September 14 - spring break trip

This morning I ate my fill of the free breakfast (cereal and milk) that came with my accommodation, then went outside and walked across the street to Bondi Beach park. I expected it to feel chilly this morning after spending eight days in the tropical north near Cairns, but I was actually a little bit hot with my long-sleeved shirt on. I took some photos of Bondi Beach and sat on a bench in the park next to the beach, then layed on the beach for an hour or so. It was a little chilly next to the water with the wind, so I didn’t get much of a tan (I kept my long pants and long-sleeved shirt on).

Although the receptionist at the hostel told me I should get on a bus to Bondi Junction and then take a train to central station, I saved some money this afternoon by finding a bus that went all the way into the city of Sydney, and then walking for about 15 minutes with my bags to get to central station. Even though this took a little longer, it only cost me $1.70 and I still got to the station an hour before my express coach to Canberra left.

At 3:00 I boarded the coach bus to Canberra and was pleased to find the bus only about half full – so I got to have a seat all to myself. The traffic out of Sydney today was pretty crazy and the 3:15 trip ended up taking 3:45, which was only slightly annoying. At one point when I was looking out the window I saw a yellow warning sign that had a picture of a wombat and said “next 5km”. Sorry Rachel, but I couldn’t get a picture of it. :-P

When the bus finally arrived in Canberra, I grabbed my bag and walked two blocks to the Canberra bus exchange. My timing was perfect, since a bus going to Belconnen had just arrived and was still boarding passengers. I got on the bus and 15 minutes later I got off at the bus stop nearest my dorm. A fair number of people on my floor were having dinner when I got back, so I said hi, talked a little about my trip, then eventually unpacked my bags. It feels good to be “home” again after two weeks of traveling and have my own room to sleep in at night. Alas, my spring break traveling has come to an end. Only a few more days until classes start again!