The Goon is Great

G'Day Mates, Halloween here today. Seems like a normal day around town but the backpacker bars are sure to be pumping. Costume ideas r still lacking..hittin up a dollar store in a bit see what I can do.

The past few days have been great. I have really been enjoying the new hostel. Great group of people and always someone to meet and talk too. Last night there was a 2 dollar BBQ outside on the deck. Pretty good deal for some aussie hamburgers and sausages. Everyone is young there and all travelling. Most people there have been at the hostel for more than 3 weeks, def some regs. I may turn into one. Originally i was thinking of eventually moving into an apartment, which is still a possibility. But I figure if i just live in with some people, i will always just be seeing them, i might not even like them. With the hostel life, you are always meeting new people and there is always things to do/events goin on. Got some deciding to do. Either way, really enjoyin the group at the hostel for the past couple nights. Hanging outside, listenin to music, hearing everyone stories and still become amazed how all these europeans speak such great english and are able to speak several other languages as well. Everyone seems to like the fact that I am california, it has a pretty good reputation i guess. But certain American topics always come up ie. Obama, Bush, american tv shows, why we call it soccer and not football. It is all in good fun, just pretty interesting how everyone has different outlooks and ideas about other countries.

The weather is pickin up rapidly here....been very hot the past 2 days..yet gets cool at night...sunscreen has been a must the past couple days. I have started hanging out in darling harbour the past couple days for an hr or so just takin in the sights/people watching and reading the daily newspaper...feels great. The week ended on a strong note yesterday as I got a call for a job interview on Monday. I am pretty stoked about it and really hopin I can nail it. It is in a great location, great pay, and super flexible hours and would cater perfectly with my travel plans come january.

anyhow, from the post title, you make be asking yourself what "goon" is. Goon is the aussie term for the box wine here. cheap and affordable for the backpacker, and can still give you a pretty good night out. It will be a key component of my halloween night as beer prices still are outrageos. Just need to get myself a costume...best idea I have seen yet..check it

Shout out to my good friend Brady Stern, Happy Birthday, live it up. Note that is not Brady in the picture above, although it kinda resembles him

The Best Things In Life Are Free....most of the time

Yesterday was a day of free, mostly. The job search is still continuing and have put in a good amount of time and emails in.  I'm pretty hopeful, but still not too comfortable. Least there is always bananas to pick.

Anyhow, after hours of internet time, decided to get out with Ben and wander the town.  We stumbled onto the Domain, a part of the botanical gardens, huge green fields with trees..Definitely a nice area to go and relax in or bring a lady for a picnic in the park. Anyhow we made our way to the art gallery of New South Whales. Free admission...very nice. Never being too big a fan of art, especially after seeing the plethora of art galleries in Florence, I didn't get to excited to enter an australian art gallery and only did so since it didn't cost me a penny.  (or 5 cents, there is no 1 cent in aussie currency)  Anyhow, the art was ok, from original aborigine art to modern/contemporary art, there was some pretty interesting things.  Glad i at least gave it a gander.

Anyhow, we moved hostels yesterday.  We moved out of a 28 dollar night hostel to a 24 dollar a night hostel.  every dollar counts these days with no income.  Anyhow, was skeptical bout the hostel as it looked a bit shady.  But man was it a gem in disguise.  Yes the facilities could be cleaner, the beds could be newer, and the smell could not smell like b.o. constantly, but the community is great.  Anyhow, while just sitting out on the deck last night, we were welcomed by a couple guys(2 brits, 1 american) with a box of wine.  chatted up, next thing i know there is a good 10-15 person crowd out on the deck.  Little did i know that in addition to that 1 box of wine, the hostel was putting on a free wine and cheese night.  Couple glasses in, 2 more boxes of wine come out, coupled with cheese and crackers.  Around the table with all new people from all over the world conversing and playing drinking games with them was sure great. Something that I haven't got at any of the bigger/cleaner hostels i have been staying at the past few weeks.

Great people, great times and a great price. Being unemployed I can't yet afford to splurge on alcohol, so this was a treat.  We all headed out to the bars after the wine was done.

Halloween is coming up this weekend.  Come to think about it, I've really never thoroughly enjoyed Halloween ever since I stopped getting candy. Yes there were some moments in college but Halloween doesn't get me excited as it used to. The pain of trying to get a satisfactory costume always seems to annoy me. With that said, Australians dont take costume day too seriously either, but all the big backpacker bars are puttin on big parties, so i just maybe might have to get the creative ideas flowing in the next couple days.  My best idea right now, "Hostel Food Stealer" .... clearly i have some thinking to do

2 Week Roundup

Well 2 weeks today since I arrived in Sydney...seems pretty long ago actually. The weather has not met my expectations yet but I know the best is yet to come. 

I've already had my share of memories, like watchin the Goonies at the hostel with a bunch of foreigners, trivia night at the bar with the paper airplane competition, and the great pub crawl.  I think its a great sign of what is to come as my travel and adventures continue.  

Some observations/points I'de like to make:
 - a disgusting amount of people smoke here...pretty annoyin walkin down the streets and constant cig smoke
 - found out its an offence to touch baked good(donuts, pastries) without using the provided utensil

 - items are expensive here.....6 pack of Beer - 15 dollars, Kit Kat and other assorted candy bars - 2 dollars or more. 
 - i've been to one beach, and and it was a damn good one
 - seen only 1 big spider, not sure if poisonous
 - need to go bush soon and see the outback as living in the city doesnt give me the aussie vibe im looking for yet
 - adjusting to the time difference/jet lag was not a problem at all for me
 - a netbook computer is one of the best travel companions
 - microfiber towel and a good toiletry travel bag is essential for a pleasant backpacking experience
 - ear plugs are needed to block out the annoying/snoring/foreign people talking in your 10 bed dorm room
 - ipod with some great rock playlists make walking around the city a good time
 - i walk an average of 3-4 miles a day...guaranteed. 
 - meeting people from all over the world is one of the most intersting things
 - dont trust the system in the hostel where you think people will not steal your food.

Thats about it...getting a job is officially at the top of my To Do list...hopin to get some solid work by the end of the week.

I'm stayin at a pretty good hostel right now...great proximity to all the happs around the sydney...the only problem is that there seems to be an influx of French in the hostel.  And as Harry Dunn would say, " I don't know Lloyd, the French are assholes"

A City With Sights

Rained off and on all day yesterday and the same today....decided to take a stroll thru the city last night and capture its beauty at night.  Click pics to enlarge

Darling Harbour

Darling Harbour

Sydney Opera House

Sydney Harbour Bridge

I'm Not Here to Tell You What To Do, But Listen What I Tell You, And Do It

During this whole adventure, I know I will learn things about myself and who I am as a person, part of the reason why I decided to do this shindig anyway.  I would like to think that I have always had a positive outlook on things and take them as they come.

Well anyhow, I will get to the point of this post

In the restroom at the work and travel office, there was a list of 45 life thoughts, written by a 90 yr old columnist named Regina Brett

As I was going over her list,  i found myself following many of them, but also enjoyed her other points.  I have taken out a few of my favorites.

- What other people think of you is none of your business.
- Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
- You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
- Don't compare your life to others'.
- However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
- Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
- If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
- The best is yet to come.

Look at the Bright Side of Life

In honor of me being back in Sydney near chinatown, get some laughs out of these translations

THAT'S NOT RIGHT ......................... SUM TING WONG

STUPID MAN ............................... DUM FUK

SMALL HORSE .............................. TAI NI PO NI


DID YOU GO TO THE BEACH? ................. WAI YU SO TAN


I THINK YOU NEED A FACE LIFT .............CHIN TU FAT


THIS IS A TOW AWAY ZONE .................. NO PAH KING


GREAT .................................... FA KIN SU PAH

Sunday in the Rain

Got back from Manly this morning...another great ferry ride into Sydney Harbour.  Manly was a blast...soaked in sun for days.  Unfortunately waves never got as big as they were on Wedndesday, but all in all a great time on the beach.  The jellyfish came out in hoards yesterday while i was bodysurfing. I really wasn't gonna take the chance of having to piss on my sting just for a few extra waves, so i ended the sesh.

Back in central Sydney feels pretty good. I think I have decided to call this place home for the next 2 months, and then plan to travel up the coast come January. Which means it is time to settle down, get a job, and look for some housing.

This weeks to do's:
   - get a job in or around Sydney
   - make money fast
   - browse the classifieds and land some affordable housing with backpackers or locals
   - make it to Bondi beach

And yes, it is raining here. Feels great..i've always loved the rain...Aussies run for cover, its pretty funny...they are all runny around the streets for shelter, meanwhile I'm just in my raincoat hoodie, rockin to the ipod and feelin it.   but yea got pretty wet, especially my backpack.  In the library now, doin some research and milkin the free internet.  bout to head to the store and get some goods for the next few days.

i think you'll get a kick out of one of the ice cream bars they have here...

Note:  i can assure you i will never buy and enjoy a golden gaytime...or steal

Gettin Manly

Manly Beach, a surfers and beach lovers paradise.  Wanting to get out of central Sydney and take a break from the job search, Ben and I packed our bags and headed to Sydney Harbour to catch a ferry to Manly for the weekend.  A 6 dollar thirty minute ferry ride to Manly with great views of Sydneys skyline, opera house, and bridge was well worth the price.

We got into Manly and right off the ferry we were welcomed with a great beach vibe, flip flops, boardshoarts, surfer chicks..a much needed change of scenery from the busy central area of Sydney.  After trekking about 15 minutes with our backpacks(shoulder muscles are really buildin) we finally reached our hostel.  We are stayin at Manly Bunkhouse.  For 26 dollars a night we were booked to stay in a 6 - 10 bed dorm room.  When we checked in, for some reason there were no beds left in the dorms and gave us a private twin bedroom for the same price..26 a night...stoked on this as we are livin the beach dream for the next 4 days.  we have our own toilet, kitchen, shower, tv in our room. It usually goes for 66 dollars a night.

We are literally a 3 minute walk to the beach.  Manly is a surfers breeding ground.  so many out in the water, mostly all amauters but non the less, great waves and a great beach.  Cant wait to body surf in the ocean the next couple days while absorbing the hot Australian sun.  The water is not as warm as I expected, but with the great ambience and livin right near the beach, a couple minutes is all it takes to get used to it.

Other than the beach and a beachfront shop strip (the corso) not sure what else Manly has to offer, but I personally think it has all that it needs.

Lookin to get involved with some beach volleyball games tomorrow and mingle with some locals

Experiencing the endless summer

Late

Weekend in Sydney

Although every day is a weekend for me, I finally had the chance to see Sydney during the Saturday/Sunday weekend days. The streets were just as busy as they were in the work week.  There were some events goin on throughout the city.  Definitely a lot of tourist and out of towners here for the weekend.  Over the past 5 days, I have conquered almost every attraction possible in central sydney, all by foot. I have walked miles over the past couple of days, and in addition to my healthy eating habits at the hostel, its safe to say that im not putting on any wait.  For the records, i greatly miss my daily pull up bar and ultimate pushup exercises.  Although i did utilize the hostel bunk beds for a quick sesh last night of pull ups.

Ben and I have been saving heaps of money by cooking every meal. Been making some great pasta and salad combos. The italian dressing here is great, as well as this hot hungarian salami i came across. Basic eggs and toast for breakfast with a daily turkey/cheese/lettuce sandwhich.  Everything is pricey here, so cooking is definitely the best/cheapest option.  But im starting to get heated, another bag of chips were stolen from me.  It is pretty interesting, with all the items in my bag, ie pasta sauce, eggs, peanut butter, bananas that they would take chips.

This weekend we went back to some areas we have already seen just to spend more time, they included Darling Harbour, Paddys Markets and Cockles Bay.

Sunday we originally going to take a ferry ride to Manly beach, but when we woke up it was raining a bit and cold, so we figured if we were going to go to the beach, we better go in good weather.  Anyhow the rain and clouds burned out around 1, so we were still able to take advantage of the day in and around Sydney.

After watching some great street performers, we decided to do the walk across Sydney Harbour Bridge.  This was the free walk, and in my opinion, a far better choice than the 187 dollar bridge climb that goes to the top.  The views are still great. Once we crossed the bridge, we got to experience some of North Sydney. A lot less touristy and more residential, it felt good.  Some photos: (as always click to enlarge)

Sweet panorama by yours truly

Moving hostels tomorrow to a bit better location and price. Then on Wednesday, taking the ferry to Manly Beach to stay at a Beach Bunkhouse for 4 days. From there we will hopefully start work next week. There has been some leads, but nothing major. I see myself working for the next month or so straight, so getting some relax time now, working, getting funds and start some major travel plans come early january. But dont take my word, anything can change as spontaneity is one of my best attributes.

Over and out

The Sounds of OZ

I Am a World Traveler

Last night was great...did a pub crawl with a group of 40 from the Work and Travel center. Been meeting heeps of people, including these scottish girls and a german guy. I still find it unbelievable how all these europeans speak such great english. It kind of puts americans to shame as far as universal language knowledge. I stayed in a new hostel last night since there were no beds available at my previous one. I got into an 8 room shared dorm, where there were about 6 german girls.  Some big girls but they were all very nice. Theres something special about waking up a bit hungover to the sounds of whispering in a different language. I must say, the german language isnt that bad in soft whispers. The past few days and nights I have really come to realize how great of an experience I am getting out this. Experiencing different cultures and meeting people from all over the world and sharing stories is sure special.

Thats about all i have. This was a tough post, i am pretty out of it from last night and really wasn't feeling my word choice, so sorry if things didnt make sense.

Hittin up some tourists spots today and planning a ferry ride to Manly Beach tomorrow.

Thinkin about staying in Sydney a bit longer before I start movin. The job search is stressful, but just seein how things will pan out. Making some calls to some resorts, and there is some unskilled labour at wharehouses that seem interesting.

Stay classy

Sydney Street Performers Are Impressive

This City Gets Bigger and Better Every Day

Today was another great day here. They have a pretty good continental breakfast here at the hostel. Nothing out of this world, but the croissants and toast taste pretty damn good with the coffee. After breakfast I had to sort out accomodation for the next few days. The hostel I am stayin out now was all booked for tomorrow night.  Went down the street and was able to book a night there. It is another huge backpacker hostel that has a good reputation.  After that I went to the travel desk at the hostel because of a deal I heard regarding New Zealand backpacker bus trips..It was the last day of a 50% discount. I jumped on it and ended up getting it. It was wierd to finalize something thats happening 4 months from now, especially being that I have a whole australian adventure ahead of me, but im confident it was a great move since the summer months are coming and this would be the cheapest price of the season. So i am stoked on that and is definitely another part of this journey i have to look foward too.

After that, headed back to the Work and Travel center to inquire about jobs and use the free internet, pretty helpful. Hoping to start work relatively soon, anything ranging to fruitpicking, data entry, wharehouse/factory, and hospitality work. I am gonna take whatever comes my way. I am starting to get daily emails about available jobs and am hoping to score some casual work along the coast. Its all a work in progress, still tryin to get situated and get a solid idea of all my travels and work along the way, (ie whether i want to try to find long term work and travel towards the end of my trip or get short temporary gigs and travel between them)

I have my australia style resume all locked and loaded and am beginning to distrubute them across various job listings on the internet, i really dont see who wouldnt want me with all my talents and transferable skills.  Anxious of what is to come, that if for sure

After gettin a bit of business done, Ben and I decided to hit the Sydney Aquarium.  Wasn't really jazzed on it since i have been to some pretty great aquariums in the states, but i was able to get half off the ticket price, so it was only 15 bucks so I decided to make it happen. It was a good time killer and another page in the memory books.

There is also a wildlife zoo here but I am holding out for the Steve Irwin Australian Zoo up in Queensland when I make it there.

After the aquarium we continued to stroll around the Darling Harbour area, which is 100 times better than the chinatown area of sydney and strolled thru the nearby mall and toured the Australian Maritime Museum for free.

On our way back to the hostel we stumbled onto Paddy's Markets, a large flea market sort of think which rivals some of the markets I have been to in Italy and Spain. Souvenirs galore, 5 dollar tshirts, a strange amount of wigs, and asian collectables. In addition to that a fish market and an entire section dedicated to fruit and vegetables and nuts and candy.  It is only open thursday thru sunday but is definitely a pretty entertaining sight. ANd for those of you expecting souvenirs, dont be suprised if it comes from Paddy's markets, ive already scoped out a few souvenirs for myself when i empty out my backpack towards the end of my trip.

After the long day and a large amount of walking, we came back to the hostel to find our chips had gotten stolen from the hostel kitchen. There is always that chance at hostels of food getting jacked, but i like to have some faith in the system.  I was thankful that the peanut butter, jelly, bread, water, and bananas were still there, but it would have been nice to accompany my great budget meal with some nice chips

Goals for next few days:
- Continue the job search
- figure out Sydney public transportation
- figure out traffic signals and get familiar with cars driving on the opposite side of the road
- figure out where/when I can travel throughout Oz

Upcoming events:

• Pub Crawl, 
• Trip to Bondi Beach
• Ferry Ride to Manly
• The Rocks 
• Trip to the Blue Mountains

And So The Adventure Begins

I've been in Sydney for little over a day, and man it feels good to be here living the backpacker life. A little more on this later, but first the flight experience

After a great week in SF for a bit of a dissapointing fleet week due to weather, I still had a great time spending my last few days in the states watching the Blue Angels and sharing great memories with my fam and friends, how bout those crackpipes? (a name of a alcholic drink of course)

Anyhow, the flight was right on time at 11pm SFO time.  The flight was absolutely full with only one or 2 vacant seats.  Its really amazing when you take a step back and think about all the people that fly on a daily basis.  My booked flight was just one of thousands carrying businessmen/backpackers/travelers all over the world. Anyhow, I couldn't have had a worse seat on the flight. I knew I would be towards the rear of the plane, but was definitely not expecting the very last seat of the 350+ seat economy class.  I was right next to the toilets and where the flight attendants stored and prepared the food. And to make it worse, my seat could not decline back the whole way since there was a wall behind it. Despite these certain flaws with the seating, I didnt have too bad of a flight, but certainly not the best I could have had. And if you are thinking "oh he was in the back, he got his meals served first" that was not the case.  Anyhow, i was able to get around 5-6 hrs of sleep I would say during the 14 hour flight.

Anyhow, I arrived in Sydney at arround 7 am Sydney time (the time difference is 18 hours ahead of US Pacific Time).  I had shuttle transportation from the airport to my backpacker hostel.  I was tired, but did not feel too bad. The travel books I read all said not to sleep until the night.  almost 36 hours into oz time, i really haven't had any problems adjusting to the time patterns. I've always had a great ability to stay awake for hours and sleep anytime I tell myself to.

Anyhow, day 1 was wide open with nothing to do. I decided to take a stroll thru the city to head to my Work and Travel center to pick up my arrival paperwork and just check out the place.  This company is made for backpackers just like me coming from abroad seeking work. They help setting up my bank account, tax number, and help with travel plans and of course jobs. There i met a nice lad named Ben from Machester, England. Been hangin out with him for the past 2 days.  We took a long walk to see the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, some of the most famous sights in Australia, and pretty much what the average tourist would think of when talking about sights in Sydney. It was pretty special seeing those sights in person and being there right next to them.

Sydney is a pretty good size city and is the most populated city in Australia (5 million).  It reminds me a whole lot of San Francisco, tall high rises, crowded streets, busy traffic, tons of tourists, and yes chinese. I knew coming in that Sydney did have a Chinatown district. My hostel is right down the street to it, and I need to go through it everytime I need to go to the work and travel company. With that, i was suprised at the amount of chinese in the city and definitely feel like I need to get out of Sydney to get the real Australia feel. SO far the weather has been somewhat cold and windy, but when its just the sun, it feels pretty hot.  I can see how oz can be pretty warm during the day in the summer.

Besides the asian shops, there are alot of banks in Sydney, a lot of money exchange places and souvenir shops. I have stumbled across McDonalds, KFC, Starbucks, and Subway several times.  Another big hit here is Hungry Jacks, the Australian name for Burger King..it is definitely Burger King with a different name...I kinda wish it was Hungry Jacks in the States.

Last night Ben and I were seeking something to do, so we went down to the backpacker bar for some beers.  Victoria Bitter(VB) is definitely a great tasting Australian beer, and will probably start being my go to, but there seems to be a good amount of australian beers here so I will try to give em all a try. I was warned about this before arrival, and it is definitely true..alcohol is extremely expensive here. In the pub, I paid 4.80 for not even a pint size beer. Hittin up happy hour tonight for 3.50...NICE!!!!  We went to a bottle shop today to purchase some beer, 6 pack for 15 dollars, and a 24 pack for $43 dollars...pretty absurd.  Natty light could definitely make some business here if they could sell their 30 packs for 12 bucks here like they do in the states!

Today I had my orientation, set me up with my bank account and tax number. I am now at the point to start the job search. I do not see myself staying in Sydney.  Really gonna try to push for resort work along the coast.  Plannin on stayin in Sydney for another week or 2 and hit up the nearby attractions and conduct my job search, then I will be headed up more towards the coast.

The hostel I am stayin at is pretty good..rivals some of the great hostels i stayed in around Europe. It is really large..about 520 beds with 2 large kitchens and some real nice and clean bed and bathrooms

I can already tell that backpacking is definitely a huge thing here..there are people all over the world here. I have met people from California, New York, England, Holland, and Germany.  The great thing is that all these people are just like me, with travelling and working on their mind and are looking for friends. Had a pretty interesting encounter last night in the hostel dorm. There are 4 beds(2 bunks). I was able to sleep quite nicely..but there was a very load snorer in the bed across.  I was so tired..i really didnt have trouble finding sleep, but i definitely work up a couple times because of this guy snoring. The best moment came around 4 or 5 in the morning when another guy in the room who was sleeping above the snorer got out of his bed and woke up the guy snoring and completely yelled at him for about 2 minutes and bitched how he couldnt sleep and had a big day of traveling ahead of him. It was just something pretty entertaining to wake up to in the middle of the morning.

Well thats about all I have right about now. Bout to go cook up a meal in the hostel kitchen and go for a stubby bottle of beer.

Doin an intense job search tomorrow and may hit up sydney aquarium as the work travel company get huge discounts at all these tourist spots

Its only been a day and a few hours, but I know Im at the right place and this experience is going to be one I never forget.

4 days

Time in the great U S of A is quickly running out. I got a lot of little things to get done but am trying not to feel overwhelmed. My packing is almost complete...i feel like i have too much but not enough if you know what i mean. Anyhow, just taking care of last minute things and next thing I know ill be on a plane halfway across the world.

Anyhow, pumped for my final weekend in the States as im headin to San Francisco for Fleet Week to see the Blue Angels and meet up with some friends before my 5 month journey...can't wait..the anticipation is at an all time high.

On a side note: 9ers sign Michael Crabtree. I'm for it, i just dont want him to be another bust like Alex Smith