Thirty, Flirty, and Flying

Here lies my childhood, may it rest in peace.

Within a week of returning to Wellington from our vacation in the States I was fortunate to make the transition from a twenty-something to an actual adult at the right old age of thirty. Instead of sinking down to put one foot in the grave, I took to the skies. We celebrated on the actual day with a trip to the rock wall at Ferg's Kayaks. While certainly not expert climbers, I think we gave the wippersnappers a run for their money on the wall. We started with the easiest walls and then set our sights on some climbs with more bumps and hangs. My favorite part of climbing might actually be the free-fall ride down.

Having worked up an appetite on the rock walls, we headed next door to One Red Dog for pizza. Adam enjoyed an extra side of bacon with his bite of salad.

The real celebration of turning thirty was planned for the next week. My amazing husband somehow managed to plan the perfect surprise getaway weekend. Knowing that we both had to work on Friday and the next Monday, he gave me an overnight trip to Sydney. It was one of the most memorable and lovely weekends I've ever had.

While I worked late Friday at the Studios, Adam slaved away to clean the house and do laundry so that everything was set to go for a very early wake-up call on Saturday morning (did I mention I have the perfect husband?). We took a seven o'clock flight out of Wellington direct to Sydney, so that we were through customs and at our hotel in Sydney before 11:00 in the morning. Our hotel was situated in a great part of town; right across the street from Paddy's Market and a few minutes walk to the central train and bus stations.

Our first order of business was, of course, to find brunch. The nearest market was a great resource for many tasty options. We finally settled on a Turkish food stall for an ENORMOUS kebab and grilled cheese Gozleme.



Then it was out and about to explore Sydney. Knowing we had so few hours inspired us to make the most of every second. We started with a walk on the waterfront past the Sydney Olympic statues and Maritime Museum. Fortunate that the weather was cooperative and didn't rain as forecast, we took the ferry across the harbor towards the Opera House. What a GORGEOUS mode of public transportation. That's a commute I could become accustomed to.




The Sydney Opera House did not disappoint. What a gorgeous example of architecture and appreciation for the arts. I felt my inner Diva emerging just walking up the front steps.


Leaving the Opera House until later that evening, we wandered over to the old section of Sydney, The Rocks. Since it was Saturday, the artisans market was out in full swing. As Adam noted, this was our first time visiting a high fashion farmers market. We found a few bits and bobbles and memorable trinkets - and of course a bite or two of some lovely Aussie morsels.


The happy wanderers took the train back towards town, but got off a few stops early so that we could take a trip up the Sydney tower to get the birds eye view of Sydney. The city really is gorgeous with all of the bridges and boat traffic. We skipped shopping in the tower since Gucci was at the slummy end of the price range of shops in the mall. We opted instead for a quick change of clothes at the hotel and a lovely seafood dinner outside on the wharf.



We worked a bit of the delicious dinner off with a sprint to the ferry dock to complete the circle back to the Opera House. Adam scored us amazing seats to Puccini's La Boehme. The production was stunning. Unfortunately drama was found both on stage and in the seats behind us where a fellow opera patron had a sort of fit in the middle of Musetta's Waltz. The paramedics eventually arrived and after an extended intermission the show continued as planned. Rodolfo stole the show, though the entire cast was accomplished and memorable.


The dream weekend came to an end all too quickly. Our shuttle to the airport picked us up right on time and we whisked our way back to New Zealand. The sigh that escaped my lips when we touched down in Wellington was laden with dual meanings. It was sad to realize that our fairy tale weekend away was over but so lovely to have made it back to our adopted city in plenty of time to prepare responsibly for the week ahead. Adam really had thought of EVERYTHING.

You know, I thought turning thirty was going to be really tough. Quite frankly I enjoyed my terrific twenties and wasn't excited to see them go. But with family and friends like mine (and helicopter rides on the horizon), my life really looks like it really will be thirty, flirty, and flying.