Debi Tirar Mas Fotos en Sydney.

In my last post, I wrote about traveling 26+ hours to Australia to see Bad Bunny, only to learn that I had screwed up the dates and was in real danger of missing the show. So the question is: did I make it out of Brisbane and back to Sydney in time?

I feel like the fact that these posts aren't titled "Fuck them all in their down under" should be a big clue as to the outcome. Thankfully, the 7am flight went out on time and I, along with a significant portion of Brisbane's Latino population, breathed a massive sigh of relief. 

My friend, Diana, was similarly relieved. She had also flown over for the show and was waiting for me in Sydney when I arrived. 

After some initial difficulty finding the Will Call booth, we entered Engie Stadium and got our DtMF camera lanyards. Never has a cheap piece of plastic brought me so much joy. 

I wasn't the only one ecstatic to be there. It is estimated that 90,000 people attended the show over two nights, the highest number of attendees in the history of the stadium. Even Mother Nature was there to show some Benito love. It may have rained during Chuwi's opening set, but nary a drop fell during the entirety of his 2.5 hr show. 

As in all the international shows, it began with a pre-taped segment of two local teens discussing a rumor that Benito has decided to stay in Puerto Rico and is not coming to country X. The only way to invoke his presence is to recite the opening verses of La Mudanza.

I've seen plenty of TikToks of this opening all over S America. Normally, after a brief pause, BB appears and launches right into the song. This time hit different. You could see in real time as he took in the enormity of the moment . This is a country where only 0.7% of the population speaks Spanish. Success was far from guaranteed. He later confessed he had no idea what to expect but the clear outpouring of love from the outset was enough to cause him to break into a huge grin.

The show itself was as magical as I expected, if not more so. This is the 6th time I've seen him in concert. Dude is a showman with a killer catalog to draw from but this was something more. The stadium was full of flags representing countries from all over the Latino world. This was people taking pride and celebrating their background while living in this remote outpost in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. 

 

The Casita did manage to make it all that distance- even Concho the frog commented in a video "this is  beautiful but damn, it took us over 24 hrs just to get here"- but the set-up was such that you either got the main stage or La Casita, not both. Thanks to my sister's connections, we had standing tix right in the front which was great for 2/3 of the show. The reggaeton portion, midway through the show, took place at La Casita, giving us an opportunity to enjoy it via some pretty striking cinematography on the big screens.

He soon returned to us for the final portion, all along shouting out "See-nee" and marveling at what a crazy night this was. 

As soon as the show ended- and not a second before- the skies opened up and the crowd made their way to the train station in an epic rainstorm. No one cared. We had all shared an indescribable night and had the blinking camera lanyards to prove it. (Note: for anyone curious, it continued to blink for about 4 days). Even for me, it was a bit nuts to travel all that way for a concert but I can confidently say that it was worth every second in those uncomfortable airline seats. 

Yet there was more. Since we were already there, we spent the next couple of days exploring See-Nee. 

Day 1: Featherdale Wildlife Park

Having been to 2 zoos/ sanctuaries in almost as many days, I wasn't terribly excited for this one but Diana had yet to pet a Koala and that could not stand. Also it was included in our day tour to the Blue Mountains.

As you enter the small facility, you have the option to purchase a small cup of feed. I'd already done this in Brisbane but figured my chances of feeding kangaroos was going to diminish greatly once I left Australia so I was first in line to get my 'roo Chow. 

Little did I know that at Featherdale, you can feed all kinds of creatures, even ones I never knew existed. Have you ever heard of a red-necked pademelon? I certainly hadn't.  Yet here they were and they wanted some of that blue cup action. 

These tiny marsupials are like wallabies but smaller and chunkier.  They are also soft, damned adorable and slightly incredulous when hungry pigeons crash their party.

Despite their name, I saw no indication that they liked country music, married immediate relatives or practiced questionable politics. 

The park began as a bird sanctuary in 1972, a fact that is still evident by the large number of native birds on display. 

A Laughing Kookaburra. Yes, I know he's not even smiling but that's his actual species. 

A Jabiru, Australia's only stork species

An Australian Pelican, like a regular pelican but he calls everyone "mate".

The Tawny Frogmouth: How is this even real?

I was all into the birds until a directional sign caught my attention. It suggested that there were quokkas to our left. I grabbed my blue cup and ran for dear life.

 

I don't think I have ever wanted anything as much as I wanted to feed those quokkas. Well, maybe to see Bad Bunny but I'd done that already...

Also, wallabies. I wanted to feed the wallabies. 

We only had one hour at the zoo. Time was running out, my blue cup was empty and we still hadn't even been to the reptile house so a quick sprint was in order.

Turns out the journey from thinking "Uh, another zoo" to "What?! I'm not ready to leave!!" can be shockingly short.  Next stop:

Scenic World

This park contains a series of cablecars, walking trails and scenic railways through the Blue Mountains that must be absolutely stunning on a clear day. This was not that day.

But the walk was nice and we got to see a lyre bird in person. 

As with the pademelon, this was a new one for me but now it may be my favorite bird. Not only are they featured on the $100 note but they are funky as hell and able to mimic any sound they hear. Like any sound. 

We were supposed to stop at the Three Sisters overlook but with the dense clouds, there really was no point in doing so. Our guide, who had been doing this tour since the beginning of time, took us to a spot where we might have a chance at a decent view. No sooner did we arrive than the clouds momentarily parted and we got a spectacular glimpse of the Blue Mountain beauty.

It was enough to make me decide that I must return but only after checking the weather. 

Then again, it may have been a mountain thing because once we took a ferry back to the city, the day was decidedly better.

Day 2: Hunter Valley Wine Tour

There was wine, chocolate, a fantastic lunch at a brewery and vodka with glitter in it. No notes. 5 out of 5 stars.

Day 3: Up until now, we had explored everywhere but Sydney, which was not entirely accidental. I had already spent a day before going to Brisbane and while I had nothing bad to say about Sydney, I wasn’t exactly impressed by it either. If you were to take the iconic opera house out of the equation, it struck me as a rather generic city. There was no distinct culture/ architecture/ vibe that I could put my finger on. Mind you, my one and only day came squarely on the heels of 30+ hours of traveling, so the problem could very well be me. But here we were, a week later giving the city another chance.

I had already taken the ferry to Manly, which is one of the top "things to do". The reason for its popularity is that it passes by the Opera House, providing some nice photo ops. Manly itself is pretty small. You have a typical pedestrian shopping street that leads to an ok beach. Nothing more, nothing less.  This time around, we opted for the ferry to Watson’s Bay. It leaves from the same port and goes by the Opera House, so you still get that Insta-moment but that's where the comparisons end. Once you step off the ferry, you have the opportunity to climb up to a lookout with dramatic cliff views on one side and the Sydney skyline on the other. It was a definite “wow” moment and way better than anything I had seen in Manly. 

From there, it was a short bus ride to Bondi Beach, The plan for the day was to do the Bondi-Coogee walk. It is a 6 km long coastal trail that winds past beaches and cliff tops. I was a bit concerned about the state of my recently broken foot, which was still complaining about all the standing and perreo’ing that had taken place days before but I didn’t want to miss this. I figured I could bow out and take the bus if it got to be too much. Also, there would be stops. The first being the pools at Bondi Beach. If it seems odd to have people opting for man-made pools when the Pacific Ocean is merely a few feet away, one need only look at the currents whisking surfers to and fro. 

After ensuring that we were properly hydrated for our quest, we set off on a phenomenal walk. Although there were plenty of people on the trail, it felt remote enough to make you forget you were so close to an urban area.

The Bronte Baths: Public pools are just a bit different in Oz

Among the fellow hikers, there were a number sporting Bad Bunny t-shirts. This became more prevalent as we neared Tamarana Beach. The reason is that just a few days prior,  Benito himself had been spotted here sunning himself with his on-again/ off-again girlfriend, Gabriela Berlingeri. When I first saw the photos online, I felt badly that their privacy had been invaded by sneaky paparazzi. Walking on the trail that goes fully around the perimeter of Tamarana, I had a wholly different impression. This was a couple that wanted to be seen. They would have been less exposed had they been cuddling on the roof of La Casita. 

About 4k in, my foot was protesting but the scenery was so impressive that we continued all the way to Coogee, where another hydration/ celebration stop was called for. This walk had been long but it had the effect of altering my opinion of Sydney. Yes, the city itself still felt a bit soulless- Brisbane is way cooler- but man, does their natural beauty more than make up for it. 

Day 4: Last day and last chance to cross a couple more items off my list. I’d been seeing signs all over town for a Ron Mueck exhibition that I wanted to check out. He’s an Australian artist known for hyper-realistic sculptures of ordinary people. What was meant to be a one hour visit turned into a four hour exploration. The museum itself is free to get in and has a varied and impressive collection. Special exhibits, such as Mueck’s, do require a ticket, due to the high insurance costs the museum must pay in order to host them. Both offer guided tours that are well worth the time. 

The remainder of the day was spent hanging out by the Opera House. It was the first place I visited and also the last. It is the architectural personification of Sydney, if not Australia as a whole, so why not end our trip there.

As I mentioned in a prior post, I’d postponed visiting country #136 for a variety of reasons- namely the distance and the people. Now having spent a week exploring, I can honestly say I’m so happy I went. It appears the continent exported most of their shitty people to the US since the majority of my encounters there were wholly positive.  Add to that the animals were cool, the cities easy to get around, the natural beauty spectacular and best of all, I can say I saw Bad Bunny in SeeNee.