FOOD: While in Sydney I was able to experience some of the best and mos
t interesting food of my life! The most interesting thing I consumed on the trip was kangaroo and squid pizza. Yes Aussies do eat their national animal. I know many of you are making disgusted faces but the kangaroo tasted like beef jerky and actually made for a good pizza topping. This pizza was made in a wood fire oven so it was thinner than most American pizzas. Another great pizza spot was Wilson's pizza which offered not only pizza but also handmade gelato. Interestingly in Australia they do not have a standard sauce for pizzas. You have to specifically ask for the margarita style which would be like our red sauce. There is also a buffalo sauce and white cream sauce.
SHOPPING: Shopping was also a different experience as well as what people were wearing. Fortunately Australia does have Target but no WalMart. Unfortunately their Target is slightly more pricey than our own. The only grocery store chain they have is called Coles. It offers everything you would find in the states plus some other excellent goodies such as Tim Tams which are a type of cookie. Places like 7-Eleven are not gas stations but more convenient stores located nearly on every corner. An interesting fact I learned at such stores was that while they still legalize cigarette use they put horrible pictures of what cigarettes can do to you on the cartons. Those pictures would really make me think twice before buying. However, in contrast to this there is a Tobacconist located on nearly every corner as well.
t interesting food of my life! The most interesting thing I consumed on the trip was kangaroo and squid pizza. Yes Aussies do eat their national animal. I know many of you are making disgusted faces but the kangaroo tasted like beef jerky and actually made for a good pizza topping. This pizza was made in a wood fire oven so it was thinner than most American pizzas. Another great pizza spot was Wilson's pizza which offered not only pizza but also handmade gelato. Interestingly in Australia they do not have a standard sauce for pizzas. You have to specifically ask for the margarita style which would be like our red sauce. There is also a buffalo sauce and white cream sauce.
SHOPPING: Shopping was also a different experience as well as what people were wearing. Fortunately Australia does have Target but no WalMart. Unfortunately their Target is slightly more pricey than our own. The only grocery store chain they have is called Coles. It offers everything you would find in the states plus some other excellent goodies such as Tim Tams which are a type of cookie. Places like 7-Eleven are not gas stations but more convenient stores located nearly on every corner. An interesting fact I learned at such stores was that while they still legalize cigarette use they put horrible pictures of what cigarettes can do to you on the cartons. Those pictures would really make me think twice before buying. However, in contrast to this there is a Tobacconist located on nearly every corner as well.Australians, I noticed, also put high concideration in dressing well, at least in the larger cities. I did not see many sweat pants, cut-off jeans, or grungy clothes. What I did see was a lot of fancy boots, high class bags, and well-dressed people.
EXPERIENCE: Sydney also offered two activities I had never experienced! At least not in the way I have traditionally experienced them. For a day in Sydney I was able to visit China Town, http://www.discoversydney.com.au/things/chinatown.html. The symbol that you have entered China Town is this tree. A word of advice for tourists in Sydney; avoid tourist shops in malls. Try going to the part of China Town under the large mall where there is a basement market. They have everything you could possibly want in a souvenir. There is fresh fruit and vegetables, food, jewelry, clothes, hats, trinkets, shoes. Basically anything you can imagine and I guarantee it is cheaper than tourist shops in other areas.I was also able to visit the Australian Zoo which was located a ways out of Sydney. This is the deceased Steve Erwin's zoo, http://www.australiazoo.com.au/. The Crocodile Hunter's zoo was very different than zoos in the states. Instead of having large crevases seperating you from the animals you are actually allowed to get quite close to all of them. I first viewed a show in the Croceseum, yes that's its real name. Here I saw Steve's daughter Bindi preform with her Crocmen and also saw Steve's wife work with the crocodiles. There was all types of animals and the best part about it was you were allowed to feed, touch, or stand right in their habitat. There is elephant and turtle feedings everyday. Dingoes are walked around the park and everyone is allowed to cuddle with a koala. The best part is taking a trip into Roo Haven and being able to pet and feed kangaroos! I'll post another blog with pictures of all these animals!
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