Day 10 - Thursday February 22, 2024 - Flying to Sydney

By Ellen Outten

I would guess we could call this an easy day.  We had most of the morning at leisure before leaving the hotel at 9:45 for the 20 minute drive to the airport.  Our flight leaves at 11:50 am arriving in Sydney at 4:10 pm.. it's a 2 hour and 50 minute flight and we move our clocks forward 1 1/2 hours.  Here we go again with the 1/2 hour increments!

So while I sit waiting for the 5th flight of this trip which just showed as delayed by 45 minutes, I'll recount some thoughts I've had along the way during the past week.

If we think the US is big, we're wrong.  We drove 300 miles and the road never took a bend or a turn.

What we call cattle ranches, the Aussie's call cattle stations.   The largest one is 
2,000,000 acres or 3,100 sq. miles.  It is 10 x bigger than the King Ranch in Texas.  The one we drove through was Curtain Springs and was only 1,028,000 acres.

The scenery is gorgeous around Ayers Rock and definitely should be on everyone's list.

Make your middle name Gumby!  Be flexible at all times.  We have no control over weather or airline flights or the people who travel on tours with us.  

Never travel with more than one suitcase and a really small carryon.  Not a carry on, a backpack and a suitcase.   It's hard enough to juggle everything with a suitcase and a carryon.  

Don't go to the Outback in their summer months!

Our plane finally left at almost 1:00 p.m. and we arrived in Sdyney approximately 5:30 p.m. dinner at the hotel was postponed until 7:00 p.m. and it was delicious. We had pre-ordered either roast duck or snapper fish.  Whichever one you chose it was obviously delicious. Dinner is over, it's 9:00 p.m. and we are due down in the lobby before 8:00 a.m. tomorrow for a half day sightseeing tour of Sydney followed by a harbor cruise and lunch on board the cruise ship. We haven't done much today except sit around an airport but it feels like it's been a long day.



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