Adventures in Australia

As you may have noticed it’s been rather quiet over here on the blog…I’ve been off work for a few weeks and have been making the most of my staff travel benefits and time off and have been visiting several different countries this month!

I started off with a trip to Australia to see my grandparents, who I don’t get to visit very often. They live in Canberra, next door to my aunty and Uuncle, so I decided since I had a bit more free time I would pay them a visit. I flew with Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong to break up the flights a bit, and with only a small amount of drama (forgetting that I needed to apply for a visa to Australia!!!) I made it first to Sydney, then on to Canberra.

I touched down in Canberra and it was just the same as I remember it always being! My aunty came to pick me up from the airport and we drove over to see my grandparents. At 94 (Granny) and 91 (Grandpa) they are definitely getting on a bit but it was so nice to be able to spend time with them!

We took a drive up to Mount Ainslee Lookout see the city from above.

It was refreshing to wear a coat after the boiling hot summer we’ve had in Dubai – it was a chilly 14 degrees on average in Canberra!

Driving back we stopped by the lake to admire the beautiful blossom which was a pretty pinky purple colour.

The next day as we were heading out for some lunch, we stopped by a park to see if we could find some kangaroos, which we did!

Aren’t they just so adorable? We stopped at a lovely little cafe for some lunch, although I didn’t have much as I was saving myself for our Canberra tradition – afternoon tea at the Hyatt! 🙂

After a few days in Canberra, it was time to say goodbye to my grandparents and aunty and uncle.

The next stop was on to Melbourne to visit my cousin Sarah! Thanks to staff travel, I got on a flight to Melbourne with ease and she was there to pick me up from the airport.

We stopped by her new apartment, which has a gorgeous view over the city.

The plan was to chill out and take it easy, as I’ve visited Melbourne quite a few times in the past so we were happy to relax and just catch up, without needing to do too much sightseeing!

First up of course though, was some delicious Aussie coffee! There’s something about the coffee in Australia, in my opinion it just can’t be beaten.

We stopped by a cute cafe called Code Black Coffee Roasters in Brunswick, and although the plan was just to get coffee we were both feeling a bit peckish so decided to get some brunch as well, which was pretty huge, oops!

We spent the day chilling out and catching up, and in the evening stopped by a lovely bar for some cocktails, before moving on to a restaurant called Supernormal for dinner.

On the way there we happened to pass by Hozier Lane, which is famous for it’s ever-changing graffiti and street art. I’ll have to try and make it back there in the daytime!

The next morning we had time for a last catch up before Sarah had to head off to work, and I was back to the airport for the next part of my adventure…stay tuned!

P.s. Follow me on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter for more day-to-day updates of where I am in the world! 🙂

6 Comments

  1. Joanne Henderson
    October 24, 2017 / 4:27 pm

    Do you fly business when flying for pleasure?

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      October 26, 2017 / 1:22 pm

      Very rarely, I’m not entitled to buy business class standby tickets, however since my boyfriend is a purser he can buy them for himself, so if we are travelling together he can give me his seat (and take mine in economy, haha!). Unfortunately the company never upgrades staff on a standby ticket.

  2. Fay
    October 7, 2017 / 4:52 pm

    Awesome pictures! Australia is seriously amazing I’m really lucky to live here. Is there a reason why you flew with Cathay Pacific?

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      October 9, 2017 / 2:11 am

      Thanks Fay! It’s a great country, shame it’s so far from the rest of the world! Just to break up the flights – it’s 13-14 hours direct from Dubai otherwise! 🙂

  3. Helen
    October 3, 2017 / 6:24 pm

    Love the pics with your Granny, what a gorgeous lady!

    • thedubaidiaries
      Author
      October 9, 2017 / 2:10 am

      Thank you, it was so good to see her! 🙂 (And my camera shy grandpa!)

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