Our trip to Sydney started with a one-hour flight delay. No big deal, right? Wrong. Turns out, Sydney Airport doesn’t operate 24/7. If we had arrived five minutes later, we would’ve been rerouted to Melbourne. Love that for us.

Day 1 was Jet lag recovery. We ventured out for dinner at Ho Jiak (meh). At least Cockle Bay’s weekly fireworks delivered—because who doesn’t love surprise pyrotechnics?

Kim loves packing city trips with activities. First stop: a tour of The Rocks. A solid guide, interesting history, and a good start to the day. Lunch at Mr Wong was overpriced, with steamed dim sum that was fine and fried options that weren’t. The day ended strong with a True Crime tour, a stunning sunset at Gallows Hill, (complete with fruit bats) and a warning to steer clear of garbage cans unless you enjoy rats.

We fell in love with Sydney’s urban planning. It’s a dream to walk—clean, gorgeous, wide sidewalks, and a blend of old and new architecture that’s just stunning. We walked 20km in two days! (RIP our feet.)

Next was a morning tour of the Sydney Opera House because, well, you have to. Breathtaking. Worth the early wake-up, though we still resent mornings. We skipped breakfast to save room for our "Secret" Food Tour—which turned out to be neither secret nor particularly good. Dry schnitzel, fish & chips, and storytelling next to a noisy water feature? Hard pass. Our first-ever disappointing food tour.

Two days, 20km of walking, and a whole lot of Sydney later, we barely scratched the surface. Next time, we’re staying a week—and bringing better shoes.

Sydney: Fireworks, Food Fails & 20km in Two Days