Tack Now!

This was the first Saturday that we were both in our new accommodations and since it was Saturday, why not sleep in? We both woke up around 10 A.M. and got ready for the day. It started off with a trip down to Mackers (A.K.A McDonalds) for their so called ‘Wi-Fi’. As always, it was packed! We’re not really sure why it’s always packed when the average value meal cost over $8.50. As we searched the room for a couple of abandoned chairs, the only ones available were two in the corner that had trash all over them. As we headed over, Lauren remembered that there was seating upstairs. As we walked away, something caught Riley’s eye… a monopoly piece just sitting on the table! He gets excited about those pieces because usually he finds free food on them, which in Sydney for a college kid is like finding buried treasure! So he headed over to see what it was. For obvious reasons, Lauren didn’t want to sit at that table, but she didn’t mind me picking up the piece. Turns out it was an instant win of a snapfish photobook which got Lauren very excited! We headed upstairs to find no one seated in this lobby and it was actually nice and spacious up there! We pulled out our computers and started the connecting process. We both usually have trouble trying to connect and for this reason we try to avoid it. Once one of us finally gets internet the other one loses it and vice versa. Today it was the same old story, but we had a mission of finding directions to get to the Sailing Club BBQ. The Uni of Sydney Sailing Club facebook had a few directions on how to get to the BBQ but we just wanted to make sure we knew exactly where we had to go. We figured we would take the free shuttle bus to Circular Quay (or rather the Harbor) then catch a ferry to this so called Rose Bay. And that’s just exactly what we did! We found the right stop for the bus and then asked some information guy which ferry to catch to get to Rose Bay. He headed us in the right direction to Wharf 4 where we encountered a slightly grumpy lady for purchasing our tickets. Regardless we were able to purchase student concession tickets that amounting to us saving a whole adult ticket! So instead of it costing $22 for two adult round trip tickets it costs us $11 which was very exciting! A few minutes, and a couple good views of the Harbor and Opera House, later we were off on our first ferry ride. We chose to sit on the back of the ferry that was open and we caught a much stronger gust of wind than we expected. Boats on the harbor don’t really look like they travel that fast, but once you’re on the boat man, those things fly! We had two stops before our final destination but it gave us even more time to soak up the view and sunshine!

A legit pirate ship?

Mama - this one would be a really good one for you to paint, but really hard I know.

 As we were approaching Rose Bay we tried our best to scope out where this BBQ was taking place since we were an hour late at this point. We spotted a place that looked like it was populated with a BBQ so we headed in that direction. We passed this awesome park which we agreed to revisit afterwards. We came upon a sailing club and figured we were in the right spot, especially when Lauren started to recognize some of the exchange students from our classes and events. Starving at this point we grabbed some chips and realized that more snags (sausages) were being made. We ambled over to a group of girls who turned out to be Australian and started some casual conversation. They informed us that no one had eaten yet actually, meaning we weren’t late after all! Relieved we patiently waited for the snags and continued talking with these girls about our US experiences and their Australian ones. They advised us on a few places to visit and things to do while here. Soon enough we were enjoying our snags (Lauren’s soaked in ketchup and BBQ sauce) and sat down with another group of people, guys this time. There was a German guy, Canadian guy, and an Australian. Both the Canadian and Australian guy had sailed before so they mentioned taking us out for a ride after we were done eating! We were both excited about that, especially since the Canadian guy named Ian did live up to his promise to take us out on the water. Lucky for us we were the last group to get to go out on the water also! Here is the video (which will come later) that we took while on the water, along with a few pictures.

 The ride was absolutely terrifying for Lauren, but Riley got risky and sat on the outer edge of the boat to really lean with the wind. Being that close to the water, going that fast was something else, but it was an unforgettable experience at the same time to say that we have now been sailing on the Sydney Harbor! Once we landed back on shore we helped pull the sail boat in and then went to dry off. With the afternoon turning into evening we decided it was time to pack up and say our goodbyes. As we were passing the wonderful park that we saw earlier we couldn’t help but stop in and act like little kids again. First we went on a seesaw that was actually two benches which we liked, and then this other contraption that was so much fun but super dangerous at the same time. It was an elevated circular platform that had a bar in the middle connected to the sides. Weird thing is that this platform could move in any direction, front, back, side to side and actually pretty dramatically too, not just a little move. I think the main goal is to see which of the two people lasts the longest on it (considering the name of the equipment was rodeo). Not to boost or anything but I, Lauren did last the longest! A couple of elderly folks were off to the side yelling faster, faster and Riley got tempted into trying that, knocking himself off in the process. We took a quick ride on a swing that ran down a clothesline type of deal, which was probably a lot more fun when we were little. Anyways, it was time to catch the ferry back, get a few good pictures of the Opera House and Harbor Bridge as we came back in to dock then to quickly catch the free bus back into the city before it stopped running for the day. Earlier in the day we had been invited to join a guy that we had met at the Catholic Society meet and greet to come to his place and play a few board games. Running a little behind we hustled towards Coles to pick up ingredients for unstuffed peppers which we made in record time. Then we hustled back to the same spot on Broadway Street to meet Neil at his apartment. Turned out to not be a game night with other people, but rather just the three of us so that he could acquaint us with the games first before we played with his friends. Kinda sounds a little intimidating, I know. The games were new to us, so for that we were thankful, and probably some of the best games we have ever played. Fun Fact: Did you know that board games actually have an Oscar type of deal and can be awarded Board Game of the Year! Yeah, I didn’t know that either, and turned out to be something that Neil was very much in to. He introduced us to the Board Game of the Year for 2004: Ticket to Ride and then 2010: Dix it. Both were super fun to play, so I can see why they won the awards! We’re already looking forward to the next time and getting to meet his friends. Lauren is also excited to introduce her family to these games as well!