Australia Trip

Friends,

We were up bright and early and at the gym by 8:00am. James, our Sydney host, directed us to the nearest Anytime Fitness. Tony was relieved to be able to squat, squat, squat the morning away. I took advantage of the fully equip, non-hotel gym to also squat, then Romanian deadlift, then weighted hip thrust, and then pull through, with all the accompaniments of a full body workout.

This information will be important later on.

Here’s a pic of Tony and I after our workout:

Then we went looking for brekkie. I think we’ve been spoiled by the warrior-worthy brekkies, because the standard brekkie at all the local bakeries and cafes seemed like brekkie appetizers. So we had a few eggs, went back to the hotel to get ready, and then off to the Sydney Harbor Bridge!

We did the Bridge Climb. A 3-hour endeavor, this tourist to-do was serious biz-nass!

It was pricey, but worth it. The biz-nass began with signing a serious waiver – not the first time I’ve done that (sky diving, trapeezing, ect), it’s essentially a written promise that you won’t sue anyone if you die.

Here, you can see:

Then you change out of your clothes and into this impossibly unflattering onesie, with elastic ankles and wrists. Then you get straps for sunglasses (“sunnies”), a handkerchief (“hanky”), a hat, and a key so that you can put all of your possessions in a locker. Then you get headphones with a radio so you can hear your guide.

Our guide was Darren, and he was fabulous!

I wish I had lots of pictures to show you, because the Bridge Climb was amazing. It took an hour to suit up and get out, but then we were out for almost two hours. We were clipped in to the bridge with a carabineer type deal, and up, up, up we went! We stopped here and there to hear about the bridge, it’s history, and the city.

Here we are at the top!

Remember my workout from this morning? Well, after walking and climbing up the stairs and ladders, we then walked all the way down the stairs and ladders. Plus we started before lunch and ended right around 2:30pm! So I was shaky and hungry, but so pumped!

Tony and I walked around the Quay from the base of the bridge to the Opera House, taking some photos along the way:

I was feeling a little bit funny, but I assumed it was because of all the sun and climbing. At the Opera Kitchen, I ordered a seafood mixed platter with salmon a few different ways and tuna. As soon as it was put down in front of me, and after I took a picture:

A very aggressive seagull jumped up and grabbed some salmon!

The restaurant brought me out a new lunch, and we spent the rest of lunch shoo-ing away seagulls. After lunch I felt even weirder, but we continued on, exploring the opera house and walking through the royal botanical gardens.

When we got back to the room it felt like I had been hit by a bus! Tony was tired too, but I was feeling something more than that… I was chilly and had Goosebumps, even though it was warm. My tummy hurt and I felt super tired. So I’m going to bed around 8:30, and hoping I’m feeling back up to snuff tomorrow!

Love, Lisa and Tony

Day #3 of Lisa’s diary of our Australian Adventure.

We made it straight to 4:00am! 8 hours of sleep is nothing to complain about, and Tony and I enjoyed a quiet morning while I worked on this little travel blog, and Tony reviewed some of his slides for today’s seminar. We were starving, but forced ourselves to hold on until about 6:30 before venturing out for brekkie.

The very kind lady cleaning up in the hotel lobby notified us, “ummm, Ballina is not an early morning town… so maybe go for a walk until 7 – and then try for some breakfast??”. Good for Ballinanians! We rolled with it, and took an AMAZING walk from the hotel down the river, all the while snapping some photos of the moon:

And the sunrise:

Ballina is beautiful.

And so was our brekkie! The first patrons-of-the-day at The Bean Bank, a coffee shop that came highly recommended by Shan.

We ate like we were heading off to battle. Again, I enjoyed a delicious flat white.

There was plenty of eggs, Turkish bread (which appears to be the “it” bread over here), museli (instead of oats), bacon, fruit, and happiness all around. When Tony’s museli came over he said, “Man, your dad would be all about this brekkie”:

While at brekkie three fit and fabulous Aussie’s came in for breakfast and said, “Hi Tony, see you in a bit!” The ladies had driven about 8 hours yesterday to be here for Tony’s seminar!

Yeah!

We headed back to the hotel so Tony could get ready, and then Shan and his beautiful wife Mady came to retrieve Tony so he could get to work. I on the other hand, have the day off! Given to me by my lovely fiancé, I couldn’t wait to get started doing whatever-the-heck-I-wanted.

This, of course, started with the gym, followed by laundry (did I mention we have our OWN laundry room???), followed by a walk down the river over to the beach.

I walked for awhile and then came to a bridge… it seemed like the ocean was quite a distance away, so I asked a sweet little family walking along the shore of the river. They explained that there were plenty of “beaches” along the river, and a “surfers beach” on the river just there… When I explained I’d like to swim in the ocean the father looked at me like a father does when he knows he’s about to be the bearer of bad news…

Alas, the ocean itself was far, far away. I’d need a car. I took a moment to be sad that I wouldn’t get to jump in the Pacific, and then kept it moving and found a spot right on the “beach” at the river. I’m pretty sure I was the only person without a surfboard, Stand Up Paddle Board, kayak, canoe, or dog. But I had a lovely day, nevertheless. Here is a pic of the river, and the ocean which is just through the opening there and over to the left… maybe I’ll get a chance next time?

After some reading, and a nap, and lots of dog watching, I walked home along the shore. Here are some mamouth pelicans, kickin’ it with some local fishermen.

Back at the room our maid was just wrapping up cleaning. After a little rest and some TV, I walked into town to check out the shops. I grabbed a “detox” fresh juice from this little juice bar along the way:

Then I stopped in “Wooly’s” again for more water and snacks. I asked for some turkey breast at the deli counter, but had no idea how much to order! The lady at the counter was a love, so we talked it out, and I ended up with 300 grams. On the way home I meandered along the water, which reminded me of the Ell river, bordering Germany and Austria, where Leslie and I biked up and down a few summers ago:

Once home and fed, I went back out to the pool for some afternoon sun.

Tony came home around 5:15, tired but enthused. He had a great day and, as usual, didn’t feel he had enough time to get to everything he would have liked to cover. After a shower and change of clothes, we headed out to a local spot for dinner, just a short walk up the river.

The Wharf was delish!

I ordered the mackerel for dinner, and was expecting that oily, small fish I’ve caught back in FLA with my dear friends Lara and Jason in the Indian River… This mackerel was not that mackerel! A pleasant surprise, this was a nice big white fish, almost like a steak.

My surprise lead to a great conversation, and everyone at the table was ready to talk more about Australian animals, food, and jargon. Did you know about Wallabies?! Apparently, it’s a smaller, cuter version of a kangaroo – one of the seminar attendees, Kirby, told us for sure we’d see one in the Hunter Valley… Stay Tuned!! My hopes are high that we’ll get to see a wallaby or two…

Before heading out for ice cream, we were discussing brekkie plans for tomorrow morning. Shannan recommended we go to a different local spot, since he has his “own menu”… What? Yep, Shannan has his own menu. He told us to ask for “The Raw Brekkie” (the name of his gym is Raw Fitness). I’m sure it will be a meathead menu with plenty of protein.

Until then! Tony and I have made it past 9:00pm. Well, I’ve made it; Tony is unconscious, mouth slightly agape, remote in hand.

Talk to you tomorrow!

Love Lisa (and Tony).

Lisa Continues her daily dairy of our trip to Australia.

We Made it! Local time 7:05am, out of the plane and hugging our first host, Shannan by 8:00am. (A quick synopsis of who Shannan is: he’s a former distance coaching client of Tony who own his own strength and conditioning facility in Ballina. This trip’s been over a year in the making due to Shannan’s persistence and hard work to help get Tony (us!) down here). Shannan was accompanied by a buddy and personal trainer Matt, equally friendly and fabulous. Here they are with Tony:

Australian lesson #1: Australian’s “Aussies’ like to abrieviate and make cute all kinds of words. Shannan (“Shan”) and Matt (“Mattie”) drove 2 hours from Ballina to come and pick us up, and spent ALL DAY showing us around the area! It was so lovely. Our day moved from Brisbane down the gold coast, to Ballina:

We drove south from Brisbane, down the Gold Coast. Known for its beaches and fabulous surfing, this area is lined with beach towns, resorts, and families and friends on “holiday” (Australian for vacation). I took notice of the big inviting bike lanes throughout the streets and around the roundabouts, and Shan and Matty encouraged us to be on the lookout for “M.A.M.I.L.s” (Middle Aged Men in Lycra). Apparently they’re everywhere, and not afraid to rock their Lycra at coffee shops and all around town.

We stopped at Coolangatta (“Cooly”) for breakfast (“Brekkie”! Who doesn’t love this word? You can also spell it Brekky, but whatever you do, you should start using it immediately). What does every girl need for Brekkie after 20 hours on a plane? An Eenie Menie Greenie Smoothie!

Kale, pear, celery, parsley, ect. Between that and my first (and long anticipated) Australian Flat White, it was just what I needed to recover from our journey and settle in to Aussie life:

We left Cooly and continued down to the coast to Byron Bay. More amazing beaches, more surfers, and lots of gorgeous homes. We stopped a few places to take some photos – Check it! (Please do not judge us for our crusty appearance, and keep in mind we’ve had those clothes on for over 36 hours):

Byron Bay

Rockin our Lulu’s at Byron Bay

Different vantage point at Byron Bay. This is the view some the residents have from their houses.

After Byron Bay we hit up Lennox, another fabulous beach town where many rich and some famous live. Apparently Chris Helmsworth (Thor) has a home around here… but we didn’t spot him.

After Lennox we made our way to Ballina!

One of the beaches in Ballina

In many ways, this area reminds me of home (Jensen Beach, FLA – not Boston, MA). Locals and vacationers, the ocean met up with by the river, relaxed vibe, fantastic air. We are staying at this fantastic Ramada Inn! There was even a bottle of wine waiting for us (me) in the room. Did I mention we love Shan? Please check out our Suite with a view of the Richmond River:

I have to say, Tony and I were champions all day. We felt pretty good, but we knew we would start to fade in the afternoon. It was just after 3pm when we checked in, and once we unpacked, it was time to hit the gym.

It was ugly, but we managed to move around a little bit and sweat out some of the travel funk.

I proceeded to take the most cleansing shower of my life, and then have a glass of wine. After about a half of a glass I felt like I’d just had a “Goonsack” (Australian for the sack inside of a Box-o’-Wine), and I knew Tony and I only had a few hours left before we crashed. We ventured into town and out to Woolworths (“Wooly’s”) for some water and snacks. We were stressed about walking into traffic, which moves in the opposite direction, but luckily, Australians are right on top of trying to keep tourists alive:

Unfortunately, Tony realized he didn’t have his “Dongle”, which is surprisingly not an Australian word, but is an adaptor for Apple computers and projectors. After a mini-panic and a trip to the nearby tech store, Shan made some calls and once again, hooked us up by asking a friend to borrow his dongle.

So we got the dongle, got the snacks, and then went to dinner. We were starting to feel run down, so we decided on the hotel restaurant, The Pointe. It could have easily have been a restaurant at home in Stuart, FL, on the river.

Locals crowded the bar and dining for Happy Hour (Oh how I miss happy hour! An illegal libation celebration in Boston), and we enjoyed watching the river and sitting amongst the local excitement and chitchat of folks just finishing their workweek with a drink and a smile. Here are some pictures of the river and us enjoying dinner:

This pic was taken at 2AM (Boston time), hence Tony look likes he’s falling asleep.

I am proud to say we remained conscious until about 7:58pm. Tony’s excited for day 1 of the seminar, and I’m VERY excited for a day off, by the pool and at the beach. Talk to you then!

Love, Lisa and Tony

What follows is Lisa’s daily diary of our musings and doings while visiting Australia.

Hello Friends!

Tony and I just spent 6 hours in a plane from Boston to LAX, and then 14 hours from LAX to Brisbane.

The journey has begun. Thanks for joining. Here’s Tony, as excited as can be as we boarded our first flight in Boston.

Two hours into our 6.5 hour flight to LA, Tony and I wondered if we’d gotten in over our heads. Once we felt the full effect of the narrow seat, barely reclining chair, and turbulence, we couldn’t even imagine landing, and then doing it all over again, but for double the amount of time…

But here we are.

At this moment, Tony and I are 34,000 feet over the Pacific, with a little over 3,000 miles and a little less than 6 hours to go – just over half way through our 13.5 hour flight. It sort of feels like traveling through time. When we boarded the plane around 11:00pm (pacific time), we fell right asleep!

Both of us pumped and thinking we’d sleep for 7 or 8 hours, we each discovered the other peeking out from underneath our blindfolds less than 5 hours later (when it was 7:00am, eastern time). Luckily, I sprung for the emergency exit row seats, which actually ended up being right in a break in rows, so there is a good 10 -15 feet of open space in front of us! Here’s the space, with my TV in site:

So much room for activities!

… and then here’s Tony trying to get some sleep:

Tony’s disappointed the Ambien our generous Dr. gave us didn’t put us under for most of the flight – he’s just watched Fury, and I’ve just finished Birdman (What in the heck was that?).

The highlight so far? The international terminal at LAX. At 10pm, that place is Grand Central Station for the Universe! Everyone was going somewhere amazing. It’s hard to be sleepy and calm when we’re in for the trip of our lives!

In a few hours there will be breakfast, and then time to get ready for the day to start. We’ll land in Brisbane at 7:00am and hit the ground running! Breakfast in the city, drive to Ballina, maybe go to the gym, and check in to our hotel.

Stay tuned!