Bondi Junction Faire

The day of our anniversary, on September 24th, the Bondi Junction Faire was happening, basically right outside of our apartment. Though we missed most of it due to late start and trying to get me a used yoga mat, we did manage to experience some of it.

Amelia rode on her first solo ferris wheel. Actually, it was her first ride besides the merry-go-round. Surprisingly she didn't cry or get upset, but had a smile from ear-to-ear and, of course, wanted to ride it again. But at $4 a pop, we thought one was enough.

They had face painting (the most talented face painters I have ever seen!), puppet shows, violin recital by kids, musical storytime, bunnies you could pet and much some arts and crafts. The main drawback is that it started to rain and Amelia was tired and hungry.

She pet a cute bunny, but one of the boys in the pen obviously had some sort of disability, like autism or something, and his mom wasn't in with him, so the kid did something to one of the bunnies. It started to freak the hell out and the handler, who probably had zero training, started to freak out too and kicked all of the kids out in a rather terrifying manner. The kid who caused all of the problems then started to freak out when he was told to leave. They don't have any guidelines for this sort of thing in Australia because after the bunny calmed down (it looked like it had a seizure or something), the young (and I emphasize young) woman put the rabbit in a cage and then let all of the kids back in. You would think there was a time limit for each rabbit, like 5-10 minutes of handling and then put it away for a little break. We didn't go back after that. I figured one less kid in the pen would be better.

That night, my new friend Milly, graciously said she would watch Amelia for us so we could go out to dinner for our anniversary. Amelia had seemed really comfortable with Milly and did not have a nap so we knew she would go to sleep earlier than her usual 9pm.

True to form, she crashed shortly after we left. Milly read her a few books and sang a goodnight song and then that was it. Eric and I went to dinner in Double Bay (somewhat like Montana Avenue in Santa Monica) at a place called Pink Salt. It was good. Not outstanding, but so far I have been regularly underwhelmed by the food and overwhelmed by the price.

Double Bay day

Steep hills abound on our way to Double Bay

I think our purpose in Sydney is to find parks within 30-45 min walk from our "apartment". So far, we've gone to 3 different parks within that distance. This morning, after much prompting, we left our hotelish apartment around 10am. I have a very clever device, my iphone, that I set up with the map to our location before we leave my precious wifi behind. It's been invaluable. The only way it could be better is if I could actually use it everywhere rather than just at the hotel or library.

Once on the road, I can navigate with the little map, and have never gotten lost or been lead astray. This morning we did make it to our destination. However, the map does not show hills. Wow! We had some steep ass hills to traverse with the stroller not really designed for off-roading. Actually, it wouldn't have been that bad if the sidewalks were in a better shape. I think that was more the issue than the crazy angle I had to walk down (and of course, back up again!)

Double Bay from Steyne Park

Yes. The baby swings.

Gorgeous day by the bay

It was all worth it though once we got to Steyne Park. The town of Double Bay is like a mini Santa Monica: very upscale with lots of beautiful views. I did manage to find a low key cafe for lunch which only cost me $14 for a coffee, chicken pie and a spinach quiche. Not bad.

The town of Double Bay from, well, Bay Street

A peek at our high rise apartment through the trees: second from the left

Crashed out in the stroller

After this trip to Double Bay, I think I've come to terms with the fact that I really do need to buy a better used stroller. Though this one is fine to go to the mall with, it doesn't do well on the rugged streets and hills around here. It is a great little stroller. The seat comes down, the canopy closes most of the way, and the foot rest pops up to give the rider an almost bed like experience, albiet a bumpy one. Not sure if the more durable strollers will do that, but it might be worth it for me, the driver!