The Longest Day

  Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Saturday, August 8, 2009

Wrapping up the trip:

On August 7 we flew back to Sydney from Hamilton Island, which reminded my sister of James Bond: expensive hotels, palm trees, tiny airport where the plane is right next to the terminal, and on the water nothing but yachts and floatplanes.





That evening we met up with Roberta, who had been traveling through Australia at the same time as me, but in a different direction, and this was the only day we were both in the same city at the same time.



When we finally got our bill (the waiters kept giving us water an hour after we finished our food), we had to rush to the next establishment: It was Fleur's last night in Sydney after 5.5 months there, so we had drinks with her housemates and played a quick round of pool.



The next day, August 8, was the longest day of the year for me, because I crossed the date line from west to east. I started at 8 AM Sydney time with a trip to Coles to buy breakfast food, and ended in my bed in Toronto, more than 30 hours later, but still on August 8. Spent the first flight in between hungover colege kids and the second flight squished between the window and the fattest guy on the plane, so I didn't sleep very much in that time!

Overall, it was a productive trip:  I read 6.5 books, visited 4 states and 1 territory, met lots of old and new friends and family members, traveled on boats, planes, trains, bikes, and cars, hiked in deserts, forests, and through cities, snorkeled in the ocean (100km off the coast), watched Aussie Rules Football, saw a couple of platypus and a gazillion cockatoos, tried Vegemite (yuck!), looked at the stars, used a public barbecue, visited museums, a jail, botanical gardens, a university, a zoo, bars, and some national parks.

And now, to find a job...