First attempts of surfing

Of course, the first place, which comes to your mind, if you are thinking about surfing in Sydney, is Bondi Beach, but the birthplace of Australia’s surfing is Manly. Even the New York Times mentioned Manly Surf School as one of the top ten spots in Sydney. Therefore I took my first surf lesson in Manly and by the end I manage to stand up a few times. It is not as easy as it looks like and like most things in live it is better to start early or you have to work hard.

After a few lessons at Manly I was excited about trying to surf at a place called Surfers Paradise (located at Gold Coast). So as my friends and I arrived there we immediately went to the surf school of the former surf champion Cheyne Horan. In the lesson we did really good and so we decided a few days later (at Byron Bay) to rent boards and go by our self. It was not that bad, but I figured out why beginners better use long boards. I had a 7 feet board and it was much harder to stand up, so nosediving was mostly the result. Back on Surfer’s I rented a long board and tried it again but these times weather conditions were pretty strong and so I was blown off the board a lot of times. However finally I catched some waves and this was enough to keep the passion.

See you soon

Next Break Terms

12 September - 19 September 2010
5 December - 9 January 2011
27 March - 3 April 2011

Gold Coast

Trip to Surfers Paradise

Because of ANZAC day we had one week off from school. These unexpected break terms gave some friends and I the opportunity for a vacation and so we decided about visiting Surfers Paradise.
With a small hang over from the obligatory end of school party we caught a flight on Saturday to the Gold Coast. Against my nature (everything has to be planed and tracked) we went there without knowing anything about that place. But the first thing you had to learn about travelling with South Americans is “relax“ and so I did. Interestingly, that worked pretty well. We just moved step by step without knowing the next one and we met a lot of new people and asked everyone about nice places to visit. If we got a good recommendation we drove to the tourist information centre of that place and asked them about the local attractions.

I am assuming this way we have seen most of the attractions of the Gold Coast. On the day after arrival we picked up another friend and went to Brisbane. She was coincidentally at the same time in Surfers Paradise as us. On the other days we visited Byron Bay – the most eastern part of Australia – and the beautiful beach called Noosa where we rented a boat to explore the place by ourselves and do some fishing. Between these trips we had enough time to discover why Surfers Paradise has got it’s name. But that is another story …

A Weekend in Sydney

Australian Easter

Fortunately we had a long weekend on Easter, and some friends of mine and I decided to visit the Blue Mountains for an overnight stay. The mountains are located 2 hours away from Sydney by car and were named after the evaporating oil of the gumtrees, which gave the air an amazing blue gleam. I considered that this could be a great Easter as I was exited about the imminent trip.

There was a lot to discover at the Blue Mountains but there was also something we didn’t anticipate. As soon as we arrived on Echo Point (one of the famous lookouts) we became overwhelmed by the stunning view. We took this in and then went off to Jenolan Caves where we spend the rest of the afternoon. After that we decided to bring our luggage to where we were staying, have dinner outside and buy some beer for the night. After dinner we discovered that there was a catch. In Australia it’s not allowed by law to sell alcohol for take away on Good Friday. It was nearly ten so we stayed in Blackheath where is not much except one pub. We entered it just to realise that it was closing at ten. However this was enough time to meet some people, and that is how we bumped into Kathy and Phil. This couple from Canberra was in the same situation; just arrived but no idea where to go. After some small talk we invited them to our house where it turned out that they had a big esky full of Corona beer in their car. So here Good Friday gets it’s happy end. On the next morning we had Breakfast in a nice little Café in Katoomba (the biggest Town in the Blue Mountains) and then we spent the whole day enjoying nature, e.g., bushwalking, riding the Scenic Railway or visiting the Featherdale Wildlife Park.

This was the first part of my Easter weekend. The rest of it I spent with a friend in the City and on Manly Beach where I took another surf lesson at Manly Surf School. The water was rough and I tasted the salt water again as a result. However I managed to stand up a few times on my board. Because of the rough seas the lessons had a real workout character and I became very hungry. As a result of a hint I visited BenBry Burger where - without overstatement - I had the best burger ever. Seriously I can recommend everybody to try one of these. While watching the sun set over the beach I remembered the inscription at the harbour of Manly: “Seven Miles from Sydney, but a Thousand Miles from Care”

See you soon

Blue Mountains

Week one is over! So what can I say?

Most people who are thinking about a trip to Sydney equate this with vacation. So they might guess that after one week I had seen most of the city and had spend a lot of my time on Sydney’s beautiful beaches, but it was not. The biggest challenge was to find a long term accommodation and so I need the main part of my time for searching a flat. Nevertheless I had some spare time to enjoy the city.

Finding an accommodation in Sydney is not as easy as it sounds. You have to deal with a lot of other people who searching in the same time and of course are the best places are the first to go. So I spend a lot of time by browsing the internet. After dozens of phone calls and many inspections, where I saw everything from a small crowded apartment without daylight shared by six people up to a penthouse with an whirlpool on the rooftop and a fantastic view over the city, I found that one which was suitable for me.

Studies are not studies without student parties. So on Wednesday was a Welcome Party for new students. This was a great place to socialize with people from all over the world. While I was talking to a kind girl from Malaysia it turns out that she was one of the persons responsible for organizing the universities social events, and we got some free movie tickets for Alice in Wonderland. One day later another classmate invited me to a so-called traffic light party. Without knowing anything about that except that you have to wear green, yellow or red clothes (like traffic light) I randomly choose a yellow shirt and went to that party where I met the other guys. Inside my friend told me that every colour has a different meaning, which enlightened me. Green means you are single, yellow means you are taken but still available and red means your are not available ... wrong choice J

Manly Beach is a really nice place to spend the weekend. That’s why I decided immediately after organizing my accommodation to go there. One of my classmates lives there, so I called her for a get together. Once I arrived I took some lessons from the famous Manly Surf School and tried to catch some waves. Most of my efforts resulted in a direct nosedive and believe me I drunk a lot of saltwater, by the end I began to stand on the board a few times...yeah. After that my classmate invited me to a BBQ on the beach where we met her friends and had some sausages. In sum that was a really good day.

So what can I say about the first week? It took me a lot of time but now I am happy that I have my room and of course Sydney is a lovely place where you can enjoy your time. Hopefully I will be able to tell you some more interesting stories in the future.

Cheers

Break terms for potential visitors

24 April - 2 May 2010

12 September - 19 September 2010

5 December - 9 January 2011

27 March - 3 April 2011

First Impressions from Sydney

Finally arrived in Sydney

The journey started on Saturday morning. After a 6 hours flight I arrived in Dubai where I actually wanted to visit my friend Phil. Because of altered circumstances Phil was in Austria that time. In his place Omar picked me up from the airport, so we were cruising around Sheikh Zayed Road with a brand new Land Rover LR4 and stereo on maximum. Know I got 2 days off in Dubai before I leave to Sydney - time for watching Burj Dubai and hanging around on Jumeirah Beach.

Fully relaxed I entered the Aribus A380 to Sydney. Fourteen hours later and little bit tired I arrived in Sydney. Know I was expecting the predicted strong entry controls but I could smoothly pass all checkpoints.

After the first days my English class was starting. Normally there is a guided city tour for students on the first day but with some folks we missed the bus. Bad luck you might think ... no ... we decided to enter the city by our self. According watching the characteristically things like Harbour Bridge and Opera House we found us on a typical Friday night after work party .... good start :).

See you soon