Sydney

Well, today we are leaving the Gold Coast and driving back to Brisbane to fly to Sydney.

Not much going on today – we left the hotel, after a very nice, peaceful stay, and had an uneventful drive to the Brisbane Airport. Check-in went well and we made it eventually (security was an issue but I was better prepared this time) to the restaurant which was near our gate that had some fairly low, but comfortable chairs so we could relax prior to our flight.

It was interesting while we were sitting there that there was a flight to Mackay, Australia leaving from our gate 46 prior to our departure. Mackay is Andrew’s mother’s maiden name and Andrew’s middle name. Interesting it is a city with an airport in Australia on the east coast!

Like our last few flights, we did not have window seats as for some reason the accessible seat selection on Virgin Australia airlines are an aisle and middle seat – so no pictures of us flying however here are some pictures I took at the airport! The Virgin Australia side is currently going through some upgrades such as the security area (where you cannot take pictures anyways) and it will be nice once they get the new x ray machines like they had in Sydney and we have at YVR for the bags so you do not have to take electronic equipment out!

We had a pretty uneventful flight into the Sydney airport, other than we were delayed in landing and had to circle for about 30 minutes due to incoming weather. Once on the ground, we ended up being about 45 minutes late landing. We managed to get to the baggage claim just fine – it was ironic as we had been to this baggage claim area already in the Sydney airport when we were flying Qantas and I was looking for a suitcase before we departed (pre-security) and found that the Sydney airport does not have any stores pre-security so the information person suggested going to the Virgin Australia Arrivals area as there was a store there. It did not have what I was looking for. No issues! However it came in handy as when we needed to find the shuttle, we were aware of the walk between the two domestic terminals and where the shuttle stop was located!

The Moxy Hotel, which is a lower end Marriott brand hotel, that we are staying at overnight, sent a shuttle for us and it eventually arrived. We got to the hotel and got checked in. We had been “upgraded” from an accessible queen room to an airport view queen room – not accessible and it was tiny! No idea why they did that however it was only one night so no bother. I did notice there was an accessible room on our floor though so it was a bit weird.

We have stayed at a bunch of Moxy Hotels in Europe previously however this one takes the cake on “modern”! Yes, the room is small – not much space for a table and chairs – so they hung them on the wall! The sink for the washroom was outside in the bedroom and the toilet and shower were in their own room. Half the window area was a wall and the other half we could see the main runway of SYD airport which was cool!

As I had left a bag at a drop spot about 2 blocks away, while we traveled up north, Andrew and I then went and picked it up, also to get some exercise! The program I used was called Bounce and it cost me $50 AUD to store the bag for 2 weeks. Much cheaper than paying $80 AUD to check it each time on 2 flights! As Andrew indicated, I have no idea why I have an extra bag. When we get to Singapore, as we are traveling Business Class and the extra bag will not be an issue, I will delve into how my baggage seemed to have children and why I had to purchase an extra bag from Amazon.com.au when traveling! I know part of the reason why is I am traveling with gifts for Japan and the luggage weights, which was a surprise to me, are lower here in Australia (20 kg vs 23 kg), did require me to move some stuff around, however I am wearing all my clothes! What is going on puzzles me!

Here are some pictures of our room and the van that picked us up:

After we got back from the storage store (which was basically a 7-11 type store which stored bags securely) we hit the sack as tomorrow is a BIG day! We are flying on Singapore Airlines (new airline) on a 380 Airbus (plane that I saw being built) to Singapore (new country)!

Let’s go!

I woke up pretty early this morning to a VERY foggy harbour! The picture I took from the window did not work out so here is a different one that shows just how foggy it got compared to the bridge which the hotel was under. Apparently the ferries have issues running in the fog. By about 9 am it had lifted though and Andrew and I were able to go down for breakfast and we even snagged a table outside on the deck! Here is the picture of the fog along with some other pictures of this beautiful hotel –

We then relaxed for the rest of the day – I did some travel scouting for our future travels along with found out how to store luggage while we go north for 2 weeks and Andrew followed the Whitecaps, his favourite soccer team, while they played the LA FC soccer team and WON! At that point in time, and on a high, we departed for our Captain Cook Sunset Dinner Cruise that was leaving from Wharf 6 at Circular Quay!

Then we departed on the Captain Cook ship – which was 3 levels high – however with no elevator! So while we had purchased a more expensive dinner that was being served on the upper decks, we were given a window table on the main deck instead to watch the world go by and eat our dinner! Lets get sightseeing!

Our Dinner cruise is now over and the sun is starting to set and it is a beautiful WARM night for a walk so we decided as we were half way there, to walk over to the Opera House and take a peek at what we could see! The last time I went to the Opera House with Karen all we could do was walk around the bottom level as there was no way of getting upstairs – they had not build the elevator yet – they had escalators but her manual wheelchair would not fit on the escalator and also if I remember correctly they did not want us to try! So I was interested in seeing what was available now 27 years later!

Well, that was quite an evening! The Sydney Harbour is immense with so many little bays and then the islands in it too! It was awesome to sit and watch the world go by as we ate dinner. However for me the highlight of the evening was our impromptu walk to the Sydney Opera House – I had not planned on walking that far as I was still having some issues with pain, however after sitting for a couple of hours on the boat I was motivated to walk! As I said above, my goals were no that high, no pun intended – I was pretty aware that when the Opera House was built, which started in 1959 and opened in 1973, they were NOT thinking about wheelchair access! I was also aware that it was renovated in the mid-90’s as Karen and I were there in 1998 and at that time we were unable to get upstairs.

I was quite surprised when approaching the Opera House and its grand bank of stairs, that there was a sign for wheelchair access under the stairs, so we went and explored it of course! Well, sure enough, they have now put in what I would call a “fancy” service elevator which takes you up to the main floor of the Opera House. Yes the escalators are still there and I saw the sign still that no wheelchairs are allowed. I wish I had taken a picture of the elevator though as it did not have a ceiling which was kind of interesting! It was basically a nice elevator that was a platform with buttons on the side to go up and down a floor. Also on the ground floor where we entered were the appropriate washrooms that the Australian government now requires for accessibility.

So we went up the elevator and it was obvious that a concert was going on at the Opera House. The lobby was like the QE theatre with a coat check and employees in various positions guarding entrances – where I wanted to go was to the outside plaza that was at the top of the steps that I could not climb! But NO. There is a sign on the door and a rope across saying that during performances these doors are locked. Now, that did not make sense to me – I just took the elevator up and was in the lobby – other could do that – I guess they just do not want the general public coming through these doors and having to manage that volume. Fair enough. However the elevator is so I can get OUT so I can see from the Plaza as I cannot climb the 50 or so steps! I politely explained this to one of the ushers who was a bit confused, but got his manager and then a security guard and they let Andrew and me out onto the plaza and stood at the door until we returned.

It was SO NICE to be up that high! Beautiful view just as the sun was going down! As we were out there I saw people go up to the doors and try and get in despite the signs and get turned around, so I tried to time our return to the doors where they were waiting for us without being detected however someone did follow us and they were turned away – they tried to say they were with us but the guard knew better than that! I felt bad, however there really should be a better way to manage accessibility to such a popular tourist attraction than what we ran into. I suspect if there had not been any events going on in the building, that access to the elevator would not have been available.

Andrew and I then walked all the way back to the hotel around Circular Quay and the base of the bridge to the other side. It was very nice with the warm breezes of the evening. The sky was also pretty clear and I got a good shot of the moon! When we passed by the old buildings next to the Overseas Terminal, we noticed that what we thought was just seating prior, were actually 3 fairly high end restaurants that had their seating on the dock – very European like! Reminded me of being in Rome but the view was MUCH better in Sydney!

Back at our hotel we had a nightcap on the pier as we had 2 free drink coupons that the hotel had given us prior to retiring for the evening. Tomorrow we are going to the airport and flying to Cairns! Looking forward to returning to the north east part of Australia!

After another delicious breakfast in the restaurant, I contacted the daughter, Priya, of Mr. Dass and his wife, who I wanted to meet up with. Andrew and I then departed to visit the Markets at Circular Quay on the way to the Metro station to take the train to Kingswood, which is a suburb of Sydney. I would estimate, based on the distance, if we left from Waterfront Station in downtown Vancouver, to be fairly far into Surrey, where we needed to go. Priya had given me directions which seemed pretty simple – get on the metro at Circular Quay and change at the Central Station (where we got off the Indian Pacific Train where there also is a Metro station) and then stay on the Metro to Kingswood. I was trying to type this into Google Maps so I could follow it however to no avail! I then resorted to the nice bellmen who knew me as they had to put the ramp down for me whenever I came back to the hotel to get us sorted out.

The bellman printed out a route for me and said something in a fairly heavy Indian accent that I did not understand, about train servicing work. The route looked fine to me and so into my purse it went and we were off to check out the Markets!

We walked around to the Circular Quay again and up some of the side streets to check out the market stalls. It is a VERY well organized market that happens on weekends in Sydney. I was looking for 2 things – a lanyard for my phone as my current one had broken and also flowers to take Mrs. Dass who was in the hospital. I was successful on my 2nd item only – which was awesome! I found a vendor who hand crafted paper flowers for wrists, headbands and chokers! Of course I bought a headband for myself and I bought a wrist band for Mrs. Dass. I thought it would be a perfect “flower” gift for someone in the hospital who cannot have a lot of flowers! I have included a picture of the headband that I bought which the wristband matched so you can see how beautiful the artistry is!

Now, as we were at Circular Quay, and I had my handy instructions from the bellman, it seemed very simple to get to the Nepean Hospital to see Mr. and Mrs. Dass again. I had heard from Priya in the morning that Mr. Dass had remembered me and was looking forward to meeting me again! We got to the station and found the lift to go upstairs to where the track was located. A station attendant actually flagged me down and asked if I needed a ramp to get onto the train, which I asked if it was level and he said yes, so then I said I thought I would be okay. Sure enough the train arrived and it was a level entrance like the Skytrain however the gap was about twice as wide! So basically I just jumped over it instead of rolling over it so my wheels would not get caught.

We rode 3 stops then changed, according to the bellman’s directions to another train. This time I was sitting next to the train map and I was plotting out all the stations that we had to go to and change trains, which were 4. We had done 1 change already. In looking at the map I realized that the instructions that Priya had sent me were MUCH more direct! So I messaged her and told her what the bellman printed out for me and she said it did not make sense. So Andrew and I got off the train and turned around, heading back a couple of stops to where we could catch the direct train like that Priya told us to take instead. That is where things fell off the rails, as the saying goes.

First, the station I chose to get off at was not wheelchair accessible! Yes, I could go up the escalator (not supposed to but hey – if I need to it is possible) however the other track we needed to change to was up STAIRS and that was a no go for me! AGAIN the station attendant asked me (these station attendants are awesome!) where I was going and I mentioned Kingswood and that is why we are trying to get on the Number 8 line. She then told us to get back on the same train in the same direction, which came again in 10 minutes and go 2 more stops and change to the Line 8 at that point as there are lifts at that station. Sounded good – however she then told me in understandable language what the bellman mentioned to me which I did not comprehend – Line 8 has track maintenance going on as it is a Saturday so the train stops about half way and we need to then get on a bus which will take an hour to get to the next station – it will be an express bus though. She had an app on her phone for helping people and I took a picture of what I was to do and then we were off – to go 2 more stations and then switch tracks to come back through this station above and onward until the bus bridge where we needed to get off.

Getting of at the station where the train stopped, Andrew and I were VERY confused as to where we were and where the bus stand was for the bus we were supposed to catch. I asked someone and they sent us to one side of the station and then that was incorrect so we walked back and at that point, Andrew asked another person and he pointed us in a different direction and then came running after us and took us up the lift and directed us to the correct bus stand as he was “horrified” he gave us incorrect information! We got onto that bus and sat down and right in front me was a screaming child! Oh joy. I just cannot get away from them! Luckily an elderly gentleman gave the child in the pram a “lolly” and everything settled down and she eventually fell asleep on our 50 minute drive along the express way. Needless to say, if Andrew and I had continued on the route that the bellman had given us, we would have been at the Nepean Hospital by now!

According to what the train attendant had shown me on her phone, the bus was going to take us to a certain train station and then we should take a different train (which also stops at this same station) back 2 stops to get to the Nepean hospital. Priya had messaged me that she would pick us up at the Kingswood station station where we were to end up, which I thought was great! As the bus came off the Highway, one of the passengers sitting across from us said to one of his kids – “see that is the Nepean Hospital” and sure enough, written as you can see below, sideways up the building it said Nepean Hospital! Skip getting on a the train going 2 stations! There was at taxi stand at the train station where the bus dropped us off and we took a taxi back instead. Enough travel on transit for that day! We left Circular Quay at 12:30pm as planned (actually a couple of minutes earlier) and were supposed to arrive at Kingswood station by 2pm. It was now 4pm! We saw a LOT of Sydney along the way however it was time to visit my friends parents!

I did let Priya know that we were in a taxi and arriving at the hospital very shortly. It is a BEAUTIFUL hospital – a public hospital like in Canada however newer. We arrived on the floor that Mrs. Dass is located and I turned the corner and ran right into PJ’s dad – just as I remembered him from 25 years ago! It was great to see him again! He is Fijian with white hair and quite statuesque looking with a big smile! He was so happy to see me and Andrew and made us feel at home right away.

Andrew remained in the very nice lounge area and had coffee with Mr. Dass while I went down to Mrs. Dass’s room and met with her and Priya along with some other relatives that were visiting, including PJ’s younger brother who is now a grown man! The last time I saw him he was about 14 years old. Like his dad and mum, along with his sister, he is also a very well known Fijian Indian musician in the Sydney area. In fact he had to leave soon for a concert after I arrived, however it was great seeing him again. I was surprised how many memories of my times with PJ came back to me when I was there – some of my memories were a bit confused from a time perspective, as they were affected by some of my treatments after my accident, however they came back nevertheless. One of the most interesting of them was the interactions with Mr. Dass and his philosophical outlook on life. He is a very well traveled and studied man and I remembered when back sitting in the lounge with Andrew and Mr. Dass, just how much PJ and his dad and I got into some discussions about people and the meaning of life as Mr. Dass had observed it around the world. It was at that time, Mr. Dass told me he had written and autobiography a few years back and would love to give me the book and he had one at home for me!

I then went and spent some more time talking to Priya and her mum, who unfortunately has the same brain cancer that PJ passed away from in 2004. Her mother is doing okay and her brain cancer was operable and she is recovering now. It was interesting as the neurosurgeon visited when I was in the room with Mrs. Dass and Priya and Mrs. Dass came to life and gave the neurosurgeon all kinds of grief about being in the hospital and wanting to go home! That is a sign of someone who is recovering in my impression! About that time Mr. Dass popped into the room then and invited us to dinner at Priya’s house. He said he had asked Andrew’s permission to ask me which I thought was amusing but awesome from a cultural perspective! I of course agree as ANY food cooked by the Dass family in my mind is AWESOME! I had one of my top 10 meals cooked for me by Mrs. Dass which was curry Dungeness Crab! Obviously not getting that down here, however their curry meals are lovely! After Mrs. Dass had her evening meal, we all climbed into a VERY small car that Priya had borrowed (trunk did not work so walker was beside me in the back and Andrew and I shared the back seat) with 3 bags of food and went to her house which was a very nice 3 bedroom house where she and her parents lived near the hospital.

A friend of Mr. Dass brought over some Kava and we took part in drinking some of it – Andrew more than me – that was his first time trying it – then Mr. Dass found a bottle of some bubbly wine that Priya had won at some point in time and Andrew opened it and we all sat down for dinner. Oh boy, I knew from the past that Fijian’s eat with their fingers. I had forgotten to tell Andrew about that. Priya did a very nice job in bringing Andrew and I forks for our food when she realized that fingers were not our style. If I had been alone I might have been okay however I had not washed my hands since the hospital! We had curry chicken and potatoes, jasmine rice and dahl. Well that is what I had! Andrew and Mr. Dass also had some other unknown and heat unknown dishes that had been prepared – breaded fish etc along with the bubbly wine. I knew that the curry chicken and potatoes was very mild as it had been fed to Mrs. Dass so it would probably be okay with me and it had no flour in it. Dahl and rice – right up my alley! It was an awesome meal and we finished it off with some VERY sweet mango’s!

It was now getting late – about 10:30 pm, so I called an Uber and we were driven an hour back to our hotel in comfort! Before leaving though Mr. Dass gave me his book and I promised to read it and keep in touch with him! It was a really inspiring and though provoking afternoon – remembering the past, their eldest son, my friend, who had passed away, Mr. Dass partially grieving the future of his wife passing away and also the life that they left behind in Fiji so they could be in Australia with their daughter. It was an experience I did not expect on this trip, but something I will treasure!

Now, tomorrow, we are going to take a sunset cruise! Also I am aware that Andrew is interested in a certain Whitecaps Soccer team and how they are going to do in the playoffs! Let’s see what happens!

Today I got up and the whole harbour was socked in with fog/clouds. It was not even worth taking a picture as it was white and you could not see anything! Good day for relaxing and recharging!

We went down to breakfast after a bit of a lie in and had yet again a wonderful breakfast buffet experience. Today they were offering smoothies and as there was another guest with Celiac they offered to make a smoothie for me at the same time. I guess they thought Andrew wanted one too as I ended up with 2 small GF smoothies!

The breakfast buffet comprises of a pastry section (not pictured), a hot section, a cereal and guacamole section (make your own) and then a salad and bread section. In between the cereal and salad section was a gluten free section with bread and a toaster, along with blueberry muffins and banana bread. Oh the banana bread was delicious! Some of it actually made it into my paper napkin and up to our room as it was SO GOOD! This buffet was $38 each however as we stay at Marriott Hotels a lot, part of my benefits are free breakfasts, so we tend to eat a big breakfast to set us up right for the rest of the day!

We were then up in our room relaxing with the balcony doors open as the air conditioning was still broken in the hotel, when a knock happened on the door and we received a delivery from the hotel! They had “forgotten” to replace the gift they sent me yesterday (a Lemington cake which I could not eat and Andrew did not want to eat as it is covered in coconut) and here was a platter of the gluten free items that I just had at breakfast! Nice thought! We watched a lot of harbour traffic throughout the afternoon and also got our laundry done at a nearby location which we scoped out the night we arrived and all in all it was a great relaxing day! I did some trip planning – including what we were going to do tomorrow along with up in Cairns and the Gold Coast at this time too. We also found out there is another cruise ship terminal on the side of the bridge that we are on – so opposite to where we landed. It seems that Carnival Cruise lines, which has a ship in the area, docks primarily there.

When we went for dinner on Wednesday night when we arrived, I noticed on their weekly specials that Friday night they had fish and chips – so I asked the waitress at that time if they could make them gluten free and she said yes. So as it is Friday, we returned to the restaurant for gluten free fish and chips! Andrew, as he normally does when we are out, ordered beef for dinner and when my fish and chips arrived I was quite surprised! It was NOT what I was expecting! It was a piece of Dory fish, skin on, and chips! The waitress then said to me (as obviously my face did not look right) “did you expect deep fried fish and chips” which I said yes! She then said this is what fish and chips means here! Not a problem! I like Dory fish – just peeled the skin back and it was delicious! The chips were good too!

Well, I hope tomorrow is a nicer day! It was a great day to spend some down time of a trip that in the last 2 weeks has been pretty well on the go all the time – especially with the Indian Pacific – way more busy than relaxing than I expected it to be!

Lastly, Happy Birthday to my mother, whose birthday it is in Canada today, November 20th!

We had a wonderfully HOT sleep at the Pier One Hotel last night! Their Air Conditioning is broken! So we opened the balcony door and slept to the harbour breeze instead. It is about 24 degrees right now and lets say a bit sticky! There is a wonderful blue sky though and we got to get going to breakfast so that we have the energy to get to Circular Quay to meet Sarah!

After a wonderful breakfast at the restaurant in the lobby of the hotel – great buffet of food and a gluten free station which I loved, we were off on our walk to Circular Quay! To get there, as we were on one side of the Sydney Bridge, we needed to walk under the bridge and then around to Circular Quay, past the Overseas Terminal where we arrived. The Manly Ferry leaves from Quay 3 and we arrived just in time to get on the ferry! Similar to Vancouver, they have a card you can use on the ferry, and you can also scan your credit card to pay, which we did. Very convenient service!

When we got to the Manly Ferry Terminal, the 4 Pines Restaurant was across the street from the terminal. I had selected this restaurant due to its location as Sarah said she could meet us at the ferry terminal. The restaurant also had gluten free food on its menu which was a bonus! I had forgotten to check one LITTLE thing – was it accessible! Nope! So up about 20 stairs I went so that I could have lunch with my friend! It was awesome sitting on the balcony watching people arriving at the ferry terminal – we were the first patrons to arrive at the restaurant (yes we were early for once) so we got to select where to sit, and the place quickly filled up! I loved the reservation sign they had on the table – hand written with the 4 Pines logo on the back!

At that point, I phoned my mother to wish her a happy “Australian Time Zone” birthday as it is November 20th and her birthday were we are located! In Richmond, BC, where she is located – her birthday will be tomorrow…

Sarah arrived along with her Aussie accent she has acquired and we both had the shrimp tacos for lunch while Andrew had a burger! The pub actually brews its own beer so the display of beer options was a bit large, however Andrew finally settled on one that he was going to taste with his lunch. It was great seeing Sarah after all these years and hearing about her family who has grown – her oldest son Hamish was having his Grade 10 Formal tonight – which is like a graduation of sorts – at this point they continue at school to go to university, they go to trade school or to work. The other interesting thing that is happening in Australia, which I first thought I heard about in Melbourne but thought it could not be true, is that kids under 16 are going to be banned from Social Media and having cell phones effective December 10th. For Sarah’s youngest, that will only last a few months until he is 16, however it is a pretty interesting thing for the government to crack down on!

Sarah had to go back to work to a meeting so Andrew and I decided to walk to the beach in front of the 4 Pines restaurant, which was next to the Manly Ferry terminal. I THOUGH that was Manly Beach, however it was not. Manly Beach is on the other side of the peninsula so we then walked over to that side – much better!

We sat at the beach for a while and then we walked down the main street of Manly Beach which is sort of like Granville Street in downtown Vancouver – no cars allowed. There were lots of stores including a nice Gelato place named Anita’s where we stopped for a cool afternoon treat! Then on our way to the Ferry Terminal Andrew spotted a very important store “Whole Green Gluten Free Bakery”! Sarah had mentioned that one was going to open up and I had looked on Google Maps and Google for one however could not find one within 2 kilometers. Funny we would run into it on our walk! Needless to say, I patronized the store and ended up with a spanakopita, 2 Portuguese custard tarts and 2 chocolate croissants! I cannot wait to try them! Also, there was a Coles Grocery next door, so we acquired some snack food and things to make lunch/dinner in the room and we were ready to rumble and get back on to the ferry!

We quickly scanned onto what I thought was a waiting ferry, however it has just arrived and still had to let people off! Once we boarded, we sat downstairs as normal and had a great ride back to Circular Quay where we got off the ferry.

Now we are walking back to the Pier One Hotel for the evening. It was a full day! On our way there, we pass by the Museum of Contemporary Art – which was funny as it had a huge sign about it saying “MCA” and I thought when I saw the building from a far, that it was missing the “Y” and that it was probably a hostel like building. Nope! Now we are closer I see why the Y was missing! There were two interesting art pieces out front – this “eye” and the braided head of a woman! We then walked back around the Overseas Terminal and under the bridge to our hotel!

We relaxed tonight and had some of our goodies that we bought from Coles for dinner! Tomorrow we are not sure what we are going to do – the weather forecast is for rain! That is not good!