DLSoce

Making A Dream A Reality

For decades, I have always wanted to visit Australia, but was never able to make it come true. Persistence, determination and a flexible schedule allowed me and my family to find a way. Since my husband works for an airline, we utilized the standby system and flew to Sydney. As I’ve stated before, going standby is a little bit like playing chess, and it takes an understanding of how all the airlines work. This was our first attempt at an international flight, so I wasn’t sure how it was going to work out. I’ve been doing my homework by watching flight loads and seasonal tourism for at least the last 6 months. It landed, pun intended, almost perfectly!

Anyone who knows me knows how much I’m a fan of sports and all things outdoors. I have been fortunate enough to have been able to participate in competitive sports almost my entire life, ranging from team sports of basketball, volleyball, softball and more recently, triathlons and trail running/hiking. Whenever we travel, several outdoor excursions are always included. As an athlete growing up, my favorite time to watch sports was during the Summer Olympics. I never competed as a swimmer until triathlons came along later in life, but I was always a strong swimmer. (I should have swam in school, but that’s another story) While watching the Olympics, I became a fan of the Australian athletes, everything from basketball to swimming. It was always particularly exciting to watch the strong Aussie swimmers compete against my home country the U.S.A., which also have famously strong swimmers. That is where my admiration of the beautiful country of Australia began, some 3 to 4 decades ago. Top that with the love of anything to do with water sports. I definitely couldn’t wait to see the gorgeous coastal lands of The Land Down Under, and I wasn’t disappointed!

Back to Standby

For anyone who has the luxury or benefit you get as an airline employee, I’ll give a few pointers we learned. Standby isn’t completely free as some think, there are access fees and taxes involved, depending on the carrier. For this trip, we has access to all four carriers that fly out of LAX and San Francisco to Sydney. The more access you have, the better odds of catching an extra space. We utilized what’s called paid revenue standby to get on a flight out of Phoenix Sky Harbor. Our starting point is also one of the hardest to get a standby flight out of. We are long overdue for another airport in the metropolitan area, and it shows when traveling. The airplanes leaving are almost always full or overbooked. This is the reason we chose paid revenue standby. It’s cheaper that a full fair and puts you to the top of the line for standby and when you miss a space, the airline automatically rolls you to the next available flight to try again. The reason I chose LAX over San Francisco was that there was more open seats available by the flight load numbers that morning. The next step was to wait until late night. The international flights tend to leave just before midnight, Pacific time. The first night, we just missed getting seats on the United flight. About 5-6 standby passengers made it on, while we were just after that. My husband insisted that we wait until it pulled away before we left. He has to travel standby as a mechanic to make his way to a location for a repair and has found that, sometimes, there’s still a chance before they close the doors that they find room. Well, we knew this could happen, so we had it built-in that we would give it at least a couple of nights of trying before we went back home. Late that night, we found a hotel next to the airport. A word of advice, book the room before midnight, all the booking apps push you to the next day which usually means a 2 pm check-in not 1 am. I had to make direct calls in the middle of the night with an exhausted family, soooo much fun! I worked it out with a bit of patience and a late night taxi.

The second day, we spent the day strolling Santa Monica Beach and the pier, and then made our way back to the airport for a second attempt at the United flight. Well, while riding to the airport, the flight went from delayed to canceled. Ugh!!! The plane was coming from London and had some sort of difficulty, so they canceled. Nearly 300 people would have to make other arrangements. Whoa! Ok, we weren’t ready to give up, so my husband paid his fees to use Delta to travel. We’ve only had to use them once, so he doesn’t pay the annual fee until we need it. It WORKED!!!! By about 11 pm that night, they were able to get all of the standby’s on the plane. We even got Comfort Plus seats, middle level, a little bigger than general. Of course, I had a middle seat but I didn’t care. There was a great feeling of happiness, and the acknowledgment of an amazing gift that was just given to me and my family. I was so HAPPY!!! International flights had been a distant dream for us, and nearly impossible in recent years due to Covid. Australia had only recently opened their boarders to outside tourists. The experiences I had been through in recent years gave me a new understanding of what a gift it was to travel and how, for the first time in my life, it could disappear.

Santa Monica, CA

Arrival In Sydney

After about a 15 hour flight, we made it! We left on the 30th of June from Los Angeles, and landed on the 2nd of July in Sydney. Crazy! Nothing like completely losing a day. Customs was easy to move through, and now we had to find a place to stay. I couldn’t book anything until we made it on to a plane. No problem. The Airbnb app made it easy to find a place, and they were reasonably priced too. Additional bonus, the American dollar was trading way above the Aussie dollar. We ended up getting about a half dollar extra for every dollar spent for the entire trip. Next problem was how to get around. No need for a car, which was probably a good thing because they drive on the left side of the road. I know I would have probably crashed the rental car if I tried. My husband said, “No way!” that he was going to drive. Ha Ha Ha!!! It took most of the week watching the buses drive around town before my mind even thought of where I would be going when turning. Nice thing is that there is clean, safe, reliable public transportation all over the city. This includes, buses, trains and ferries. I wish we would have figured out the ferry access earlier and saved a little bit of money by using the public ferries instead of the tours. On the weekends, it’s even cheaper. There are also max spending limits for the week. After you hit the max, there is no charge. You can find out all the information from the website or the app on how to use the Opal Card. Using Google maps to catch the public transportation was pretty user friendly, especially if you have utilized it in any major city beforehand. https://transportnsw.info/tickets-opal/opal#/login

Circular Quay(“Key”)

This is the center of all things Sydney Harbor. https://www.sydney.com/destinations/sydney/sydney-city/circular-quay You can take the ferry, tours, eat, and visit all the iconic destinations from here. We were unfamiliar with the public ferry system, so a tour was the best for us at the time. We chose the Hop On Hop Off https://www.viator.com/tours/Sydney/Sydney-Harbour-Hop-on-Hop-off-Cruise with the http://www.taronga.org.au/ Zoo included. I highly recommend the Zoo. We ended up buying the two day pass, and jumped on the ferry at Watson Bay, the second day. The crew was very helpful and kind. Kindness was found everywhere we went. The people of Australia were friendly, approachable and always wanted to help. At the dock, I stopped to talk with the well known volunteers seen in so many depictions of Australia, recognized by their hats and red outfits. They were enjoyable to talk with, and we laughed at the differences in how our words have different meanings, even though we all spoke English. I think they are so much more creative. Lol! They have many uses of the word “away”, “take away” (to go), “clean away” (garbage pick up or anything else that needs picking up) and more. Oh, garbage is “rubbish.”

Sydney Opera House

ICONIC!!! I couldn’t wait to see it in person and yes, it was beautiful! We didn’t get to tour it. One of the setbacks from going standby is being able to secure space on tours. Nevertheless, we walked it’s steps, cruised by on a ferry, and simply took in it’s beauty, and marveled at it’s architecture.

Taronga Zoo, Sydney

On the second day of our tickets for the ferry, we picked up the route at Watson’s Bay after using the public bus system from Bondi Beach, where we were staying. This day was rainy, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the ride to the zoo and around Sydney Harbor. The zoo is smaller than something like the San Diego Zoo, but around the same size as our Phoenix Zoo. The plant life and trails were peaceful and made for a rewarding hike through the grounds. The native species to the country made it a different experience for us to enjoy. The cute green umbrella I bought at the zoo will fit nicely in my carry-on bag for future excursions. https://www.sydney.com/destinations/sydney/sydney-north/mosman/attractions/taronga-zoo-sydney

Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, MCA

Right next to the Circular Quay docks is the MCA. It was free to walk in, and appreciate the talented artists of Australia. Early on in life, I never thought I would like to walk the halls of an art museum, but that has been proven wrong. I have never regreted taking the time to sit in the immense gifts and talent of the arts. The MCA features more than 4,000 works of Australian artists, with highlights on the works by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists. It is in the former Maritime Services building. The architecture itself is Art Deco.

The Royal Botanic Garden

Located along the harbor and adjacent to the Opera House is the Royal Botanic Garden. It was established in 1816 and has a diverse collection of plants from all over Australia and some from outside of the country. It was a nice place to take a break from walking and sit in full view of the harbor and the Sydney Opera House. It was full of native plants and birds. In the evenings, there is a light display to walk through the path, for a fee. During the day, it is free to stroll the green lush paths. https://www.sydney.com/destinations/sydney/sydney-city/city-centre/attractions/royal-botanic-garden-and-the-domain

Bondi Beach

Oh my goodness!!!! I almost don’t even know where to start. We were lucky enough, because it was winter in Australia, to find a lovely Airbnb right off Hall Street. Right down the center of all the fun! Out our door was a farmers market, butcher, bakery, coffee shops, and did I mention, FOOD! So much of it, and so good! My favorite coffee shop was an adorable little shop with a bookstore called https://www.gertrudeandalice.com.au/ Gertrude and Alice. I think I went there twice a day! There was any kind of cuisine your heart and stomach desired. Freshly made, even the bread was made right down the street. Over the week, we had homemade Italian, sea food, ice cream, homemade noodles, hamburgers, donuts made right in front of you, and so much more! The beach was a short walk away. We took in the coastal walk a few times, while staying there for the week. This was my favorite. I could have just stayed there the rest of my life and walked the coast each morning, while having coffee. On Saturday morning, there was a group of open water swimmers that I would have loved to join, had I known ahead of time, and planned to get a wetsuit. https://www.sydney.com/destinations/sydney/sydney-east/bondi/beach-lifestyle

The coastal walk goes all along the coast from Bondi to Coogee, worth every step. We stopped along the way at Tamarama Beach to hike down the cliffs to watch the surfers. My son enjoyed the spicy chicken sandwich at Tamarama Beach Food Kiosk.

Bondi Icebergs Pool

The little kid in me could not wait to make this dream come true to swim laps in the pool, which is known worldwide, and has been there for over 100 years. I had seen this pool so many times over the years on TV or other media. I had hoped it lived up to the hype. It did!! It was cold!!! Worth it!!! What a view!

The Blue Mountains

The Blue Mountains are located about 50K outside of Sydney. It’s about a 2 hour “ish” drive to Katoomba where the main attractions are located. We did not have a car and the tours were booked out, so we opted to take the train. It takes longer, but it was enjoyable and peaceful to watch the countryside go by. You get a glimpse of the smaller towns on the outskirts of the city. Along the way, we crossed gorgeous mountainsides and a river gorge, and caught a view of our first wild kangaroos. Funny, the people of Australia see them all the time, but we were so excited! I guess it’s like someone coming to the southwest and seeing a saguaro for the first time. Ha Ha! In Katoomba we used the Hop On Hop off bus to get around. Again, we were not very familiar with the area so it worked for us. It was fun to get on the double decker bus, and they give you a guided tour. Otherwise, the public bus runs around the same route and comes more often for pickup. The Blue Mountains get there name from the terpenoids emitted in large quantities by the eucalyptus trees in the Blue Mountains, which cause a blue haze. The Blue Mountains have been inhabited by the aboriginal peoples for a millennia. The Gundungurra Tribal Council Aboriginal Corporation is in Katoomba, and, in the lower Blue Mountains, the Darug Tribal Aboriginal Corporation. We only had one day to explore the area, so we limited it to the main stops including The Three Sisters at Echo Point, and Scenic World. The views from Scenic World were beautiful, but we found it very crowded and difficult to get on the rides. It may have been due to the time we arrived, so I would recommend looking for a better opportunity to visit the park when it was less crowded. While stopping for something to eat at Scenic World, I was waiting for my coffee, when the lady in the café told me to wait for the, “buzz off” to light up and to come back for my cappuccino, by the way, the best cappuccinos I have had were in Australia. I said, did you call that, pointing to a “pager” as we call it in the states, a “buzz off?” She said, “yes”, with a smile. It became my favorite term in Australia. If you tell someone to “buzz off” in the states that means to get out of here and leave me alone. Too funny! It made me giggle for the rest of the day!

Random Favorites

Summary

I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to visit such a amazing country. Everyone we encountered was kind and rewarding to spend a little time talking with. This was our first experience traveling intercontinentally. On our way back, we were lucky enough that the plane had several seats open and were able to sit in premium seats. What a nice extra to stretch out and be catered to for a long flight. On the way back, we left in the morning around 7 am Sydney time, watched a sunset and then a sunrise before landing early in the same morning at LAX. What a weird and marvelous thing to see. Our flight attendant knew we had gotten the golden egg as a standby, and made our experience extra special. He brought all kinds of treats to my son and I. The food was great. I spent a little time talking with him while stretching my legs, and told him how grateful I was for his kindness, and the grace of getting to sit right next to first class was not lost on me or my family. I can’t wait for the next adventure. I definitely would love to go back and visit more of the country. Maybe while seeing New Zealand? Sounds like a plan in the making!!!

Thanks for reading,

DLSoce