Sunday, October 24, 2010

Day 1 in Sydney

Aug 2nd:  We arrived in Sydney in the early a.m.  Once through customs, we went to the customer service office to inquire on my luggage.  The airline office in HK had given me about $80. worth of local currency until my things were found, though it didn't sound promising when they said, "Okay, you're looking for a black hard shell suitcase, yes?" 
"No!  It's green fabric!" 
This was not good.  I'd purchased some underwear, a couple of t-shirts and shorts while in HK, things (relatively) comfortable in Hong Kong's 95 degree days; but, it was winter in Australia now.  I needed the warmer clothes I'd packed.

The Qantas personnel in Sydney were very sympathetic.  They claimed they'd traced my suitcase back to London and would probably get it to me by the following morning.  Then, they gave me 250 Australian dollars for my troubles!  Maybe I could milk this for a while longer.

After a 2 hour wait for a shuttle, we headed to the Arts Hotel in Paddington.  The area is very bohemian, with book stores, funky clothing shops, cafes, bars, a movie theatre, and lots of colorful rainbow flags everywhere ... hmmm.  It was cold and rainy and we were tired from travelling half way around the world over the past 2 days, so we stayed close to the hotel, walking around the neighborhood.  We ate lunch in a local bar, bought some water at a convenience store and called it an early night.

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