Seven Hours in Sydney

One of the side effects of living in a city like New York is a lack of interest in spending too much time in cities while we are traveling, at least for Shanima and I. We prefer to escape the urban trudge and experience the natural wonder that foreign destinations have to offer. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t drawn to modern architectural wonders. So we were pretty happy to find a flight with a layover in Sydney that was just long enough to pop out of the airport for a quick visit to the Sydney opera house and the Royal Botanic Garden.

We landed at the international terminal at about 7:05am local time, 20 minutes ahead of schedule but we ended up waiting on the tarmac for half an hour before connecting to the gate. The customs process was quick and easy, and we were through in the amount of time it took us to fill out our arrival forms and walk out of the airport. Since we weren’t able to check into our Sydney to Cairns flight online, we hopped the free shuttle bus to the domestic airport before heading into the city. We waited curbside for about 20 minutes before the bus arrived, and then it took the bus about 30 minutes to make the trek from the international to the domestic terminal. In reality, they’re two completely different airports, but on paper it’s a single airport.

Once we made it to the domestic terminal we checked in to our flight and were given front-row exit seats for checking in super early. Shanima was pissed that I accepted the exit row offer because those seats generally don’t have a window and she is a window seat girl through and through. Once she got done giving me the what for, we headed down to the baggage level and stored her bag at the airport storage for A$9. We split my bag up into two parts (I have the Osprey Farpoint 70 liter bag) and each carried one of the two backpacks it comprises.

We were able to take the T8 train directly from the terminal (it stops at both the international and domestic terminals) to the Circular Quay (pronounced “kee”), which only took about 20-25 minutes. It was then just a short walk down the pier to the Opera House.

Along the way we grabbed a latte and a little breakfast. One of the greatest things about Australians that I’ve encountered so far is their love for savory breakfast pastries. I had a beef pastie that was proper delicious, and Shanima has a curry beef pie that was frankly even better. Something else I respect about Australians is that they know how to make a strong cuppa espresso. It is almost enough to offset the travesty that is their tendency toward instant coffee as an option at most of the tour locations.

When the Opera House came into view, the first thing that struck me was that the roof, which always appears bone white and smooth in photos, looked more like a scaly off-greyish tan color, even on a blue sky day. I also never realized that it has three separate sections of roof that are not connected which form its iconic shape.

Since it has been photographed so many times from across the bay and above, I thought it would be fun to try my hand at photographing the Opera House from right beneath it and from the other side. I came up with a couple of interesting compositions that I was happy with, and I’ll share them below.

Before we headed back to the airport, we took a walk through the Royal Botanic Garden, which is adjacent to the opera house, and it was a great first introduction to the wonder that is the Australian ecosystem. Even from the small sample of trees and birds present in the garden, it was plainly visible that this is a system that evolved apart from the rest of the world. We also got a dose of cheeky Aussie humor as we were greeted by a flower arrangement that spelled out “BITE ME” as part of an exhibit of either edible or carnivorous plants—that part wasn’t clear to me. There was a birdcage-themed gazebo on the grounds and we couldn’t help but take some photos there. Shanima hammed it up pretty good. I don’t think she would do well in prison. Me, i look a little more comfortable behind bars than I probably should.

It was a solid start to the journey and a good warmup for things to come.

The Long Flight

After living in South Korea for a year and a half, taking a couple of trips to Hawaii, flying to Argentina and Chile, and flying to Bangladesh from New York, I’m no stranger to the long flight, so i was prepared for the effects of the roughly 36-hour journey to Australia this week. Even still, I don’t think it is something I would want to do often.

Long term life on an airplane takes on a sort of dream state quality. There is a cyclicality to the experience: take off, doze off, wake up to a stewardess asking if you want a chicken salad or a meatloaf dinner, eat, start watching a movie, doze off…again and again, with a couple of those collaborative bathroom trips that you can only hope your whole row is ready for when you are.

If you have a connection, there is the rush to deplane and get to the next gate, and then the long slow lull of waiting for the next boarding call. If you are fortunate enough to have access to an airport lounge like we are, you hide away from the crowd, stuff yourself with cute little snacks and coffee, and waste time scrolling through social media while enjoying the free WiFi and charging ports. You look around the room, studying the mix of serious travelers focuses hard on some serious task with their eyes locked into their laptop screens, the frazzled parents with their whimsical children full of inane questions that you can’t help but smirk at, and the too cool for school ultra modern travelers who have all the latest and greatest in travel wear and electronic accessories who assertively stretch out on their plush leather chairs, arms crossed and eyes closed, a non-plussed look on their faces.

Often these lounges will have one-way windows aimed out at the rest of the concourse, with all of the chaos and competition for space and rights of way becoming a sort of moving art exhibit for the refined few who have learned how to escape the milling masses.

But the escape is only temporary and soon enough it’s time to gather up your belongings and head to the gate, where if you’ve timed it just right, you can smoothly join the line and walk straight into your seat without any waiting in the holding tank that is the general boarding area. And then the cycle begins again, and you become a hamster on the wheel of your biological functions until finally you reach your destination. As you exit, the cabin crew and pilot wish you well as the smile you off the plane so they can clock out and head off to enjoy their few hours of leisure time in a foreign city.