Arrived in Sydney

On 7/11/2016, we finally arrived in Sydney, even though we would have liked to see more of New Zealand. It was nice and relaxed there ...

Our first AirBnB accommodation for 2 weeks is at Lynn's place on Sydney Road in Manly. A beautiful spot, within walking distance of Manly Wharf and Manly Beach, as well as The Corso with shopping options and a bus stop right outside the door... Funny enough, Lynn herself will travel to Europe with her husband for a year in early 2017 ;-) . 

Since new tenants are already scheduled for November/December, we are looking for something new and find this one at Delwood Beach with a view of the yellow-green Manly ferries coming and going, as well as the blue-white-yellow Fast Ferries and the regular cruise ships coming and going to/from Circular Quay and White Bay.

We are organizing our stay, which means we are getting the boys used to school/preschool, planning and booking all the stages of the upcoming summer vacation, and looking for an apartment for the period after the 6-week summer vacation with enough space for our future visitors:-)). This way, the transition between work and 'vacation' is not so big, there is always something to do...

We explore Sydney by bus, ferry, car, and on foot, see photos. Using the car is sometimes unavoidable, but we no longer start without checking the traffic conditions and the best alternative routes on google-maps beforehand, otherwise you quickly get stuck in endless traffic...
We have tested all means of transportation to the bilingual preschool in St. Leonard, from just the bus to ferry-train, ferry-bus, and car, and the car was the most reliable and fastest despite The Spit bottleneck (bridge)...

We really like Manly. It seems to be paradise for Germans who want to start a new life, we meet compatriots over and over again (working or enjoying themselves). There is almost everywhere access to the sea. Both on the Manly Wharf side and at Manly Beach, there are waterfront paths for walking, seawater pools for swimming, 'snorkeling ground', sandy beaches, and rocky ones for jumping. We have not seen the Little Penguins in the wild here yet, only in Manly Sealife.
Cycling is also possible (even on separate lanes on the highway ...), but (in the city) it is a bit more dangerous than with us due to narrow lanes and curvy hilly roads. Therefore, we gladly comply with the helmet requirement. Because of the hilly terrain, it is also quite sweaty - partly due to the humidity and temperatures.

After almost 6 weeks of settling in, the summer vacation begins on 17/12, our first stop will be Alice Springs and Uluru.