12 hours of sleep! I was a new woman this morning. I did need to hatch though, and not do my normal catapult out of bed (I am a morning person). So Tony and I searched Australian TV, which is slim pickings (who needs TV when you have all of this amazing weather?!). But, we came upon a gem this morning. Something so special.
Friends, please say hello to Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo:
Skippy is Australia’s answer to Lassie. Created and released upon happy Aussie boys and girls everywhere, and then syndicated in the US in the early 70’s, Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo is an amazing friend, pet, and detective.
He is ready to help at all times, and can hop like nobody’s business. I don’t know what you have to do, but whatever it is, do that in order to watch this show!
While chanting the theme song to Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo, Tony and I hit the hotel gym. (Here it is:
Skippyyyyyy,
Skippyyyyyyyyy,
Skippy, The Bush Kangarooooooo!)
Actually, it was more like we tapped the gym. Or gently spooned it. My calves are wrecked from the last few days, and overall I think our bodies are just tired! We followed that up with a nice big breakfast at the hotel, and we had a great view from our table, where we could see the rain start to fall.
After packing and checking out of the hotel, we took advantage of the free wifi in the lobby. Unfortunately, my bug has not run its course yet, so I also took lots of medicine and availed myself of the hotel lobby bathroom a conspicuous and embarrassing amount of times.
But still an improvement from yesterday. BTW, we love the Sir Stamford Hotel! Jarrod and Troy, the concierges (is that the plural?), were mega-accommodating, and locked away our luggage so we could go to the Taronga Zoo.
Unfortunately, it was raining. We left with water, wallets, and shorts on, and that’s it. Not smart.
We realized the extent of our lack of preparedness (which we can mostly blame on not being parents) when we were freezing and in need of an umbrella!
Here I am waiting for the ferry to take us across the Harbour from the Quay to the zoo itself:
And when we arrived, we took a quick picture of the entrance:
Despite the “bad” weather, it was still amazing. Overall we lucked out, and ducked in and out of coverage when it really came down. I was not feeling good, but when there are giraffes, and wallabies, and Skippy: The Bush Kangaroo, who can complain? See some pics:
That’s a Wallaby in the forefront, and a female kangaroo in the back.
Also, the zoo is in a prime location, so you get amazing views of the city:
My favorite, naturally, were the kangaroos. I think I was taking kangaroos for granted all this time. Look how gorgeous they are!:
And see how big and muscular they are!:
Amazing. They are now rivaling the giraffe as my favorite animal. We also sang to them:
Skippyyyyyyy,
Skippyyyyyyyyy,
Skippy, the Bush Kangarooooooooo!
Tony and I hopped the ferry back to the Quay, and sadly, checked out of our fancy-assed Sir Stamford Spot. Jarrod, the fabulous concierge, offered us some keys to the locker room in the gym, so that we could change, and even shower if we wanted.
We hopped a cab over to our final hotel, the Ibis Budget in East Sydney. Here is our room:
It is the same size as the bathroom at the Sir Stamford. There are no drawers, no hangers, and not even a hook. It was… interesting. However, it did have amazing view!
We ran out for dinner, and discovered Sydney’s answer to Bare Burger (<— Tony’s favorite burger joint when he visits NYC)! Grill’d offered all grass fed meat, fresh produce, and yummy everything. I was very hungry, but feeling nervous to eat. What would the sensible person do? Get some broth and a ginger ale and play it safe. What did Dr. Lewis do? Order a lamb & hummus burger with a ginger beer!
As you can see: Tony is ready to pounce on his burger. The “claws” are out.
The ginger beer was amazing. It was water, ginger, sugar, and alcohol. How could that not be good for your tummy? As for my burger, I hoped for the best, and was able to eat most of it. For the rest of the night, we’ll just keep our fingers crossed….
So, tomorrow, Tony’s off for Seminar #2, taking place nearby, and I’ll do a Tony pick-up and drop-off with some exploring and shopping in between! Tonight, we’ll serenade ourselves to sleep, with “Skippyyyyy, Skippyyyyyyyyy, Skippy, the Bush Kangaroooooooo…..”
Thanks for reading. Stay tuned!
Lisa and Tony
