Zero miles in 16 days

I can't believe, I haven't ran since I returned from Australia!!! I can already see unwanted changes in my body. It hasn't helped that I've been eating non-stop, like a pig.

All the walking and running I did in Australia, plus the long plane ride back to Manila, somehow affected my knees. My right knee was swollen for 4 days, it felt like it had some extra fluid there... But it's all better now. I'm going to have to start running again soon. Thank god my marathon training begins next week!

Some pictures from my runs in Australia...

Days 13 & 14: Sydney

Day 13
It was an easy and unstructured day. Did an early morning run around Hyde Park, Circular Quay, Sydney Opera House, Royal Botanic Garden and Central Station. After a late breakfast, planned to take the ferry to Watson's Bay then head over to Coogee, but decided to explore the surrounding neighborhoods instead. Walked around the Surry Hills and Darlinghurst areas, discovering cool little streets filled with cafes, little design and boutique shops. Just my kind of thing. Then headed over to Darling Harbour to scope out my route for tomorrow's run.

Day 14   My last day...
Early morning run around Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour and crossed the Pyrmont Bridge. Last minute shopping at Kinokuniya bookstore, Woolworths, Sportsgirl and Paddy's Market. A lot of salivating over Australian designed items especially the Sheridan linens and Japanese/Eastern inspired clothing. Evening flight out of Sydney back to Manila.

That concludes my trip to Australia.

Days 10-12: Sydney and Blue Mountains

Day 10

• Heavy morning rain messed up my plans to run along The Rocks, Circular Quay and Sydney Opera House
  
• Cruised along Sydney Harbour via Majistic Cruise Smart. Awesome 1 hour cruise!
  
• The Rocks Walking Tour. History and other interesting facts about The Rock and how Sydney was discovered.
  
• Sydney Wildlife World. A waste of time, except that I saw Koalas for the first time.

Day 11

• Half day City Sights and Manly Beach Tour. Nice wide beaches over at Manly, but I prefer Bondi Beach. Surf was too strong, so not a whole lot of swimming allowed at Curl Curl.
  
• Great Chunky Beef Pie at Hamlet's at Corso. I'm loving meat pies. Must find a place in Manila!
  
• Halfway stroll of the Sydney Bridge, also called a coat hanger. Great day, hardly any wind.
  
• Walked up Sydney Bridge Pylon for 360 degree views of Sydney. Spectacular panoramic views, better than Syney Tower without the distracting glares!
  
• The Sydney Opera House Essential Tour. Incredible architecture and interesting commentary by Charlie, the tour guide.
  
• Watched a movie at the Dendy, The Diving Bell and The Butterfly. Thought I made the wrong choice, but ended up liking this French film. Very original story.
  
• Sydney Aquarium. It was really awesome to see the sharks swim all around and over me!!! Breezed through the Aquarium, other things that stood out were the little penguins and the colourful reefs ~ that's as close as I'll get to the Great Barrier Reef.
  
• Took Monorail back to hostel.

Day 12

• Woke up at 6:45am to catch the 7:25 train ride to the Blue Mountains. It takes 2 hours to get from Sydney Central to Katoomba.
  
• Purchased the Blue Mountains Explorer Hop On/Hop Off transport to get around.
  
• Did a 2hr hike from Skyway Eastern Anchorage all the way to the base of Scenic World. Took the Railway all the way back up. That's the steepest rail I've ever seen!
  
• Did another hike from Honeymoon Lookout all the way down the Giant Stairway, that's 890 steps going down! I did a freaking 1780 steps! Never had my heartbeat beat so hard. I was ready to walk another 2 hours to the Railway to avoid climbing the stairs, but I lacked the time!
  
• Caught the bus at the Echo Point - Three Sisters to Leura Village.
  
• Devonshire Tea at Bygone Beautys. How very delicious and proper. They had over a thousand teapots on display!
  
• Caught the 3:24pm train back to Sydney. What a day!

Pictures to follow soon.

Day 9: Sydney

• Flew to Sydney in the morning
  
• Coastal walk from Bondi Beach to Coogee. Stunning views!!!
  
• Gay & Lesbian Parade back on Oxford St. Similar to the Berlin Love Parade.
  
• Dinner at Chinatown

Day 8: Gold Coast

• Morning run around Burleigh Heads and the promenade. Awesome run, a few drizzles but the sun eventually came out
  
• Shopping for gifts and requests from family members
  
• Walked along the beach from Palm Beach to Currimbin. Experienced a sand storm

Day 7: Brisbane & Gold Coast

Brisbane

• University of Queensland St. Lucia
  
• Hop on hop off on the Jetty Cat from the University, to Southbank, Toowong, and Brett's Wharf
  
• Tried an Aussie delicacy called chiko roll, a chicken in a roll. The one I tried was disappointing.
  
• Also tried a scone with cream and strawberry. Now that was really yummy!

Gold Coast

• Walked around Surfer's Paradise and Broadbeach
  
• Returned to Goldstein's for their excellent steak pie with mushy green peas
  
• Cocktails in the balcony once again

Day 5: Melbourne / Gold Coast

• Stayed at my aunt and uncle's brand new condo. They have an awesome beach front unit on Palm Beach. Spectacular 280 degree views of the beach!
  
• Lunch at Goldsteins. Really good steak pie with mushy green peas!!!
  
• Coastal drive from Pt. Danger all the way down to the Spit
  
• Cocktails on the balcony

Melbourne: Days 3 & 4

Day 3
Half Day City Sights Tour

• St Patricks Church
• Federation Square
• MCG & Rod Laver Arena
• Docklands
• Royal Botanic Garden
• Remembrance Hall

St. Kilda

• Luna Park
• Ackland St
• Promenade
• Monarch Cake Shop

Crown Casino
Melbourne Aquarium
Victoria State Library
Eureka 88 Sky Deck
Day 4
Ran along Yarra River ~ drizzly but an awesome run!
Fitzroy St: Cool shops & stationeries, lots of handcrafted items, cafes and restaurants
Walking tour of the Eastern Enclave for a taste of the Victorian life ~ lots of balconies with amazing iron work
Watched a movie, Bella, at the Kino Dendy. Movie is highly recommended
Chinatown / Greek town

Melbourne, Part One

Just a quick update on how my Melbourne leg is going so far.

Enjoying myself, meeting people and seeing a whole lot of sights. The hostel where I'm staying at is fine. Location is GREAT! It's at Flinders Lane and Swanston, so central to everything! But my bed is a bit lumpy (what can I expect from AU$30/nite). I have 3 roommates, a girl from Japan, Korea and an Australian from Perth. They're all so sweet and helpful.

So, here's what I've done so far...

Day One:
Melbourne Aquarium
Melbourne River Cruise - Up River
City Highlights & Dandenong Ranges Tour
Melbourne 360 Observation Deck

Day Two:
Running around the Tan Track, Royal Botanic Garden
Fitzroy Gardens: Cook's Cottage
St. Patricks Cathedral
Melbourne Museum
Lygon St. (Little Italy)
Old Melbourne Gaol
QVB / Myer / David Jones
Free outdoor opera by the Melbourne Symphony
Chinatown

No wonder my legs are so tired... Just looking at the above list, I wonder how I was able to fit all these in.

Travel planning: Australia

Been busy the past few weeks preparing for my trip to Australia. From scheduling my itinerary, finalizing trip details, to ripping movies/tv shows for my iPod. Boy, you should see my travel calendar, each day is packed with both sightseeing and some kind of activity, whether it be surfing, skywalking, hiking, and of course, running.

Also starting to think about what to take along... Packing is such a science, you want to be prepared for all situations, but yet you also want to travel light. Do I bring the laptop and/or the Touch, the Garmin and/or the Nano, hiking boots and/or running shoes, which camera, argh, the list goes on! Anyways, I still have a few more days before I leave, I'm sure I'll figure it all out.

I'm over the roof about this trip, but at the same time I'm a bit anxious as it's been years since I've travelled by myself. However, I've done it before (the worrying and traveling solo) and each time was wonderful. And I'm sure this trip won't be any different.

Well, I hope to post little trip snippets here and there, but if I'm not able to, I'll tell you about it in three weeks. Ciao for now.

Travel planning

My aunt and uncle invited me to visit them in the Gold Coast region of Australia. I jumped! HIGH!

This could well be my last hurrah before I move to San Francisco in March. If only I can get a ticket!

All PAL & Qantas flights to Melbourne/Sydney in February are solidly booked. There are a few business class seats available, but that's way over my budget... I'm waitlisted so I'm crossing my fingers that someone cancels!

My itinerary ::
4 nights in Melbourne, daytrip to Great Ocean Road
5 nights in the Gold Coast
4 nights in Sydney

This will be a super budget trip because I'll most likely be traveling solo. Therefore I'll be hostelling it in Melbourne and Sydney.