My decision to start in Australia mostly stemmed from the fact that I was living in Los Angeles at the time. I booked a one-way ticket from LA to Sydney, and then spent the next five months planning the trip and downsizing my life.
As a newbie to round the world travel, I landed in Sydney without a
single friend and feeling a tad lonely. Luckily, backpackers are a friendly
lot. I got my travel legs under me by exploring the Opera House, the Taronga
Zoo, and the Botanical Gardens. Deciding to stay in the Blue Mountains was a
real highlight, and my penchant for getting incredibly lost at the least
convenient moments started here. This would become a recurring theme of the
trip because, yeah, I get lost a lot.
Shannon O’Donnell (to
be continued)
