Douglas Goes to the Beach

It's about time Douglas and I went to the beach

We are in one of the best countries for beaches. Naturally I chose to go to the beach after peak beach time. In the near-fall. When it's not time to go to the beach at all. 

But there's been a nice few days at the start of this fall season that have been perfect for the beach. Particularly the past two weekends.

The first beach weekend I went to Bondi (bon-die) with my friend Maz. We spent the day relaxing, people watching, sun bathing, and generally doing nothing. It was the last day of her vacation, and she wanted to finish it off enjoying doing nothing. It was wonderful. And I got a few pictures of Douglas sunbathing as well. I didn't go into the water because the surf was particularly rough, but I did enjoy listening to the waves rolling in. We hung out at the beach for a few hours. Grabbed some dinner at a fish and chips shop and we headed back home in the evening. It was great!

A view of Bondi from afar. Beautiful beach, but very crowded.

Bondi is a very crowded beach, so mostly Douglas, Maz, and I hung out and soaked up some sun after a week of rain

The second beach time was when I did the Bondi to Coogee (koo-jee) walk. It's a six kilometer (almost four mile) walk through four different beaches. There's stunning cliff side views, massive waves, and beautiful scenery all around. It took roughly two hours to make the whole trek. I highly recommend the walk, but take tons of sunscreen, some water, and maybe a hat because there isn't much shade on the walking path. Luckily, since Australia is on the verge of fall, the weather was quite nice and even the walks through the sun weren't too bad.

Rain was in the forecast, so Bondi was relatively empty compared to the prior week's trip

It was also very windy, which made for some huge waves. You can't see how blue the water is here, but you can definitely tell in other pictures

That's a neat rock!

Some tourists and also a neat rocks!

It was starting to rain a bit, so Bondi looks very blurry from here. You can tell how empty it was. 

People often fish off the cliff side/rock sides. Not recommended. The surf is so strong here that if the fisherman is knocked off the rocks, his/her chances of survival are slim. It's also hard for the beach rescue to get to them because of the rough beach terrain

More Waves

Gotta give everyone some love at the public bathrooms at Bronte Beach.

Douglas was not impressed with Bronte beach, but I was!

A neato burrito orb weaver I spotted at Clovelly beach (this was my least favorite beach. Lost of concrete, not enough natural stone/beach)

Douglas and I hanging out!

Douglas admiring the view to Gordon's Bay. We took a wrong turn here and had to back track, but the rocks were gorgeous! You can see a huge wave hitting the rocks to the back right. 

The Coogee Bay from up top. The downhill walk was much needed after the uphill climb from Clovelly and Gordon's Bay

The Coogee Beach! Beautiful and not very crowded. I definitely would visit again.

The walk connects four beaches total: Bondi beach to Tamarama, Bronte, Covelly (there's Gordon's Bay between Covelly and Coogee, but there's no actual beach, it's mostly rocks and docks), and Coogee. In between Bronte and Covelly, part of the beach walkway/path were damaged from storms in July 2016. They're in the process of repairing the walkway, so the path detours through the Waverly Cemetery. It's a very large cemetery reminiscent of many of the cemeteries you see in New Orleans. Most of the graves were raised, most likely due to the water table being so low (like that in New Orleans). I didn't take any pictures because the walk through the cemetery was pretty somber and it didn't feel appropriate. Very humbling and pretty, though! It was sad to see some resting places falling into disarray, but such is life sometimes. 

The walk from Bondi to Coogee was beautiful and stunning. It gives you appreciation for the beaches of Australia. 10 outta 10, would walk again. 

Bonus picture of a business seagull on the docks by my office. I like to think seagulls walking really quickly on the docks are headed to important business meetings. This guy was thinking about commerce and flight planning.

A Seagull Meeting. They're getting ready to discuss their mergers and acquisitions. Merging into the water, acquiring people's food.

Douglas Doesn't Wear Shoes

But I do...

And I have a tendency to wear them until they fall apart. Which is good. That's how you should wear shoes. 

However, I no longer have a vehicle, so my shoes (statistically speaking) get a lot more miles (kilometers) on them then they're used to. I've been in Australia for nearly three months now, walking a minimum of 10-20 minutes every day to and from the train station. Texas shoes are not meant to handle that kind of wear and tear. And eventually

This happens:

Sorry for sharing my dirty shoes with you, but I literally walked holes in my shoes in a three month period. I was going to go shopping over this past weekend, but I was sick the whole time. I invested in some super glue, while I was out at the grocery store purchasing soup and change for laundry (still have to be an adult even though you're sick), that specifically advertised working on rubber, and I said, "Neato burrito, that'll patch my sandals right up until I can go shopping for new shoes on Sunday."

I wore my sandals to work today, and halfway through the morning, the glue's hold breaks and so does my sandal. I embarrassingly approach my boss and ask if I could leave early to go buy shoes because I am out of appropriate shoes to wear to work. Luckily, my boss is pretty awesome, and understands the need for high quality footwear for the walking commuter. Shout out to Alex.

Four o'clock rolls around, I head out with my broken flip flop to the Pitt Street Mall. I got turned around about five different times, lied to one of those charity sales people (I told him that I had already donated to whatever refugee charity he was working for. I don't have the funds to save the refugees, and I don't want to listen to your spiel my FLIP FLOP IS BROKEN), got turned around again in my haste to escape the guilt tripping charity sales pitch, and finally found my way to the mall(s).

The Malls.

So in the Sydney City Centre (that's how it's spelled here) there are a few different shopping centers: Pitt Street Mall, the Queen Victoria Building, The Galleries, Town Hall Station Mall, and Westfield Mall. ALL of these malls are connected to each other via underground walkways. So it's very easy to get turned around and no longer know which shopping center you're residing. I've made a low detail map so you can see the approximate connecting tunnels running through each of the malls.

The red lines are the connecting tunnels (approximately). Please do not use my map for actual navigation through the underground walkways of the CBD. Also thank you Google for the maps. Also you can get to the Sydney Tower from Westfield. I'll have to check that out one weekend.

Shoe shopping becomes a very daunting task when you're faced with so many malls to choose from! I stuck with the Westfield Mall and found Rubi Shoes. The staff was friendly, talked about my issues with not finding a half-size (being a true half-sizer), and what best shoe would fit my needs. Pro-tip: If you're between two sizes, go with the smaller size. It may be a bit snug, but it will stretch out. The problem with the bigger sizes, is they still stretch out, and you're left with shoes a whole size and a half larger than what you need. Rubi Shoes also had a sale! I was able to buy two pairs of shoes for $30. 

They have holes for my toes! I also bought a pair just like them in brown!

So after I finally got some shoes, I wandered around a few stores. Here's some fancy hats I saw at Myers (Pitt Street Mall)!

These hats reminded me of my friend Gwenlyn who always wears such fancy hats to church (and fancy occasions, of course). Each one cost well over a Thousand Aussie Dollars, so I'm sorry I can't bring a fancy hat back home to you Gwenlyn.

And a rather interesting designer ensemble. 

That's a top and a skirt. Not sure what they're marketing for, but it's not me.

As it started pouring rain, I made my way back towards Town Hall Station through the QVB. I passed by a true sight for sore eyes:

DONUTS!!!! 

OMG They're beautiful

After about two minutes of debating between a jelly filled donut and the monstrosity of what I thought was the Just In Time Donut (Please ask me personally for an explanation of my thought processes). But I totally read it wrong. It's the "Justin Time" Donut! As in It's time for Justin Bieber to come to Australia because apparently he is doing a tour here? Yeah. I didn't get it either.

The chocolate underpants were the tastiest.

Even with me reading the name wrong, the donut was way delicious. It has crumbled Oreos, white chocolate shavings, and milk chocolate underpants! 10/10 would buy donuts again. 

In conclusion: Wear shoes for commuting (they call sneakers trainers, so I'll start wearing those), pack more than two pairs of shoes for work (that aren't heels), and buy more donuts. Also, Douglas is not a working Llama, so he had to stay home for this round of photos.

I've Been a Slacker

Whoops.... 

A month went by and I forgot to write another blog... My bad...

It's been a bit busy for Douglas and I (mainly me because Douglas doesn't have thumbs to type with). Here is a brief update on what I've been up to for the last month

1. Started a job at PriceWaterhouseCoopers (Whoa).
2. Met some amazing people through work and the sharehouse I'm living in
3. Figured out/mastered the train system 
4. Somewhat learned how to become an independent adult (who still has to use spell check to spell "independent")
5. Gotten sick, again

In fact, I have a cold right now! Yaaaay. 

So here is a picture of PwC's old building at Darling Park:

You might say "Sarah, what do you mean by 'old building'?" Well, you've asked a very good question. PwC Just moved from the building they've been leasing since 1997 (with the original furniture) to this amazing new building:

PwC is on the left, the tall red building. There are other businesses there, we're just on the floors 6 - 17

Working for PwC has been a blast! Even though being a Data Administrator is not very glamorous, it's an amazing opportunity to work with such a prestigious firm (Back to grammar: it took me four tries to spell "prestigious" correctly. Those sneaky extra I's). My coworkers are amazing, my work environment is stunning. And look at that bad ass architecture! That is one beautiful building. Right on Darling Harbour, with astounding views, great places to eat, and a wonderful relaxed environment.

Shout out to my recruiter, Jessica, with Hays Recruiting for helping me find this job! 

So, work is good. Coworkers are even better. 

I've met some awesome people through my share-house. All the people I have met thus far have been so inclusive and kind. They make sure to invite me to meet friends, go to parties, and always make sure I'm enjoying myself. Thank you Mareike (who goes by Maz) and Wendy for being such awesome first time friends in Australia!

I've tried some "interesting" apps to try and meet people. I've met one person who wasn't a total creeper and I genuinely enjoy talking to, who had as much trouble as myself meeting real/not crazy people to talk to ('sup Joshua). Needless to say, don't use friend-finding apps to find friends, you're gonna have a bad time. 

When I first started working at PwC, it took me a good two weeks to figure out the Town Hall train station. Which is completely underground, so I have a difficult time telling which way is North, South, East, or West. My coworker Edison gave me great directions "Just go left!" And eventually I figured out which left he was referring to. Right before PwC moved to Barangaroo (isn't that such a fun name to say... "Ba-rain-ga-roo"). Town Hall is such a complicated train station there isn't even a map of the interior levels that I can find online anywhere! But, it's the place to go for shopping. You can get to the Town Hall Mall, the Queen Victoria Building Mall (beautiful architecture there), and The Galleries Mall. All underground! And they all connect to other Malls, Underground! 

Truly stunning on the inside. Completed in 1898, it's a truly stunning time capsule of Australian Architecture. Source: visitsydney.com.au

10 outta 10, would recommend the malls in Downtown Sydney.

I've also achieved paying my rent on time for two months, successfully requesting a transfer to another property with more people so I can become a social butterfly (eek), and haven't starved! Yay being an adult. I'm even sick and still feeling frighteningly optimistic. Shout out to my parents for raising me to be an independent woman who don't need no man while she's in Australia.

Also, it's just a cold. I should be fine by Monday hopefully.

I've had a bit of a rough few days. My favorite sandals (they're called thongs here) snapped in half, my favorite pair of ballet flats have developed a hole in the bottom of them, and the pair I bought to replace them are just a smidgen too small and give me blisters. Did you know: Australia uses the same shoe sizing system as the US? Did you also know: most shoe stores don't carry half sizes? Dear people who have lived in Australia their whole lives, I'm so sorry you cannot find shoes to wear.

I have some more stories I need to tell, so I'll do my best to write small blog posts here and there. Make sure to subscribe to the email updates so you can hear from me every time I update my blog! Which will hopefully be more than once a month!