Our last day in Sydney, and the whole country of Australia, Ryan and I took the ferry across the harbour to Manly, a northern suburb of Sydney. Kris and Dal left for New Zealand that morning, so we decided to hit the 4 Pines Brewery tour and take a hike around town, through the Sydney Harbour National Park, and along the coast up to North Head.

Here are some of the colorful birds seen throughout the day:

Noisy Miner

Rainbow Lorikeet

Sulpher-crested Cockatoo

Laughing Kookaburra

And here are some of the interesting animals that inhabit the area that we unfortunately did not see:
      

There were also great views of the city and harbour from Manly and the ferry.

Sydney from the Manly side as the clouds rolled in

View of the harbour from the ferry

Kris, Dal, Ryan, and I took the train from Sydney out to Katoomba, a town in the eastern part of the Blue Mountains. From there, we could hop on and off the Explorer bus that stopped at various scenic spots and trailheads.  The Blue Mountains and Jamison Valley reminded us all of the Grand Canyon, though much greener, and slightly less grand.

First stop: Scenic World and the cable car
We took a cable car across the Jamison Valley to the steepest train in the world, bringing us down to the valley floor and an old mine.

Cable car between two cliff tops

Katoomba falls

Dal and Kris in front of the Three Sisters

Second stop: Honeymoon Lookout and the Prince Henry Cliff Walk

I had to convince Ryan to take this picture

Very picturesque lookouts from the cliff walk

Third stop: Leura cascades from the Bridal View lookout
      

Throughout the day, we were serenaded by these lovely guys, 7-year cicadas. Male cicadas can hit 120 dB while trying to attract mates!

(Written with editorial input from Ryan)

The first full day in Sydney was bridge climb day, or so we thought.  The Sydney Harbour Bridge is one of 2 bridges in the world that can be climbed (legally in an organized group).  Everyone was psyched and ready to go.

We got to the front of the line and the guy behind the counter said ‘Oh, would you like to climb today instead? Your reservation is for tomorrow.’  Ooops! None of us actually checked our reservation for the bridge climb ; for some reason we all just thought it was the first day in Sydney. Luckily, all worked out and they were able to get us in. No worries, mate!  Nicole passed since she had done it almost 14 years ago, and instead found herself a good place on top of the bridge pylon to take pictures of us during the climb.  This made me very happy, because I did not want to get roped into buying an insanely expensive tour company photo.  We also weren’t allowed to have anything in our pockets or detached from our climbing jumpsuits — so no camera.

Just getting started

On the way up

Almost reached the top

Big smiles on the way down

Opera house view from Nicole’s spot on the bridge pylon

After the climb, we wandered around the harbour and picked up tickets for a show at the Opera House later that night.

Sydney Harbour Bridge

Sydney Opera House up close

Other fun pictures:

My big beer in Sydney

Dad’s small beer in Port Douglas

How many Netts can fit in a phone booth? — Answer is only 3 since one of us had to take the photograph

Sydney from Darling Harbour

Nicole taking part in public art exhibit

(Written with significant input from Nicole)

On our second day in Cairns we rented a car and drove up through the Daintree Rainforest…part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This was my first opportunity to exercise my driving skills on the wrong side of the road (aside from the moped in Thailand). Supposedly the drive up the coast was beautiful, but I was busy trying my hardest to stay left and not knock off the mirrors from oncoming traffic. No worries, no problems, just weird.

Beach lookout

Beach lookout

Beautiful beach on the drive to Daintree

We crossed the Daintree River on a ferry, and went to the Discovery Centre for a rainforest walk.

Croc warning at the Daintree river ferry crossing

Cassowary crossing

Cassowary sighting

Then we drove back to Mossman Gorge for a short hike (high-tailing it back to the trailhead just in time for the last bus to the parking lot).

Taking in the gorge

Interesting buttressed roots at Mossman Gorge

On our way out of Mossman Gorge, we happened upon a few bat-free mango trees. After seeing other tourists picking mangos, Nicole insisted we stop to do the same. Not pictured here, my mom enjoyed the hunt as well.

Check out those mangos

Although disappointed at our lack of fauna sightings, we still had a wonderful time. We stopped in Port Douglas for dinner on the way back.

Family dinner in Port Douglas after enjoying Daintree

After a nice relaxing time in the Gold Coast, it was time to turn it up a notch.  For this portion of the trip, my parents flew in to join the excitement of our Honeymoon!  Okay okay, remove those puzzled looks from your collective face, this was a retirement vacation for them as well.  It was still fun to tell people they were enjoying our honeymoon with us

First up on the agenda in tropical Cairns was a boat trip out the the outer Great Barrier Reef — A UNESCO World Heritage Site, and a CNN Natural Wonder of the World.  Here’s a snapshot we took from our plane heading into Cairns:

Our vessel was a large catamaran which had me bullish on small odds of sea sickness.  Oops.  It turns out this was perfect weather for an adrenaline junky Captain to launch the boat off the incoming wave swells as we headed out to sea.  My wife being the smart one, took some Dramamine before we set out to sea.  No Worries as they say…the sickness passed and I was ready to experience the reef after our 2 hour ride.

Nicole and I booked 2 scuba dives, and my folks snorkelled.  Incredible experience!

I typically hate those preset photo-ops that a tour company has you pose for on the chance you’ll pony up a small fortune for a photo that probably costs them on average less than $0.01 to produce over the lifetime of their equipment (ignoring human labor cost).  But this was a special occasion: A day with a perfect blue sky backdrop, blue water that stretches as far as the eye can see, and vibrant, colorful sea life just below our feet.  Plus they had an awesome underwater camera they used while we were diving:

This one just shows how blue the entire day was: amazing!

Oh yeah, and on the way to the boat dock in the morning, we came across these chirpy smelly creatures: the mango-eating flying fox fruit bats!

The Australia portion of our trip has been full of beautiful weather so I really can’t complain. Unfortunately, even with the sunny, cloudless skies on the Gold Coast, it was still a bit too chilly to go swimming or take a surf lesson like we were planning. Instead, we did a lot of walking on the beach (holding hands of course, cause it is our honeymoon ), relaxing, and enjoying the ocean view from our apartment.

Sunrise from our balcony

Since there is no Thanksgiving in Australia, they move right from Halloween to Christmas. Not only is it weird to see Christmas decorations beginning of November, but the fact that it’s summertime makes it even more surreal.

Luke (a friend of Jason’s and Craig’s who I became good friends with while in Australia) was kind enough to help coordinate and chauffeur us around a bit. I was thrilled to be able to hang out with him as much as we did, dinner the night we arrived, visiting the hospital (more on that in a little), a night time nature walk to see the glow worms at the Natural Bridge, and a ride back to the train station.

Jason (friend from uni) and his wife Deb had their baby boy Tristan the day Ryan and I arrived on the coast. Luckily, they were accepting visitors at the hospital two days later and we were able to stop by. We got to meet Deb (who I had only spoken to on the phone before) and have a cuddle with Tristan (as they call holding a baby). He was a pretty adorable baby! It was great to be able to see all my friends again and I hope I don’t have to go another 12 years!

Nicole, Jason, Deb, and Luke holding Tristan

Brisbane and the Gold Coast are generally not on the itinerary for tourists travelling to Australia. However, I spent a year of college (ie. ‘uni’) abroad at the University of Queensland, in a suburb of Brisbane, so Ryan and I scheduled 6 days in the area to visit friends and check out old haunts. Luckily, Ryan was feeling almost all better by this point, and we were able to get out and see the sights. I’ve always said that Austin reminds me of Brisbane, and Ryan agreed that Brisbane has a similar feel to Austin.

The university and the residential college where I lived (Union College) looked relatively the same, with some minor improvements, but there has been a lot of development in downtown Brisbane. First night we walked over the [new] pedestrian bridge to the South Bank, with good views of the city. The great Streets Beach and pool were still there (where my first scuba lesson took place years and years ago), but now there are a ton of restaurants and bars and a marketplace on the weekends. Looks like a fun place!
      

November 5 was Melbourne Cup Day; think Kentucky derby, but more national involvement and much more celebration. Everyone, and I mean everyone, leaves work early to party. We headed to a bar in one of the city squares to people watch, have a drink, and catch the race. Since the bartender could not tell us the official drink of the Melbourne cup, we opted for a glass of wine and a mint julep, only to later find out from the women sitting next to us that it is champagne. We then wandered through the city, down the Bicentennial path along the river.
      
      

While in Brisbane, we were able to meet up with Craig and his fiance Karen (Craig is a friend from uni), Edwin (IBMer I met in Argentina), and Snoopy (another friend from uni). It was great to see them all and catch up. Snoopy said I should join the FaceTube so we can keep in touch . Unfortunately, I forgot to get a picture with him!
      

The following day we made a quick stop at the XXXX (four ex) Brewery for a tour before catching the train down to the Gold Coast. Ryan compares XXXX to Budweiser in the U.S. XXXX Gold is one of the most popular beers in Australia. Ryan learned how to properly pour a beer from the tap (though I think he already knew).
      

About halfway through our flight from Bangkok to Kuala Lumpur, it hit me. I started to get cold sweats; Nicole got me an apple juice to help prevent fainting. I eventually made a quick trip to the bathroom then settled in for landing — except that our pilot said we’d be in a holding pattern for a while. After landing, we taxied for what seemed to be an eternity, eventually coming to a stop. People unbuckled and grabbed their bags while the flight attendants informed us we were waiting for a ground crew to open the door. 10 minutes later, they informed us that we had to be towed to a different gate…which is quite an undertaking once people have started to squish themselves into the aisle to disembark. After another 20 minutes of taxiing (and deteriorating medical condition) we arrived at the real parking spot, walked down the staircase, and set out on a 1km hike to the terminal. Once inside, I made friends with the closest bathroom, hoping to get better before our flight to Perth. Feeling rather bullish at one point, we ventured into the bathroomless pre-screened area to prepare for boarding. Nevermind…bad idea.

Nicole amazingly arranged for our checked luggage to meet us at the baggage claim. Luckily Americans don’t need a separate visa to go through customs, so we hopped from one bathroom to another through the airport to the on-site medical clinic where I checked in for some IV fluids and medicine while Nicole figured out the logistics of a hotel and flight changes. The on-site hotel was not one we would recommend, but it gave me enough rest for us to continue on to Perth the next day (29 hours later than expected).

I’d like to take this time to thank Nicole for sticking with me in sickness and in health on our honeymoon I apologize for this habit of touring the medical facilities of developing countries.

Once in Perth, I enjoyed the bed in the hotel room the entire next day. I spent time trying to figure out the rules of the rugby and cricket games on TV — negatory. Nicole went on a self-guided walking tour of the city…the weather was beautiful, so she says. A long wander along the Swan River, past the Bell Tower containing bells originally housed in St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, and through the hilly King’s Park produced these amazing pictures.