Our Sydney stopover lasted all of 72 hours from touchdown to back on the plane to New Zealand. The stop was a bit selfish, to be honest. While many fellow travelers told me to head straight to New Zealand and not make a pit stop, I was torn between FOMO (fear of missing out) and also flying to that side of the world and NOT making the stop. Even from Dubai, the flight was 15 hours, which is not the same pain as flying from Washington, D.C., but it’s still a LONG flight.

Touchdown in the land down under at 10:00 p.m., and we were of course wide awake. I still have not found the cure to jet lag (and would love suggestions). Next, we were Westin bound to 1 Martin Place. The hotel property is located in the historic old Sydney General Post Office, situated in the heart of downtown. The location is perfect if you want to be in walking distance of shopping and activity. After a shared bacon lettuce tomato sandwich and nightcap at the hotel bar, we found ourselves already down a day. The next morning was when our Koala cuddle adventure began.

Hubs found a private half-day tour on TripAdvisor through Sydney Top Tours called “Kangaroos, Lookouts & Koala Encounter.” We were picked up at our hotel at 7:00 a.m. to be whisked an hour outside of Sydney into the beautiful sights of the Australian countryside. Due to the meeting time, we were not able to grab coffee or breakfast; the early rising did a number on us due to travel fatigue. Our guide, Raki, won our hearts over by stopping off at a small-town bakery to grab coffees and croissants. Once we were fed and happy, it was NOW time for our adventure to begin.

The first stop was the Blue Mountains National Park, a popular hiking and camping spot for locals. As soon as we parked the car, a small kangaroo was enjoying a morning graze for his breakfast. Kangaroos are relatively gentle creatures, but you should not get too close as they have been known to give a punch or a kick. We then walked up a nature trail and saw three full-grown Kangaroos having breakfast. I’m sure to an Australian seeing a Kangaroo in a national park is the same as an American seeing deer while camping. But let me tell you full stop, I was about to pee my pants with excitement. After about 100 photos, we made our way back to the car to see other areas of the national park. We went to two lookout areas, one that had a stunning view of the Blue Mountains and another overlooking the Nepean River. These lookouts are only accessible via dirt roads. Australia does this by design to preserve nature and keep tour buses out of the national park areas. At all of the trails, we were able to park, and the walks were quiet and peaceful. We spent about an hour at the national park before driving to Featherdale Wildlife Park. Now we get to the exciting part!

Featherdale Wildlife Park sits on seven acres of land and boasts more than 1,700 Australian native animals. Featherdale is Australia’s largest native collection according to their website. You will be able to get up close and personal with dingos, wombats, Tasmanian devils, and kangaroos. There is also an impressive bird sanctuary and reptile house.

Part of our tour included a Koala Encounter and photo opportunity. Now, initially, I thought we would be able to hold the Koala, like a baby bear. But, then you see the Koala’s claws and realize that would be a horrible idea. Their claws are razor sharp. Leading up to the Koala cuddle, we were able to walk through an area where several Koalas were asleep in the trees and learn more about these adorable animals. I had no idea, until this trip, that Koalas sleep up to 22 hours a day. Yes, please. The reason for this constant lethargy is eucalyptus, which has a high amount of natural sugar and causes malaise. They are not active creatures at all, so they spend their days sleeping, and wake up to eat leaves before going back to sleep. My spirit animal is now a Koala. My first response at the meet & greet area was, “is it real?” The Koala was sleeping motionless in the tree and honestly looked like a stuffed animal. However, upon closer inspection, our friend was alive and very real. A handler explains where you can “hold” the Koala and a team of photographers set to work to capture the moment you cradled a Koala by the bum. The photography team also captured shots on our cellphones in addition to printed keepsakes that we took right after the experience.

How can you top that?!

The private tour took us out of the city and helped us connect with nature and the animals native to Australia without the hassle that can come with large group tours. Now, we did fall asleep in the car on the way back to Sydney, but I’m sure hubs, and I were both dreaming of Koalas.

xo

SinS