M-whY

The first day in Sydney was plagued by rain. The weather forecast predicted rain for the next couple days as well. I spent the morning visiting travel agencies to arrange bus passes for my tour of Australia. Every bastard and his dog (to borrow some Australian slang) travels the east coast, from Sydney to Cairns. Partly to be different, but also because I have an irresistable urge to see the Outback, my itinerary will take me to Melbourne and Adelaide, before going straight up the middle to Darwin.

Despite the rain, I didn't feel like sitting around the hostel waiting for the sun to come out. I walked down George St, past Victorian style architecture, modern skyscrapers, and Hungry Jack's, home of the Whopper down under. At the end of George St was Circular Quay. Around the corner was the Sydney Opera House and a view of the Sydney Harbor Bridge. I intended to come back on a nicer day for better photo ops, but I took some pictures anyways. I wonder if I'm the first person to feature Sydney's two internationally recognized attractions in the rain?

The city has plenty of museums and art galleries for inclement weather. However, I wasn't in the museum mood. Aquariums, on the other hand, I was up for. From Circular Quay, I walked to Darling Harbor, doing my best to stay dry, yet still arriving at Sydney Aquarium thoroughly soaked.

Housing over 11,000 aquatic animals, Sydney Aquarium is definately worth seeing. It was crowded though. Because of the downpour, every tourist in the city had decided to come see some fish. Most impressive was the shark exhibit, where people would walk down a glass tube with huge sharks swimming overhead. At the Great Barrier Reef exhibit, I took it upon myself to find Dory, Bubbles, and of course, Nemo. After looking at so many fish, I had an urge to get sushi for dinner.

Instead, I returned to my dirty hostel and made myself a bowl of pasta. I skipped taking a shower. The bathroom didn't look very clean. I made a mental note to look for a new hostel tomorrow. There's got to be a better place to stay!

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