Departure and Sydney

At 4am the alarm went off. We got up and put the last things together. The kids were woken and dressed (the little ones that is - the older two can fend for themselves!). Taleesha was not very good. She'd had fever already since Sunday and getting panadol in her is a waste of time. Fortunately, Marlies knew about suppository panadol and even had a few to use. Thanks Marlies. You're a livesaver. We used them all!

After a quick bite to eat and a prayer for safe travels, we headed off to the airport in the rain. Our suitcases were scattered around different family members as we couldn't fit them in all our car! We had 12 suitcases and 9 pieces of carry-on as well as the stroller!

We arrived at the airport at 6am and waited for all our suitcases to arrive. When we had them all, we headed for check-in. Several suitcases were over the 32kg mark so we had to distribute the weight a bit more evenly. Finally it all went through, although some where classed as heavy baggage.

We then headed up to the lounge and waited for boarding time. We said our goodbyes and make our way in the plane. It was a juggle handling all our carry-on! But we got there. And then we took off. We could see everyone at the window waving goodbye! I closed and opened my window shutter - did anyone see?

Waiting for more luggage to arrive

Family photo (minus Anthea) just before boarding

Stefan and Jaclyn buckling up before take-off

Shantel with her 'kids' breakfast. Plenty of food!

It was a good flight. Good service, and the kids happily watched playschool or in Taleesha's case slept most of the flight. She still wasn't good. We arrived in Sydney at 1:45pm. No one had trouble with their ears which was a blessing. After disembarking, we headed to baggage where our shuttle bus driver Tayfun was waiting. After making two trips to get all our baggage to the van, we headed off to the YHA at The Rocks which was to be our room for the night.

Taleesha asleep in the plane

YHA The Rocks

After making 3-4 trips using a trolley we finally got our luggage to our family room. By this time Taleesha was constantly crying, very hot (fever) and coughing. Fearing croup, I made a few calls and was directed to the Randwick Children's Hospital. So taking Jaclyn with me, we hailed a cab and went to the hospital. We waited for over two hours for someone to see her who suggested we take off some of her clothing to cool her down and give her panadol to control the fever. I told them that was a waste of time, because Taleesha and panadol don't mix. It just comes straight out. So then they also gave her a suppository! After attempting to give a hydrating fluid which she refused to take, we just let the panadol do its thing and finally by around 8pm we could go home. So calling another cab, we got home and put her to bed. Steve in the meantime had gone to the shops and bought some food supplies and had had dinner with Stefan and Shantel. Shantel was already in bed and asleep, so after a quick shower we all headed to bed.

The next morning, at 6am there was a knock on the door. Very groggy I went to check who was at our door. It was Tayfun, our shuttle bus driver thinking he had to pick us up to take us back to the airport. I politely told him it was a 6pm pickup, not 6am!

We all had a good sleep that night and with blackout curtains didn't wake up till around 8am! After some cereals in the YHA kitchen which is very well stocked and set up, we had to sort out our luggage and put in a small storage room. Both the staff and myself were quietly wondering how on earth we were going to get it all in that closet type room. But Steve did an excellent job of stacking and we got it all in there. The staff lady couldn't get over it. She commended Steve for a job well done! As check out was at 10:30am

 

Our luggage stacked from floor to roof!

We started our day with heading to the Sydney Harbour bridge. Taleesha was till feverish, so after another suppository, hopped in the pram and happily enjoyed the ride! Getting to the bridge is not wheelchair/pram friendly, so two pair of hands were needed to negotiate the stairs.

Being carried down the stairs

 We walked the full length of the bridge and then made our way to Luna Park to catch the ferry back to Circular Quay.

 Once back on the other side, we headed over to the Opera House and had our lunch on the stairs. We then head in the foyer and checked out the souvenir shop. We went back to ground level in the lift with no roof. Taleesha was good as long as the panadol kicked in. Otherwise she'd just sleep in the pram.

 

From there we headed back to Circular Quay and checked out the model of Sydney in the Customs House. Shantel was intriqued and the older two were delighted there was free wifi! We worked out where we were staying and how to get to the Eye Tower which was out next port of call.

 From there we walked to the building that houses the Eye Tower. The view was impressive!

Jaclyn and Taleesha's wacky smile!

The bridge under Jaclyn's chin

From here, things went downhill for Stefan. He started feeling cold and very tired. We made it back to the YHA and after loading all our suitcases back in the van with Tayfun, headed for the International airport.

What happens next will be the next installment! Stay tuned!