Sydney

So our hostel is not up to much even through it had good reviews. Tokyo Village in the Surrey Hills has a few good points i.e. we have a tv and sink in our room and the showers are good with lots of hot water. It's not too busy but the kitchen area is too small for the amount of people staying here. It's about 10 minute walk into the city which we did everyday even though the first 3 days it didn't stop raining and was so cold.
Our sleeping pattern is all over the place for the first 3 days but we still managed to get out and amount doing the tourist stuff. On Friday we had already booked to walk around the outside of the Sydney Tower Eye which was disappointing mainly due to it raining and visibility was really bad.
After this we walked to Darling Harbour to visit Wild Life Sydney and Madame Tussaud's, both were ok. Normally I wouldn't be interested in these type of attractions but we had a combo ticket and it was raining so a few hours were killed. Feeling tired now it was ready to return to hostel for some well earned sleep. 2pm we woke on Saturday, not sure how I sleep so long without needing a wee but I did. So glad for the porridge I brought over as I was so hungry, was worried about bringing food over but had no trouble in customs. We mainly brought packet food such as porridge, pasta, couscous, soup and tea bags.
Late on Saturday we headed back to Darling Harbour to visit Sydney Aquarium which again is great for families but not for me. Saturday night they have a huge firework display in the harbour but again it rained but was still good all the same.
On Sunday we took advantage of the cheap travel and took the ferry to Manly, the ferry took 30 minutes and you pick it up from circular quay. The ferry is good for great bridge and Opera House views. The trip was nice and calm until it reaches the outlet and then it gets really rough. We visited the Manly Sea Life Park but once again it's really just an attraction for families but killed an hour. Manly is really worth a visit and Manly beach is great better than Bondi I think. There is a nice walk along the coast to Shelley Beach where if you want to climb a little the views are amazing.
Monday we had our bridge climb booked so we're up early for our bowl of porridge. The bridge climb was really good but I think the groups are too big and the headsets kept breaking. The weather was the best with not a cloud in the sky. We spent 3 hours doing the preparation and climb and off course the obligatory photos you have to view. The ticket also gave us entry into one of the pylons where again the views of Sydney were great.
The night before I had made a few inquiries about some vehicles and a guy called Tim called me back and so we made arrangements to meet him that afternoon over at Kings Cross. He worked for a company called www.travelwheels.com.au they mainly hire vehicles but do also sell some. He had a really nice Toyota Tarago camper van for $11,200 (£5,300) with 6 months rego and I got him to throw in a full tank of petrol. The car he showed us wasn't the one we could buy so we had to go to another depot to view another car the same. At Botany Bay the car we viewed again was really nice and decided to buy it even though it was over budget by a couple of thousand. Once all the paperwork was completed and we paid a deposit we then had to find some good wifi to arrange the money transfer.
Back at circular quay we walked to the Opera House where a seal was resting on the rocks, looked quite lonely and lost. From the Opera House there is a nice walk around to Mrs. Macquaries point and chair. This walk takes you through the Royal Botanic Gardens which are beautiful gardens which ponds, a train, plenty of seating and a cafe. Today is a very hot day, the hottest so far and as we needed to cool down so we headed for the Sydney Library. This is a library, a real library like you see in the movies with students sitting at rows of desks and floor to ceiling of books. The main thing is you can always get wifi in a library so we were able to do the money transfer to pay for car as we want to collect on Thursday and head out of Sydney for the Blue Mountains.
China Town is well worth a visit especially if you like Chinese food, I'm surprised it's not bigger as I think the biggest population of Sydney is oriental. Also there is a lot of street beggars in Sydney, they sit everywhere in the road, on crossings and pavements. Also in the city parks is like a tent city which is a shame as it kinda puts you off from walking through them.
There is two free walking tours, one during the day and the other which we did was around The Rocks is an evening one. It lasts 90 minutes and was really interesting with lots of facts about the early settlers of Sydney.
Our last full day in Sydney we went to Bondi Beach, it wasn't a great day but at least it wasn't raining. To me Bondi is just a beach, nothing special but there is a lovely coastal walk which covers two other beaches and the walk ends at Bronte beach. Bondi has a big shopping area set back from the beach so time for a sit down and a coffee.
Thursday before we left the hostel we did some washing and left it hanging on their line while we went into the city, returning later to collect our bags and washing. After collecting our clothes I only had 2 tee shirts and I know in a week I worn more than 2 tee shirts, so someone had nicked my tee shirts, hopefully that was all the took. So we are of to pick car up so hopefully the funds have reached the dealers account. Yes funds have cleared so we can collect the our new home for the next 6 months and hit the road to start our great road trip.
TIP: if you intend to buy a vehicle here open up an account with HIFX, it's a foreign exchange company but it all be done online free of charge and funds arrive within 48hrs.
After leaving the Botany Bay we hit rush hour traffic so to travel the 50 miles to the Blue Mountains took us 3hrs and that's stopping for food and a crate of beer.