5/24

May 24, 2017 

G'day mates! This morning we met for breakfast at our hostel. Some people enjoyed the toast, cereal, and juices while a few others made themselves pancakes that the hostel was providing for the morning. After breakfast some members of the group took a walk on the Harbour Bridge. 

We all went to lunch together at a food court near where we needed to get on the bus to take us to the Sydney Cricket Grounds (SCG). For lunch we either ate at Bread & Fill or Mad Mex. At Bread & Fill we created our own sandwiches or wraps. Mad Mex is comparable to our Chipotle in the states.

 We then got on the bus to head to the SCG. First we toured the Allianz Stadium. The facility is home to the Roosters (Rugby League), Sydney FC (soccer), and Waratahs (Rugby Union). After touring Allianz stadium we toured the cricket grounds. The SCG is home to the Sydney Swans (Australian Football League) and the Australian National Cricket team. They also hold many other events here as well such as concerts and Major League Baseball games to name a few. Every two years the Australian Cricket Team plays the England Cricket Team for the "Ashes." The story behind the ashes dates back to 1882 when Australia beat England. Two years later when the game was played at the SCG women from Australia burnt a piece of cricket equipment and gave the ashes in a bottle to the English captain. From then on they played for the Ashes. Our last stop in the tour was the indoor cricket batting cages. In the facility they can control the humidity, temperature, and lighting to match where they will be playing their next match. When the tour finished some of us went to the gift shop to purchase attire for the Sydney Swans game that we will be attending on Friday. 

We then went our separate ways. Some of us headed to Olympic Park area to get dinner and go to the Liverpool FC v Sydney FC soccer game. Sydney FC usually plays at Allianz stadium but they played at the ANZ stadium in Olympic Park due to the popularity of the event. Allianz stadium holds around 40,000 people whereas ANZ stadium holds over 80,000 people. Liverpool won! There was an overwhelming amount of Liverpool fans given that we were in Sydney. The other group headed back to Circular Quay to grab a bite to eat. They also went to the aquarium. What an eventful day! Check in tomorrow! 

Maggie