Jonathan and I are wrapping up our 3rd day in Sydney now. The flight over from San Francisco was long and uneventful. Of course I had a hard time sleeping and probably only got about 2 hours in. We arrived in Sydney around 10:00 AM on Tuesday though, so we found a Hostel, stashed our stuff then started exploring the city right away. We have seen the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge everyday so far since the train station where we have to go through for must of our destinations is right there at the Harbour. So far we have walked around the downtown area, Darling Harbour, gone to some free Museums, taken a ferry across the Harbour to Manly Beach, gone through some local markets, and had a couple of beers at Sydney's oldest Pub. On the agenda before we leave here Sunday is to walk across the Harbour Bridge, go to Bondi Beach, walk through the Olympic Park, watch the Holland vs. Australia Soccer match, and see some Australian wildlife. After we leave Sydney we'll be flying to Townsville which is on the Great Barrier Reef, just south of Cairns. It was cheaper to fly there and rent a car then to fly all the way to Cairns, and then we can explore some of the rain forests and beaches easier.

Before leaving for Sydney though I spent a few days in San Francisco with cousin Tim Lueth, and it was incredible. I took the train from Bakersfield to San Francisco, which took about 7 hours, but Tim met me downtown and we had a few drinks for happy hour, then ate dinner downtown. The next day he took me to wine country and I got to experience a few different Winery's in Sonoma and Napa Valley, and learn more about the entire process of making wine. On Saturday we were regular tourists in San Francisco and did A LOT of walking. We started the day out by going to a park called Twin Peaks, which offers spectacular views of the city and Pacific Ocean. After that we went to the Haight-Ashbury district...which I really enjoyed, and had breakfast at the People's Cafe right on Haight Street. From there we went to another park that had some beautiful Victorian homes around it and again had great views of the city. You may be familiar with the view if you ever watched the TV show Full House. We also went to Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39 to see all the Sea Lions, saw the crookedest street, good views of Alcatraz, and the Golden Gate Bridge, and the list goes on. Tim and I then ate breakfast in Pacifica and watched the Surfers. Jonathan got in Sunday afternoon, and we spent a little bit of time walking around the city before Tim dropped us off at the Airport for our 9:00 PM flight that night.