May 27

Hello followers! Thanks for checking into our adventures for yet another day!

Today we had a free day in Sydney and we were all excited to see the city on our own some more.  Mike and Colby headed out to Bondi beach to surf some more and said it was a great day for waves.  Aubrey, Maggie, Kylie, and Alyssa also went to Bondi beach but stayed on shore to soak up the sun (after a quick nap to recover from the breakfast at 8am).  Lindsey, Emily, Bailey, LeAnna, Lisa and I found some things to do around the city.  We started our day around 11am and headed to Appetito for $16 pizzas.  Restaurants here in Australia do not split the bill so we had to put our heads together to get the bill paid.  After lunch the group split up between the Contemporary Art Museum and the Rocks Market.  Lisa and I chose to go on a free tour of the Museum while LeAnna and Lindsey went at their own pace.  None of us thought the museum was going to be what it was.  While there was art, it was not what we considered ‘contemporary’ and there were not many aboriginal pieces on display (something everyone was excited for). 

After the museum we headed to the observation tower, but were soon disappointed to find that we could not go up into the tower with thongs (what Aussies like to call flip flops) on. So to cheer up our spirits, we went to The Cupcake Bakery.  Most enjoyed just a simple cupcake while Lisa and LeAnna enjoy a cupcake sundae.  After our fix of sweets, us students separated from Lisa and LeAnna.  We walked through the Rocks Market and found some awesome souvenirs for friends and family at home (stay tuned for your gifts). This market was pretty comparable to markets we have in the US.  Merchants were lined up in the streets selling their products but were also willing to change the price if you talked them into it.  The only real difference is Aussies left when they wanted to.  The market was set to close at 10pm, but since most merchants were used to closing up shop around 5pm, that’s what they did. 

Colby and Mike said they went to Mad Mex for a post-surfing meal and took on the 1kg burrito challenge.  Both completed it with ease as Mike completed it in 9 minutes and it only took Colby 16 minutes.  Since they both completed it, they both received masks.  Check the photos at the bottom!

For dinner, a group of us went to El Camino Cantina (I had been waiting for this restaurant all week!!!!).  It’s a little Mexican restaurant in the rocks that had a full menu of tacos.  Since this was the second night of Vivid, there were a lot of people in the restaurant and we expected a wait for that reason.  After about an hour we asked the hostess how much longer it would be and she told us that she didn’t write our name down.  So at that point we decided to head to Pancakes on The Rocks to get some food since El Camino Cantina was not going to feed us.  Everyone ordered some form of pancakes and had variable sides (eggs, bacon, chips (fries), hash browns, potato wedges).  By that point in the night we were all exhausted from our travels throughout the day and decided to head to bed to rest up for an eventful day tomorrow.

Crazy to think we’ve been here for two weeks already! Until next time! 

~Lexie

*I am awaiting pics from those that went to the beach, I will update when I receive those :)