We picked up our tiny hatchback rental car and packed our things to start our road trip north to Brisbane. Our first stop was to the west, the Blue Mountains National Park and the Three Sisters.
The Three Sisters. According to Adriana their names are: Sandra, Adriana and Isabel (her sisters).
Kangaroo Paw flowers (and yes they look like kangaroo’s paws).
We arrived in Sydney from our long-haul flight from San Francisco to find the weather hotting up and with the forecast for a warm summer’s day. To get over the jet-lag we didn’t want to crash and sleep all day, so after we checked in to our B&B just off Kings Cross we went for a walk around the city. It was a perfect day and we walked around Woolloomooloo Bay, through the Botanical Gardens and ended up at Circular Quay. We had a lovely late lunch in the Rocks sitting out in the sun, and I enjoyed my first James Squire beer in a loooong time – aaaah…! I only get home about every two years and it felt really good to be back!
Over the next few days we did all the normal touristy things: wandered around Darling Harbour, caught the ferry across to Manly for a swim, walked up Obervation Hill and then over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, visisted the old Quadrangle at Sydney University etc.
Guess where?
It’s good to be home! The Bridge from Observation Hill.
A typical Sydney scene – I love the Moreton Bay Fig trees!
Circular Quay and the Rocks. Kirribilli House.
The Manly ferry. The Quadrangle at Sydney Uni.
For the second and final year of b-school, I made the decision to move from East Bay into San Francisco. I started looking around with my friend Duncan Clendenin from school, but we couldn’t find any good two bedroom place for less than $2,500/month – well and truly out of our price range! We then went our separate ways and I eventually found a large studio apartment on Union St. (between Kearny and Montgomery), up on Telegraph Hill and only 1.5 blocks from Coit Tower! The location is ideal – in North Beach (San Francisco’s “Little Italy”), I can jog around the Embarcadero along the waterfront, and it’s only a 15 minute walk down to the BART train station. The only hassle is the walk back up the hill to get home!
My apartment block @ 350 Union St. on Telegraph Hill.
The view from the base of Coit Tower up on top of Telegrah Hill , with Russian Hill and the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance.
A few gorgeous sunsets from my bedroom window, overlooking Nob Hill and Russian Hill.
A scene from Washington Square in North Beach. The cathedral is the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul (and incredible the address of the church is 666 Filbert St.!).
A sunrise panorama from my apartment overlooking (L to R): Nob Hill, Russian Hill, the Cathedral, Golden Gate Bridge.