Blog #9

Saturday, our first completely free day since we have been here, I woke up and leisurely took my time on getting to Paddington Market.  When I asked the front desk the best way to get there, I was told either the 378 or the 380, but when I got on the 378, I was getting farther and farther away from the direction I thought Paddington was.  Once at Bronte Beach, the end of the line for 378, I understood that I had to go the other way.  After that I caught the 378 the other way and just took it back to Bondi Junction.  I decided that I knew where Oxford Street was; why not just walk there.  On my way to Paddington Market I passed Centennial Park and some pedestrian shopping areas.  It was a pretty walk and it caused my mind to understand where Bondi Junction and Paddington Market were in comparison to each other and the rest of the city.  Once I was on Oxford Street, I went shopping along the other side of the market where there are fun, more retail boutique stores.  Saving the best for last, the foray into Paddington Market was very enjoyable.  It catered perfectly to my love of art, handmade craft, and eclectic taste.  Instead of being completely based upon souvenirs, which are great too, it showcased the artisans of Australia.  For my mom, I found a great bar of soap that is really a work of art.  I also found a hand-sewn dress and a hand printed tank top with a tree on it! 

            That night was Festival First Nightl.  Knowing only what I learned from Gentry’s presentation, I was very intrigued by the concept the free first night of the festival open to everyone to highlight and celebrate the arts.  The First Night had events for everyone.  It went from 3-11 at night and had events such as “You Can Ukulele,” the burlesque type critically renowned show, “Smoke and Mirrors,” and a great hip-hop ish band called “Arrested Development.”  Just walked up from the train tunnel on the far end of Martin Place presented our group with a culture shock that we are never accustomed to in South Dakota.  The whole area and walkway of Martin Place, from the water fountain to the hospital was jammed packed with people interested in a great time, the arts and the culture of Sydney.

            Today, I got to travel to the Olympic Park and watch the Sydney Tennis Tournament that started today.  I was really hoping to go, but I didn’t know if anyone else would be interested or if it was too far to go out there for one afternoon, but I am so glad I made the expedition.  It turned out to not be overly complicated to get to the park.  The grounds pass was only $10 AU and got us into every court except center court, which we learned didn’t look at the tickets either.  Some of my highlights from the tennis tournament were seeing Igor Andreev play, sitting on center court, and seeing a challenge live!

            I did a fabulous job of stimulating the Australian economy this weekend with trips to Paddington Market, the Olympic Park, the Sydney Opera House and experiencing First Night.  All of the venues and events that I experienced were very tourist related.  Although I feel like less of a tourist because we have been here for going on two weeks and I am becoming increasingly comfortable with the train system (minus the incident getting to Paddington), I am still going to all of the famous tourist locations.  At these locations there are large amounts of people from all over the world.  Just like that first day at the beach, I continually hear multiple languages being spoken around me almost constantly.  This upholds the viewpoint that Australia, and Australia’s largest city is a globalized and well-connected location.  Mostly on an individual and globalization 3.0 basis, thousands and thousands of people are coming together in this city to experience the tourist attractions, stimulate the economy and learn more than just stereotypes about Australians.

First Night Festival

Picture from Sydney First Fight

Tennis Tourney