Flight Of The Kiwi

Catching an international flight at 0700 hours is a challenge, considering you have to wake up at 0330 to shower & get dressed, catch a cab at 0430 to the airport, and get through the tedious lines of check-in, security, and boarding. Due to overestimating, I made it to the airport with more than 2 hours to kill. I don’t think I truly woke up until the plane was in the air and I thank my sub-conscious again for not boarding a different flight.

My Air New Zealand flight from Christchurch to Sydney lasted 3 hassle-free hours and my suitcase arrived in one piece. I still think it would be better for the flight crew to teach passengers how to land the plane instead of how to fasten our seatbelts. I met up with my brother Roman, who had bussed from his hometown of Canberra to show me around. His appearance hadn’t changed since I last saw him – still has the long European soccer hair look. After paying $14AUS each, we caught a train to Lewisham station, located in a suburban area near the city centre. The airport train line is privately owned, explaining the high ticket price.

The rail system sacrifices appearance for performance – the trains run smoothly, passing by security walls decorated with graffiti, dirty industrial buildings, and stations that could use some paint & renovation. These picky details don’t bother established citizens who hop between trains, hoping to get to their destinations on time, and away from the hot summer sun.

For the duration of our visit, my brother and I stayed at the place of his university friend, Alex. The house accommodates him, his two younger brothers, & father. Getting along wouldn’t be a problem for me because the brothers were all heavy gamers, immersing themselves in the worlds of Warcraft III, Dungeons & Dragons, Call of Duty 4, and Mirror’s Edge, just to name a few. As for occupations, the two older brothers are professional stuntmen.

Roman & I hopped a train ($3.40AUS for tickets) to the city centre the next day. The weather was hot & humid. The industrial scenery slowly disappeared, being replaced with commercial & luxury residential buildings. We disembarked at Circular Quay station, standing above the ferry terminals, and sitting under a main highway. Ahead of us in the distance were the two most recognizable landmarks: the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.

This area of Sydney is teeming with tourists, buskers, and merchandise sellers; in short, a tourist trap. Roman & I navigated our way through the endless crowds towards the Opera House, a project that took 17 years to complete, and was designed by John Utzon. The Opera House is not one structure but three: restaurant, theatre, and opera. While photographing this 20^th century wonder, my thoughts reminded me of the racing game Need For Speed II – there’s a level where you race around the Opera House in an exotic car of your choosing.

From the Opera House, Roman & I tramped through the Royal Botanic Gardens, enjoying the lush green flora & animal life. For some reason, there were a lot of runners that day; I was tempted to run alongside one mass & ask why was everyone running? The Gardens are also home to hundreds of bats.

The last place we visited for the day was the New South Wales Parliament building – the Canadian equivalent being provincial parliament. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get a tour of the place and one of the chambers was off limits to the public. Nevertheless, we photographed what we could and enjoyed the contemporary artworks on display before heading back to Lewisham for much needed R&R.

To Be Continued . . .