2:42pm. Two days of fun in Sydney…WOW, this city did not disappoint!!

We were now making our way toward the most eastern point of Australia. In order to get there our train was scheduled to drop us off in the city of Casino, 12 hours and 15 minutes away. Once we arrived in Casino, we unloaded off the train and boarded onto our connecting 1 hour and 40 minute coach ride to the coast.

  
  

The coach dropped us off in Lennox Head, a true hidden gem and our home for the next 8 days :). The towns motto is “Another Place…Another Pace“, which describes this magical seaside town to absolute perfection.

We arrived at 4:00am and our AirB&B host made arrangements to pick us up at 7:00am. At this point it was still dark outside, so we walked to the main strip of town, which only stretched about a quarter mile long.

On the way we passed a gentlemen our age who was roaming the street, waiting for the beers he consumed to wear off! As we carried on a conversation with him, we soon found out that he was a local that owned a clothing store only a few steps away. So knowing that we all had some time to kill he opened up his store and invited us in for a personal shopping tour and bottled water. We appreciated the company and conversation, said our goodbye’s and then walked across the street to watch the incredible sunrise over the sea.

Resorting back to some of my favorite childhood memories, I chased after the baby crabs as their tiny legs scattered across the sand. It reminded me of being young and not having a care in the world.
  

As the sun rose over the sea and cliffs in the distance, we embraced each other in silence, thankful for this once in a lifetime moment we have for now and will keep forever.

We headed to The Bakery Cafe, where our host planned to pick us up. While we waited, we had a BLT on fresh baked bread.

She arrived a tad late but made up for it with a quick tour of the town. We then drove up the hill overlooking the Seven Mile Beach to her home, and our guest house! We were greeted by her son and husband who gave us a quick tour of the property.

  
  
We debated on staying awake for the remainder of the day, but as soon as we laid down we both passed out until evening.

David and I woke up starving and were so thankful for the stocked kitchenette that had cereal, milk, bread, butter, jam, fruit, coffee and tea. The day of travel between Sydney and Lennox Head was exhausting, yet relaxing, and we were both so happy to be here for the next 8 days. We found our spot, exactly the type of place we have been looking for….a relaxing little town, right on the beach!
HAPPY VALENTINES DAY–

I woke up to David saying he would be returning shortly. It brought a smile to my face as I watched him ride away on his bike wearing his helmet, safety first!

About an hour later he returned with three breakfast sandwiches for me to choose from, orange juice and cold ginger beer. Breakfast delivery…how did I get so lucky? We enjoyed our ocean view over breakfast and coffee.

Then David surprised me with a beautiful card, single red rose, and told me that we would be enjoying a wonderful dinner together later that evening…he still remembers how important the small things are to me.

We relaxed the rest of the day until it was time to head into town for dinner. We hopped on our bikes and flew down the hill into the quaint town below, taking in the beautiful coastal views along the way.
 

We arrived to the waterfront restaurant Beef & Beach, where we were seated at our private corner table, that had the most incredible view.

  

  

We looked at the menu and decided that since we were celebrating our first Valentine’s Day abroad, it had to memorable. So we splurged a little as we ordered the Master Kobe Wagyu that had an impressive 9-10+ marble score (it’s literally the highest grade beef in the entire world)! There were other Wagyu cuts of beef that had lower marble scores, but we had to try the best one possible, like we’ve always said “Go BIG or Go HOME!!!”. (Australia is where they actually raise some of the Wagyu cattle, which is shipped directly from Japan as a calf and then grain & beer fed, massaged, and actually sung to for over 500+ days.)

We knew we were in for a treat as our beautiful Porterhouse arrived to the table accompanied by truffled shallots and mushrooms, au gratin potatoes and asparagus spears. As we savored each delicious bite, we knew that it was 100% worth every single penny. The fat around the piece of meat literally…I mean literally, melted in your mouth like butter and the steak itself was beyond tender. We both agreed it was the best cut of meat either one of has ever tasted, that says a lot knowing David and I worked for two high caliber steak houses.
  

We finished our evening exchanging stories with an older couple about their world trip they had taken years ago, and then took a stroll along the beach.

We returned to our guest house where we had a chocolate croissant and a slice of jellied toast….its all about balance 🙂

To say the least, this very special day will be a hard one to beat… I am truly blessed to have such a wonderful man by my side as we continue to pursue our dreams together.    
Monday and Tuesday–

After making our morning phone calls to the family we were off to check out Lake Ainsworth, the nearby Tea Tree Lake. We found a shaded spot under the trees and then took a dip into the dark “tea” colored water.

This lake has healing minerals infused in it from the roots of the surrounding Tea Trees, creating its dark color and abilities to do wonders for your hair and skin. We were also told that centuries ago it was used as a sacred birthing lake. After the bike ride in the mid-day heat, it was just what we needed to cool off!

  

We watched the locals sail on the water, and then we headed back to town for some fish and chips for lunch.

Before heading back to our wonderful, Sea View guest house, we stopped in the IGA grocery store to pick up some late night snacks ;). I cant wait to hit the beach tomorrow.

Beach day, accomplished!!! We watched the kite surfers glide across the waves and then headed to the local Chinese restaurant for dinner.