Sydney Australia- 2024

I am about to begin my 15th girl’s week out as an annual event with a dear friend. We have so much fun visiting galleries, shopping, attending a play at the Opera house and having our nightly cocktail.

I arrived Friday as I wanted to visit another dear friend over the weekend. We had a lovely time and I spent time meeting her daughter and her grandson who helped me enormously with transport. It is always lovely to put a face to a name I hear a lot about.

Friday I was supposed to leave Hobart on Qantas at 11:35 but the plane was delayed until 3:30. Sydney was clouded in and I was afraid we wouldn’t be able to land but after circling around we did. It was pouring down and the Uber driver, a retired Romanian guy was lovely. He made sure I got right to the front door of the small hotel we are staying in. Traffic on Friday night black sale weekend, end of week traffic and in pouring rain is something else. Finally got into my hotel about 8 pm.

Met up with my friend Saturday and Sunday and as she is my photography friend. Guess what we talked about. Really lovely to see her.

Flying up I brought a Japanese novel with me. The Bookshop Woman by Nanako Hanada. Very light weight book, I thought it would be a good airplane book. I was wrong. I found it tedious and boring and could not finish it. before we landed I wrote in the front. Passing this on to whoever finds it. In the back I wrote “Let me know where this book ends up. A photo would be great”. I included a bookish email address I have but rarely use. I then left it on a shelf in the women’s bathroom in the Sydney airport. It will be fun to see if I ever get an email.

Something funny happened today after I arrived back at the hotel on this very hot, humid day after seeing my friend. While waiting for the lift a woman and her adult daughter came in and stood beside me also waiting for the lift. I heard them complaining about the humidity and I turned and said “it’s pretty high isn’t it? Where are you from?” “Tasmania! ” they replied. Then the woman looked at me and said, ” I know you, you’re in the Fullers book store book club.” I was leaving the group I was in at the time and she was coming into it. I joined a different group they run. It was so funny as we both chatted about Fullers on the way to our rooms. Small world.

That about sums up a pretty full on weekend. I’ll need to get a different book to read on the way home next weekend.

Looking forward to more adventures during the coming week.

PS- I did get to spend quite a bot of time doing some street photography. Much more exciting than Hobart.