April 4, 2013. Sydney, Australia. The Second Day.

It takes about a day to get everything all together. I think most people don’t travel because they are not prepared to put up with the first day. Upon arrival, everything seems wrong. You are tired and nothing works. You have no idea where the restaurants and stores are to be found. Everything seems hopeless. Amazingly, by the end of the second day, the anxiety has disappeared. Yesterday we made great strides in understanding Darling Harbour in Sydney. Now we feel as comfortable as natives. I had a pedicure. We exchanged our New Zealand money for Australian. We booked a tour of the city. We found at least twenty restaurants we would enjoy, all within an easy walk of our apartment. Even the Internet is working. And the shower works like a champ. Ken and I have travelled a lot but I am still surprised by the first day syndrome. I talk myself through the idea that we must just do one thing at a time, one after another, and that the first day anxiety will soon disappear. Today, we are back to normal, where yesterday we were weary. It happens every time, fortunately!!