Fun in the Sun: Bondi Beach and Manly Beach

I spent another amazing weekend at the beach. Will I ever get sick of beach time? I think not. I went to Sydney with Holly, Emma and Pretty. Holly goes to USC with me and I met Emma and Pretty at Bruce Hall. We arrived in Sydney early Saturday morning. The weather was very humid, which reminded me of lovely Indiana summers. We stayed in a hostel in downtown Sydney, which to my surprise was pretty clean and exceeded my expectations. The trip began by exploring downtown and the Circular Quay area. On the way to the famous Sydney bridge, we stopped by the botanical gardens which were gorgeous. Although when I looked up in the trees there were hundreds of bats hanging out. I can't say I have ever seen a real bat before, so that was interesting to see them all just hanging from the tree limbs.  I was ready to take some lovely pictures when I realized I left my battery at home, so I had to rely on Emma for my weekend pictures. I bought a disposable camera, but I am not sure how those will turn out. After some sight seeing we decided to head down to Bondi Beach. Bondi Beach is the one of the most action packed beaches. It reminded me of where people would go for Spring Break. Blackberry was at the beach putting on different competitions to give away free merchandise. Watching people compete for a free Blackberry is always entertaining. I have noticed that the beaches are much smaller then they are in California, but they all have more personality. There is a beautiful 3.5km walk from Bondi Beach to Bronte Beach. On the way you get to see several different beaches. Something I found rather interesting is that Australians put swimming pools next to their more popular beaches, so that people can swim laps next to the ocean. Hopefully my disposable camera worked so I can show you this combo. We finished the day by having wood-fire pizza and then going to the bars for some cocktails. Sadly I was the only one asked for my proof of age card. Do I really not look 18? O well the night was still enjoyable.

On the walk from Bondi to Bronte Beach. 

Sunday was filled with more beach time! We took a morning ferry ride over to Manly Beach. Manly Beach is also very crowded, but you can find quieter beaches around it. Emma's family is from Manly, so we walked a little past Manly Cove and met up with them there. They let us use there snorkel gear, which I am so thankful for. We got to see all kinds of fish and the reefs were spectacular. The sea urchins were huge and I only saw a few jellyfish thank goodness!! Snorkeling was by far the highlight of my trip. We headed back to Canberra the next morning. Now I am starting to get a bit of a cold, but the weekend was worth it!