January 15th, 2017
Affirmation: “I love the feeling of freedom I get when I take off the heavy coat of criticism, fear, guilt, resentment, and shame. I can forgive myself and others. This sets us all free. Let's affirm today: I am willing to forgive.”
Word of the Day:gallimaufry (n):
____
I had to wake up very early in order to navigate the public transportation system again (and the trains were still down due to track work). I finally made it into Bondi Junction (a really cool, hipster neighborhood in Sydney) for brunch with my friend, Stephanie. We went to this totally Boulder-esque "oats and granola" cafe ("Nelson Road Tuckshop", http://www.nelsonroad.com.au/) - where we had incredibly fresh and spicy loose leaf chai lattes, huge, hot slabs of crusty sourdough rye bread with creamy melted butter and lots of vegemite (as in about 1/4 cup of each!), and coconut & lime bircher muesli with quinoa, chia, and tapioca topped with fresh mango, banana, papaya, passionfruit, and caramelized oranges.
From there, I explored Bondi junction for a bit before taking the bus to Bondi Beach, where I proceeded to walk the 7 km coastal hike through to Bronte beach and back. It was beautiful with a cool breeze and I could feel the spray of ocean water and warm sunshine and taste the salt, sand, and surf. After the walk, I took a bus to Circular Quay, and took the 30 minute ferry from Sydney harbor to Manly Beach.
It was a beautiful ride over and Manly was well worth it. The Boardwalk is bursting with character and the whole neighborhood has a strong beach culture that is rooted in history. It was a lot of fun. After exploring Manly for a while, I took the ferry back to Circular Quay and then took a train to the Rocks district, where I had dinner and then had my Sydney Bridge climb from 6:15 to 9:45 pm. It was a great experience and I got some professional photos at the end, too (not shown below).
Here's a description from the website:
I only ended up getting back to my Dad's cousin's place past midnight because I was unable to reach him to pick me up from the train station, so I ended up waiting until I finally found a taxi to take me back. It was exhausting, but it was another really memorable day.
I tried to cover a lot of ground on my trip this time, but I realize that I could actually spend a whole month just in Sydney alone and still not see and experience everything I would want to. It is an amazing city and Australia really is an amazing country...
Affirmation: “I love the feeling of freedom I get when I take off the heavy coat of criticism, fear, guilt, resentment, and shame. I can forgive myself and others. This sets us all free. Let's affirm today: I am willing to forgive.”
Word of the Day:gallimaufry (n):
1. a heterogenous
mixture: jumble
Bu’l-Hasan and the Snow
After Bestami died, it
happened as he said
that Bu’l-Hasan became the sheikh for his community.
that Bu’l-Hasan became the sheikh for his community.
Every day Bu’l-Hasan
would go to Bestami’s tomb
to receive instruction. He had been told to do this
in a dream by Bestami himself.
to receive instruction. He had been told to do this
in a dream by Bestami himself.
Every dawn he goes and
stands
facing the tomb until midmorning.
facing the tomb until midmorning.
Either the spirit of
Bestami comes and talks to him
or in silence the questions he has are answered.
or in silence the questions he has are answered.
One day a deep snow has
fallen overnight.
The graves are indistinguishable.
Bu’l-Hasan feels lost.
The graves are indistinguishable.
Bu’l-Hasan feels lost.
Then he hears his
sheikh's voice.
The world is made of
snow.
It falls and melts and falls again.
It falls and melts and falls again.
Do not be concerned with
snow.
Come toward the sound of my voice,
Move always in this direction.
Come toward the sound of my voice,
Move always in this direction.
From that day Bu’l-Hasan
began to experience
the enlightened state
he had only heard and read about before.
the enlightened state
he had only heard and read about before.
____
I had to wake up very early in order to navigate the public transportation system again (and the trains were still down due to track work). I finally made it into Bondi Junction (a really cool, hipster neighborhood in Sydney) for brunch with my friend, Stephanie. We went to this totally Boulder-esque "oats and granola" cafe ("Nelson Road Tuckshop", http://www.nelsonroad.com.au/) - where we had incredibly fresh and spicy loose leaf chai lattes, huge, hot slabs of crusty sourdough rye bread with creamy melted butter and lots of vegemite (as in about 1/4 cup of each!), and coconut & lime bircher muesli with quinoa, chia, and tapioca topped with fresh mango, banana, papaya, passionfruit, and caramelized oranges.
From there, I explored Bondi junction for a bit before taking the bus to Bondi Beach, where I proceeded to walk the 7 km coastal hike through to Bronte beach and back. It was beautiful with a cool breeze and I could feel the spray of ocean water and warm sunshine and taste the salt, sand, and surf. After the walk, I took a bus to Circular Quay, and took the 30 minute ferry from Sydney harbor to Manly Beach.
It was a beautiful ride over and Manly was well worth it. The Boardwalk is bursting with character and the whole neighborhood has a strong beach culture that is rooted in history. It was a lot of fun. After exploring Manly for a while, I took the ferry back to Circular Quay and then took a train to the Rocks district, where I had dinner and then had my Sydney Bridge climb from 6:15 to 9:45 pm. It was a great experience and I got some professional photos at the end, too (not shown below).
Here's a description from the website:
Absorb a 360 degree panorama of
Sydney as you journey to the summit on our original Climb experience. Like an
exposed spine, the outer rim delivers you to the peak, as the sky remains just
beyond your outstretched fingertips.
THE JOURNEY
Latching on in the Climb Base below
the Bradfield Highway, you will walk on catwalks below the road-deck until you
reach the South-East Pylon. Here you will ascend 4 ladders to the start of the
upper arch, surrounded by the hum and buzz of Sydney’s traffic. With the summit
in your sight, your journey continues along the Bridge’s outer arch on the
Opera House side until you hit the top. After a summit celebration with your
group, you cross the spine of the Bridge to the Darling Harbour side to make
your descent to our Climb Base.
I only ended up getting back to my Dad's cousin's place past midnight because I was unable to reach him to pick me up from the train station, so I ended up waiting until I finally found a taxi to take me back. It was exhausting, but it was another really memorable day.
I tried to cover a lot of ground on my trip this time, but I realize that I could actually spend a whole month just in Sydney alone and still not see and experience everything I would want to. It is an amazing city and Australia really is an amazing country...
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