On thing I really enjoy about my vacations is that I do lots of walking. Lots. Like miles and miles every day. Yesterday turned into one of those days.
I started out by taking to ferry to Watson's Bay, which was a beautiful little fishing inlet over a 100 years old. I had intended to wander up to Lady Bay, an "exclusive gay nudist" beach. Although Talya and I are neither "exclusive" or "gay," we opted to try the "nudist" bit. But there was no bus service to the beach, and the walk would have taken an hour, and we already had a hike planned, and then had to depart from a different ferry...
So no nudie action. We did make it to Shark Beach though for more average topless stuff.
We also went to Vaucluse House, which is just an old mansion in a rich suburb overlooking the beach. Beautiful grounds with a creek and everything. There was some sort of fashion shoot going on, and as we walked past along the trail, a guy from the shoot made sure to let us know "We're doing a shoot here, so don't get in the way."
My immediate response was, "Please. I'm from L.A."
What I found most interesting about the history of the family that lived in Vaucluse House was that, although they were rich, they were outcast by "Sydney Society" because they came from poor origins. Unmarried convict parents, that sort of thing. Rose from the depths to become monetarily successful, had a great family life, but rejected by society. What I find ridiculous about this is that the majority of white folks on this continent sprang from the same roots - it was founded mainly by England's rejects: convicts and the like. There wasn't a whole lot of "noble" blood here to begin with.
So anyway...
The hours long trek back to Rose Bay took us along clifftops and through bushland with massive spiders and all sorts of crawly things we heard but didn't see. I escaped with only 2 mosquito bites.
I get teased for walking in LA, but walking is a pretty awesome thing. You see all kinds of little things you would miss otherwise. And in a place like Australia, you better be paying attention or something can bite you on the ass. Literally. With lots of venom. I was lucky it was just a li'l ole mozzy.
