Highlights and lowlights of my trip to Australia...so far!

Good Morning Everyone (it is morning here).

I'm blogging from Sydney, more specifically from J1's spare bedroom along with Puppy (the cat) who seems to need some loving, cuz she keeps climbing onto my lap with her cold paws (of course I sit in fear while she's on me) so it may take a while for me to post this blog.

Pictoral blogging has been my choice, but since I don't want to download the 1GB card I've already filled up on J1's computer, pictures will have to follow in three weeks.

I've decided to blog now because I know I will forget everything that I've done while I was here by the time I get back, even with the photos. So here is my update:

Day 1 or Day 3 or 3 days of travel-

I chose to fly Air Canada from Toronto-Vancouver-Honolulu-Sydney. Which was the most direct way for my buck. All in all the trip was successful other than these few things. Which mostly had to do with the first leg of the trip.

a)There was a crabby old woman (and drunken burping husband) sitting behind me. She complained and insulted everyone and anything she could possibly think of on the plain. She made a kid turn off his PSP before we even departed, she actually got up and searched the cabin for the person and still complained about it afterwards.
b)I had to listen to these two (you know who you are 35H&K)for the entire flight because my headset console along with the gentleman beside me were broken and there was "nothing we can do about it now" apparently. Even though one flight attendent said they'd just reset it.
c) Some poor girl barfted all over her sister (even sadder) and her father two rows up and to my right. The cabin immediately smeltled of toilet and puke, perhaps the cabin crew is used to this smell becaus it took a while for them to do anything about it. And what they did do was pour coffee grounds all over the seats, and because the flight was full, put blankets over them so they could sit back down. Needless to say, the coffee only masked what was really going on there.

Then when we landed at Vancouver, we were all told to get our luggage even if it was checked all the way thru to Sydney and that we would have to go thru US Customs for the 1.5 hours we were going to be there to switch planes. It was stressful because we felt like the connecting time wasn't very long, plus they sent us to the wrong baggage area (we needed to be in the US side) which happened to be on the other side of the airport, now everyone was hussling and breaking a sweat just to get over there and fill up the forms and take our shoes off.

VS I took pictures of all the unpaided airplane food for you. The last two things were kind of gross (and that is coming from someone who actually can stomach airplain grub).

I sat with the same Indian family all the way here, we must have bought our tickets at the same time. We also found out that we are travelling on the same flights up until Vancouver, but then I get to come home on an earlier flight. I hope they are having a great time in Melbourne visiting his brother, then off to Brisbane, then back to Sydney. Plus I hope they actually made it to their connecting flight.

Sydney airport was a disaster. I don't it should take so long just go get out of the airport. First when we landed we were quarentined for about 30 min. They sprayed "non-toxic" stuff all over our carry-on luggage (I saw them holding their breath!). When we finally got off we had to go thru the customs lines, which were about 20 other flights backed up by 7:30 in the morning. I didn't get to breath a breathe of fresh pouring rain air until after 8:40ish. J1 and T were patiently waiting for me, I was almost afriad they weren't there because it took so long (we arrived at 6:45) but they thought they had missed me.

Should have turned on my cell phone, but I'm too cheap to pay the $2.00/min roaming charges here...I even called Fido and asked them if I could just buy a phonecared here and swap it out, but it turns out my phone is locked and it can't. Thanks J1 for all her efforts in trying to get my cellphone working.

This is the morning of my third day in Sydney, looks like rain again today. Thought there was a drought here? At least they got 85% of their July rain already in the first week. On a positive note, yesterday was gorgeous.