We were in a dorm for four women and Sammie kindly took the top bunk and I got the bottom one.
We went to the local Paddy's market and stocked up on plenty of food. Sammie got to work making our sandwiches in the communal kitchen in the YHA before we headed out to see the sights of the city.
I took her to Darling Harbour where we took a ferry boat round to Central Quay so that she could sail into the harbour and see the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera house in style.
She loved it.
We then went for cocktails at the Opera house bar, (sightseeing is thirsty work!!!!). Sammie was so excited she phoned her boyfriend Ryan to say hello from Australia because she was missing him.
When we got back to the YHA it was my turn to cook a veggie chilli for us both before we hit the sack. The next day was the big bridge climb!!! I hardly slept just thinking about it!!
She loved it.
We then went for cocktails at the Opera house bar, (sightseeing is thirsty work!!!!). Sammie was so excited she phoned her boyfriend Ryan to say hello from Australia because she was missing him.
It is fantastic to be with Sammie on the other side of the world, we are both loving every minute of it and there is so much that I want to show her. But I have to say that everytime I looked over to the Sydney Harbour bridge my stomach churned because I knew we were going to climb it in a few days time. I was seriously worried that I would not be able to go through with it!!!But Carmel was coming with us so she would be able to go with Sammie if I chickened out.
The next day we took a long walk to the Manly ferry and caught the boat to Manly beach. We chilled out on the beach for a while. Sammie has been lucky with the weather it is very sunny. But I am driving her mad by telling her how hot the sun is over here and to put sunscreen on. I have seen so many Tourists walking around bright red with sunburn. I know I have a tan but I have been in the sun for four months and I have used nothing less than factor 30 to protect my skin.
When we got back to the YHA it was my turn to cook a veggie chilli for us both before we hit the sack. The next day was the big bridge climb!!! I hardly slept just thinking about it!!We were not due to climb until three in the afternoon so in the morning we went for a walk around the parks in Sydney
and the Botanical gardens. They are beautiful, the views across the harbour towards the bridge and opera house were stunning. We sat on a bench and had our sandwiches
before meeting up with Carmel at the start of the bridge climb.
We were kitted out with special suits. Everthing that could possibly fall from your body, like watches, rings, hairbobbles etc had to be removed. We were given special earphones so that we could hear the commentary from the group leader during the climb. We were also given belts with metal gadgets that connected us to the bridge throughout the climb. We had to have a practice climb on a platform before we set off. That bit was ok, but I was very nervous. Sammie and Carmel just took it all in their stride. To cut a long story short. We did make it and I am so glad that I did it .But there were a couple of times when I nearly lost the plot with fear.Especially when we had to climb up four flights of metal stairs. I got through it by singing to myself like a mad woman and telling myself that I could do it, over and over again!!much to the amusement of other people in the group.
Sammie and Carmel were ahead of me and they just clambered up like a pair of mountain goats!!!! (Sammie is not impressed that I compared her to a GOAT)without a care in the world!!
and the Botanical gardens. They are beautiful, the views across the harbour towards the bridge and opera house were stunning. We sat on a bench and had our sandwiches
before meeting up with Carmel at the start of the bridge climb.
We were kitted out with special suits. Everthing that could possibly fall from your body, like watches, rings, hairbobbles etc had to be removed. We were given special earphones so that we could hear the commentary from the group leader during the climb. We were also given belts with metal gadgets that connected us to the bridge throughout the climb. We had to have a practice climb on a platform before we set off. That bit was ok, but I was very nervous. Sammie and Carmel just took it all in their stride. To cut a long story short. We did make it and I am so glad that I did it .But there were a couple of times when I nearly lost the plot with fear.Especially when we had to climb up four flights of metal stairs. I got through it by singing to myself like a mad woman and telling myself that I could do it, over and over again!!much to the amusement of other people in the group.
Sammie and Carmel were ahead of me and they just clambered up like a pair of mountain goats!!!! (Sammie is not impressed that I compared her to a GOAT)without a care in the world!!
I am so glad that we all did it together. It made it a very special day!!! And we got some lovely pictures and a certificate to remember our climb.
Needless to day I needed a stiff drink when we got down onto Terra Firma.
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