First Day in Sydney!

            On Tuesday, we had to wake up super early to catch a 7:30 AM flight from Melbourne to Sydney.  Once we got into Sydney, we headed straight for the National Rugby League Head Office and attended a lecture from on the rules, history and structure of Rugby League.  Michael Johnstone, marketing manager for the NRL, gave the talk.  Next, we walked through the NRL Heroes & Legends Museum and learned more about the game’s past, present and future.  Our next stop was the iconic and beautiful Bondi Beach and the Bondi Icebergs Swim Club.  This was an amazing club located right on the cliffs overlooking the water and the rest of the beach and was home to multiple swimming pools, a gym, exercise areas, and a café where we ate lunch.  After lunch, a longtime club member named Lofty told us about the history of the one-of-a-kind club and why it is so important to the Bondi neighborhood.  After hanging out at the club for a few hours, we departed for downtown Sydney, where we enjoyed sightseeing tours by boat in Sydney Harbor as well as by bus.  It was tremendous to see the iconic opera house and Sydney Harbor Bridge in person.  We finally got to our hotel that evening and ate dinner in the hotel bar and restaurant in the lobby.  My favorite part of the day was experiencing Bondi Beach firsthand.  As an action sports enthusiast, I had previously heard about the beach as a popular destination for Australian surfing and skateboarding.  This turned out to be true as there were skateboarders and surfers everywhere.  It was also a pleasure to walk around the Icebergs Swim Club and witness the amazing views from all around the club.  Lofty was a very entertaining individual and it was fun to hear him speak about the club.