The Holidays in Australia

The Holidays in Australia

I’m start off by saying; I like Christmas in Australia.

A of all) decorations are kept to a minimum. The Government paid for banners on the light posts say Happy Christmas and are decorated in all sorts of colors not just red and green

B of all) Things stay open on Christmas eve and some stuff stays open on Christmas! It’s nice because not everyone celebrates the holiday!

C of all) The weather is better down here!

OK so the weather on Christmas sucked but it wasn’t too bad on the eve. Chris and I ferried the day before to Manly, walked along the beach there and had a great dinner at a small microbrewery. On the eve we visited Bondi beach (a haven for surfers), walked along the harbor, ate at an Oyster Restaurant (I think oysters are wasted on me, that’s my new conclusion) and went to the fireworks! That’s right people, on the eve they have fireworks! I enjoyed them! It was really nice to see so many people out with their families or friends and at all the different bars and cafes. The other interesting thing about Christmas in Australia… for some reason it’s a big thing to wear santa hats or antlers. I don’t know why but for two days they all do it!

Christmas for me was another story. Chris left that morning so I made the long trek with all my stuff over to my hostel in the pouring rain. I probably should have hopped in a cab but I had time to kill before I could check in. After I decided to go to a movie! My mom and I usually go to the movies on Christmas and have been doing that for years so it seemed fitting. I checked the times and was on my way, when I got to the theater I was met by a HUGE line to buy tickets! The movies are packed in Australia on Christmas! Due to the long line I missed the movie and time I wanted so I bought a ticket for a later one (BTW you are assigned a seat here!) and sat in a coffee shop and read my book to take up the time. I saw American Hustle which I did enjoy but was a little lost at times.

Now Boxing Day, that is an interesting day here. I guess Boxing Day has something to do with a Cricket match, I really have no clue, but it’s a national holiday and everyone goes nuts on shopping. I have never done Black Friday in the states but I have done it in Australia. Just the night before I walked through the Queen Victoria Building which is an old beautiful building full of shops and it was empty. The next day, it was packed with lines coming out of each store. It was absolutely insane! Before I attempted to shop I walked along the Harbour Bridge and snapped a bunch of photos of the opera house. After the attempted shopping I did a three hour free walking tour of the city. It was great! I learned a ton of history about Australia and Sydney and saw several new parts.

My last day in Sydney was another diving day. I took the ferry bright and early over to Manly and dove at Shelly Beach. I did two dives and on the first one there were some divers who are more inexperienced than me (crazy I know!). They had to do some skills when we went down and didn’t know too much so it felt kinda nice to feel a bit more experienced. On both dives we saw a bunch of wobbegong sharks, an eagle ray (huge sting ray), at one point we saw a sergeant baker fish with another fish sticking out of it’s mouth. May favorite was a large blue grouper who followed me for awhile and seemed to want to play a little. All in all another good diving day. There are still a few things I want to do in Sydney so hopefully I’ll have time at the end of the trip.

I do have some really great shots of the opera house but not on my computer yet so hopefully I'll get those up soon.