Will & Kristine's Travel Adventures: Meeting the Marsupials!

Today we started the day by walking by Paddy's Markets. Now Will & I both love a good market but we weren't at this one for too long. It just had a bunch of little knick-knacks and junk. We moved on.

Next we walked over to the Queen Victoria Building which is just a beautiful old building with a bunch of high end stores and cafes. We were there to go to the Palace Tea Room (http://www.thepalacetearoom.com.au/) which was a place Will found because he knows that I love a good tea! Since we still had plans to eat lunch later in the day, I had the breakfast tea and Will had the devonshire tea and shared so it was basically a full afternoon tea between the two of us! I loved it! The place was adorable and just oh so cute and everything was delicious! We just had to do a tea with the British influence in Australia!

After afternoon tea, we walked over to Darling Harbour to check out the Wild Life Sydney Zoo! While there were many various options of zoos around the area (ex: Taronga), this one focused on Australian animals specifically and was super convenient.

At the zoo, we got to see a bunch of animals native to New Zealand. Most of the animals were in enclosed cages so I was surprised when we walked through the Kangaroo enclosure and there was a kangaroo on the pathway, not behind the ropes (not that the ropes were a big deterrant). Luckily, there was a zookeeper in there at the time doing feedings and checking on the animals so she let us know that we could pet the kangaroos. One wasn't really feeling it and jumped away. Another though rolled on its side just like a dog would when they wanted to be petted on the belly. It was adorable. We also ran into a animal handler in there with a snake and of course, Will wanted pics! Beyond the typical exhibits at the zoo, we paid extra to do the "Koala Encounter" and get up close and take a picture with a koala. Unfortunately, the koalas were all sleeping during our photo op which isn't surprising since koalas sleep 20 out of 24 hours a day! Because of this, it is actually illegal to touch koalas so that way they won't be disrupted and can get their rest. While the koala wasn't super cooperative for our photo op, we were shocked when the zookeeper pointed out that the mama koala had her baby starting to peek out. They usually stay in the pouch for the first 6 months of life but today was the first day that the little joey was starting to make an appearance. It was so darn cute!

Afterwards, we walked over to the Sydney Fish Market for delicious fresh seafood! We got a mixture of fried and fresh items, and even got a sushi donut!

Afterwards, we walked around the CBD (Central Business District) which was like a modern "Asia-town" but only all the hip stuff. There were so many restaurants with all different types of Asian food and desserts. It was AWESOME! There were also a bunch of stores too but we were mainly there for the food!