I've spent a very active weekend in Sydney. Saturday kicked off with a walk into town. It took me a couple of hours or a bit less, considering I wasn't quite rushing and taking into account my bad sense of direction! I always go in the opposite direction (while thinking I must be right..) and end up walking double the distance than initially planned. I walked into town and then took the bus back home afterwards. Didn't really have a purpose that time, so just enjoyed the lovely weather and beautiful views of Sydney Harbour. Sat down near the Opera House for half an hour and then headed back home. I could have walked back too but I was wearing thongs (flip flops for those who are not familiar with Aussie words) and didn't think it was the best footwear to have for long distances.
I was listening to 98fm, Irish radio channel. It is so weird hearing Irish accent. I had forgotten how Irish they all sound! Living in Dublin for such a long time had made me not notice the accent any more. Now listening to the radio puts a silly grin on my face :)
Having walked into town on Saturday I figured I should continue a tradition of Sunday bike rides. I checked out the cycle paths map online the night before and agreed a course to take for today. Well, I had done the same route last Sunday but you wouldn't expect me to remember all turns, would you? Of course not and I can prove it! I took a good few wrong turns and managed to extend my bike ride by at least 5km. Ah well, good to know where not to go next time..
I planned to ride into CBD across Harbour Bridge and then cruise along the city's cycle paths towards Cook river and along all the way to Parramatta. I planned on taking the train back from Parramatta but unfortunately trackwork was being done all weekend on the Harbour Bridge, so I could only take the train back into the city. I knew that in advance but I thought I hadn't cycled back across the bridge before, so something different. I was dreading the ride back home as there were a few hills to conquer before I could relax. The worst thing to wish for after having cycled 65km already. It was not easy but it wasn't that hard either. During the last climb my knee decided to let me know that it wasn't happy with all the exercise. Luckily, I was pretty close to home and the rest of it was downhill again, thankfully.
I've decided to try and do this every Sunday, not sure if 60-70km is the distance to go for every weekend but I will definitely use the time to explore other cycle paths in the city. I will just have to plan where I'm going in advance. The best part of it all is cycling across the Harbour Bridge. I am amazed by the stunning views every single time. One side of the bridge is for pedestrians only and the other side is for cyclists only. Love the idea. In that way, there won't be tourists blocking the path and I can keep moving without distractions. There are security guards on each end of the bridge. Poor men, standing there all day. Had a chat with one of the in the morning and on my return four hours later. He remembered me, so it mustn't have been a busy day. I like the randomness of conversations with fella bikers at traffic lights. A lady was asking me where I was riding from. She thought it was really far away. if she only knew I had cycled only 1/7 of my track at that stage! In general, everybody's so nice and polite. I got asked by another cyclist who was passing by whether I was on my own. Yeah, dude! I don't have friends that would be willing to go that sort of lengths with me. Got offered directions at some point when I stopped at a junction - I must have looked like I was lost :)
I already preached on FB too that I had completed stage two of Tour de Sydney. Lets see how long I can keep up with it!
