Sydney is definitely a destination with an abundance of cultural and contemporary sites and flavors. Realizing I had some time to travel and airline miles to spare, I decided to make a trip to visit my cousin who just recently moved there from Colombia. She's only been there 6 months and has completely fallen in love with the city. It's funny because she kind of reminds me of me when I moved to NYC - so I totally get her head over heels for the city type of feeling. She is so hard working and driven and I deeply admire her genuineness and passion for photography and life. Visiting Sydney is a trip I will remember for a lifetime. I had the opportunity to spend time with my dear cousin and learn about the Aussie way of life and really experience their world. Australia is a continent the size of U.S. with the population of Texas - about 24 million people. (Which, I found kind of surprising). Most of the population lives in the larger urban cities; Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. There are so many beautiful outdoor sites and activities. It's a great place to visit if you are in to the outdoors and enjoy hiking, surfing, snorkeling or fishing. While I was there we got to climb the Sydney Bridge at night and take pictures of the Sydney Harbor and Opera House at night. We also escaped the city for the two weekends that I was there and went to the Wine Country and Blue Mountains. The wine tour was awesome, we visited several differently boutique wineries with a great group! After the third winery we were all pretty tipsy but I do have to say it was a nice day to unwind from the city and learn about the variety of wines that come from the region. The day at Blue Mountains was breathtaking. They have some serious hiking trails but the stunning views make it all worth while. The 18 hour flight was a little brutal but I made sure to not get many hours of sleep before both of my flights and sure enough I managed to get some rest. However, I do have to admit I did not gather up enough courage to actually try the vegemite. Instead I went the Fish & Chips and Tim Tam route ;) My dear cousin, I feel so lucky to have been able to spend this time with you there. Thank you for taking the time to show me your new home! You are the kindest most loving person. I can't wait until we are all together again! Here are a few pictures we took throughout our days in Sydney.
