My Sydney Adventure

My biggest adventure happened in February 2010 when I was invited by my uncle to visit Sydney, Australia for three weeks and attend his 50th birthday celebration. It was a mixture of fun, excitement, and apprehension because it was my very first time to travel alone.

My flight was scheduled on February 2, 2010 in the afternoon. Since I will be staying with my uncle for three weeks, I brought a lot of clothes thinking I can use them all but at the airport, I had to remove some of them because of excess baggage.

First thing I learned is to travel light next time. Anyways, the plane took off after a while but we had to stop over at Changi Airport in Singapore. I’m supposed to meet a friend who lives there but she’s sick and I arrived there at midnight so I opted to stay at the airport and waited for my connecting flight to Sydney.

I arrived Sydney on February 3 in the evening with my uncle, his wife and kids greeting me at the airport. It took me half a day to sleep and re-charge because of ‘jetlag’.

It was summer in Australia so the less outfit you wear and more skin you show, the better. On my second day, my cousin toured me to the city. First stop, we took the train going to Circular Quay. Then we took pictures at the very famous Sydney Opera House, walked around Harbour Bridge, and Royal Botanic Garden.

Good thing about Sydney is that they have the best, so far for me, the public transportation services. You can go to different cities or places riding buses, trains or taxis because it’s economical, safe and convenient, if you are travelling leisurely like me.

Since my uncle and his family had work and school to attend to, I was forced to visit the city alone to explore more of Sydney. I rode the bus and trains alternately. The experience was really exhilarating. My stops include St Mary’s Cathedral, Australian Museum, Hyde Park Barracks Museum, passed by Sydney Hospital, Parliament House, State Library of New South Wales, Conservatorium of Music, and Government House.

In one of my uncle and aunt’s off from work, they toured me around Canberra to see the Australian War Museum. My cousins took me to Luna Park and Darling Harbour. My other uncle who also lives there took me to Sydney Towers.

The best part of my adventure was going to the Bondi Beach with my cousin. We took a train going there and spent the whole afternoon sunbathing and eating under the sun.

What’s exciting about exploring other countries alone is the chance to meet new people, learn about their culture, use maps, plan ahead of time, travel light and explore a lot of places at my own convenient time. Having a relative to tour you around is a good thing, having to explore it alone is another thing. That was my biggest adventure so far.