• Australia Sydney
  • REPORTERAlberto Ferrando

Hello everyone! I’m originally from Italy and I moved to Sydney, Australia, in 2012 after getting a job as a civil engineer. I love walking my dog along the beach, surfing and taking photos. I used to have a travel blog because I’m passionate about traveling and I love writing about it too. Sydney is my home base now and I wish to share how amazing it is to live here. I love to spend time outdoors and I’m always well informed about local events because my girlfriend works in event management.

  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2024.02.27
  • THE GHAN AND CROSSING AUSTRALIA.
  • Not many people know that in Australia there is a train named “The Ghan”, which is an abbreviation of “The Afghan Express” and how the train was nicknamed so due to the caravans of Afghan camel drivers who traveled the same route on foot with their animals before the advent of the railway.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.12.27
  • What is odd here?
  • Australia is the dreams of thousands of young adventurers attracted by the possibility of exploring a world that is still so uncontaminated; it is the home of large metropolises and the Great Reef and the land of unique species and boundless territories.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.12.14
  • FINALLY, ADELAIDE!
  • Capital of South Australia and a multi-ethnic centre, Adelaide is considered one of the most liveable cities in the world. Its strategic location, together with its calm and lively lifestyle, have made this city a very popular destination for students and workers.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.11.14
  • Spiraling into reading.
  • The extraordinary new public library of Sydney is a true architectural masterpiece located in Darling Square. The building is shaped as a spiral and it was made using twenty kilometers of wooden slats “harvested” from sustainable sources and bunched up in a seamless spiral.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.10.05
  • SPRING TIME, BLOOMING TIME….
  • In most of Australia, spring runs from September to November. The school vacation period goes from late September to mid-October in most states and this is when local families usually go on vacation.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.09.05
  • AUSTRALIAN HABITS, QUITE DIFFERENT FROM BACK HOME.
  • One of the things I vividly remember from my childhood is the ‘nightmare’ of asking a glass of water from the local cafe’ whenever I was thirsty and the embarrassment I felt because I had no money on me as an early teen. In Italy, in fact, it’s frowned upon to ask for tap water at a bar, hotel, restaurant or any business that is.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.07.21
  • Gold Coast, an Australian jewel.
  • The Gold Coast is the most representative image of the Australian coast with its skyscrapers, with the long beaches and its surfers paradise which is more than just the name of one of the main towns here.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.06.08
  • CELEBRATING ALL MOTHERS AND BEYOND.
  • Mother's Day is undoubtedly one of the most popular holidays in the world. In fact, on this very special day one of the most important figures of the family is celebrated, a symbol of love and protection.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2023.02.24
  • Australia Day, a controversial day.
  • On January 26th of every year Australians celebrate Australia Day. Why January 26th? Because this date marks the anniversary of the arrival of the first British fleet in 1788 in Sydney Bay which was then called Port Jackson.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.12.14
  • A Purple Spring Season
  • I am well aware that Sakura blossoming season is a very beautiful and important moment of the year in Japan and many people spend time cherry blossom watching during this time.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.09.27
  • My trip to West and Northern Australia
  • I have finally got to visit some parts of Northern and West Australia. Australia's West coast and its outback is one of the wildest and least populated territories in the world. Here the hand of man has barely managed to modify what is the original landscape of this incredible area of Australia.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.09.12
  • Crossing the border into Down Under
  • Anybody who has ever visited Australia or who has ever watched an episode of a border patrol show on TV will know that the Australian customs officers are among the strictest in the world and that is because they need to follow the Australian border law that is very rigorous.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.07.21
  • By ALBERTO FERRANDO
  • Even before moving to Australia, I had seen some pictures of the Whitsunday islands and its beaches. Honestly, I had thought they were photoshopped and that such a place couldn't really exist.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.04.25
  • Getting a house in Downunder
  • Let's be honest: finding a house to rent in Australia can turn into a real pain: it is not easy, especially because the cost of rents in recent years has risen a lot.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.04.01
  • Colourful Mardi Gras
  • Last weekend I was in downtown Sydney for the Mardi Gras parade. Mardi Gras, also called Fat Tuesday is the Tuesday preceding the beginning of Lent and, in much of the West, is a day dedicated to celebrations, music and allegorical floats.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2022.02.14
  • What is the famous Australian Bushwalking?
  • Bushwalking is a very typical activity here in Australia and although it used to be a pastime considered more for tourists in the past, it has gained attention and popularity in recent years since Australians have become more outdoorsy when they were forced to travel domestically.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.12.13
  • ALBERTO FERRANDO BLOG
  • Australia is a very attractive nation, a country in continuous demographic growth and immigration has massively contributed to its development.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.11.26
  • Healthy Australia?
  • Australia was not born with surfing in its blood: its practice was officialised during the Melbourne Olympics of the 50s when it was decided to equip OZ lifeguards at sea with these boards, which are useful for recovering a swimmer in distress.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.11.15
  • Australian MATESHIP
  • “Hey, Mate!” …you will probably hear this expression a million time if you come to Australia. It is the most common expression to call the attention of a friend or a peer.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.10.29
  • OZ SLANG PART 2
  • On a previous article of mine I had mentioned some slang words Australians use on a daily basis. As years go by and I live here now I can tell that my English is changing and it’s becoming more and more ‘Aussie.’
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.09.30
  • There is more culture in Sydney that one can imagine.
  • I have been living in Sydney for a few years now and there are areas of the city that I know very well. But there are many others that I just don't know, because I've never been there or because I've only been passing through. On the other hand, in a big city like Sydney, it is difficult to get familiar with all the various neighbourhoods unless you do nothing more than explore every week!
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.08.11
  • Boomerangs blog July
  • When you think about the land Down Under you also think of boomerangs and I realized I had never mentioned this curious object ever present in Aussie souvenir shops and aboriginal exhibits.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.07.27
  • DRIVING, OZ STYLE
  • Australia is a huge country, a continent even, with a population concentrated mainly along the coasts so there are very often great distances from one place to another and it is easy to be misled by looking at the maps and underestimate travel times.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.07.12
  • OZ SEASONS (WINTER IS HERE!)
  • Generally speaking, the best season to visit Australia is from December to February, but one can find a mild climate all year round because the climate in Australia varies from one state or territory to another.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.06.29
  • OZ SCHOOL SYSTEM
  • My friends back home in Italy often ask me how Australian schools differ from Italian schools. I don’t know much about Australian schools first hand because, except for some technical courses and advanced English classes, I haven’t attended school here but, after years living here, I certainly acquired many information about it.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.06.01
  • Murramarang National Park
  • Some friends of mine back in Italy are planning their trip to Australia for when the borders will reopen (Ouch! It seems it will still take a loooong while) so they can have an itinerary ready once they will be able to come visit me here and they would like to visit some places near Sydney too during their stay.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.04.22
  • Fashion OZ
  • I wanted to write an article about Australian fashion since I noticed from the very start that Aussies dress very differently from Italian people but, to be very honest, I don’t know much about fashion or how to approach the topic being a man.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.03.24
  • Baby shower
  • Back in Italy, where I am originally from, the arrival of a baby is usually celebrated after his or her birth with a party usually joined with a baptism for those who come from a Catholic family.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.03.15
  • OZ Sunshine
  • The sun in Australia can be really, really strong, partially due to its geographical position below or at the equator and because of its position right below the biggest hole in the ozone layer.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.02.22
  • STREET ART AND OTHER OZ CULTURAL SITES by
  • During the period of the lockdown, when museums were closed and events had been called off, I had decided to do some research nonetheless and see where in or around Sydney I could get to see some art and culture whether I could visit them then or later on so I started writing down some names of sites and I compiled a sort of ‘bucket list’ of places I would like to visit (and some I ended up visiting!!) in Sydney and New South Wales.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.02.08
  • MAYBE MOVING…..
  • As Sydney is getting more and more expensive and, in the past year, it has been in the centre of the attention for some negative reasons, I’m thinking of moving to another city here in Australia and I am undecided between Brisbane, the capital of Queensland and Perth, the capital of Western Australia.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.01.26
  • AF My NYE in Sydney
  • Since this year there were no parties in the Sydney harbour area and the great fireworks show had been suspended for a much shorter version at midnight at the Sydney Harbour Bridge which one could only watch broadcast live on the ABC channel or on the Sydney Harbour live cam, I decided to go to a private party with live music, social distancing and to get a feeling of normalcy a bit on the outskirts of the city with a friend.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2021.01.13
  • I will be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams …
  • A Christmas song goes “I will be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams!” …and that is so my case this year given the fact that Australia still has closed borders and strict traveling restrictions are still in place even within the country itself especially after new cases have come out in the past few weeks.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.12.15
  • Article
  • One of the first questions I get asked by people who find out I’m living in Australia now is whether I've seen kangaroos and koalas. Then, the second question they always ask me, especially the girls and the mothers of my Italian friends, is “How are the spiders over there?”
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.12.01
  • Pacific Bubble
  • As the Australian states are slowly reopening their borders to national travelers and people willing or hoping to move from state to state to visit family members and friends, we are also starting to talk about potentially reopening Australian borders to selected Pacific islanders.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.11.04
  • MY EXPERIENCE VOLUNTEERING AT THE KOALA HOSPITAL
  • Not everyone knows that Australia is following a sort of mini-lockdown due to Coronavirus. That means that some states and territories in Australia have closed their borders to non-essential travel due to Coronavirus and therefore it is not possible to move from one state to the next freely and just for leisure purposes.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.10.21
  • By Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia is considered by surfers as paradise on earth and this country is home to the most incredible beaches and majestic waves, and riding them represents the true dream of all fans of this sport.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.10.02
  • Perth
  • There won’t be any traveling abroad this year unfortunately so I decided to visit a part of Australia I hadn’t visited yet: Western Australia.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.09.11
  • OZ SLANG, MATE!
  • It doesn't matter how good your English is or how perfectly British your pronunciation sounds because if your dream is to fly to Australia you may have a hard time understanding Aussies (as Australians call themselves)…Yes, because Australian slang is very rich and tends to shorten almost everything.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.08.17
  • Birdwatching
  • Birdwatching is a cool activity all over the world but in Australia it definitely takes a notch up I think. Australia is a birdwatcher’s paradise.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.07.28
  • OZ big things
  • My initiation into the nonsense of Australian large things took place during a guided walking tour I took in Melbourne a couple of years ago.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.06.30
  • Working in Australia?? A dream come true.
  • More and more people are looking at Australia as a new promised land although it’s not that easy to be able to work in Australia for all professionals. But there is no doubt that working in Australia is not impossible and there are jobs in high demand.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.06.17
  • SYDNEY WALKS
  • Known as Harbour City, Sydney is famous for its beautiful coast. Now that the contagion is slowing down, the Australian government is reopening some beaches and walks in nature are now a must do.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.05.28
  • Fighting boredom Australia April
  • How can we spend our time in quarantine? Being under quarantine can be frightening and boring and the Australian government suggestions on how to cope with it include talking to the other members of the family about the infection to understand the coronavirus (COVID-19) and reduce anxiety other than keeping up a normal daily routine as much as possible.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.05.11
  • What’s the fuss about toilet paper Down Under?
  • I wanted to talk about the difficult times we are experiencing here in Australia with this COVID 19, but then I thought that we can get all the sad and worrisome data about the contagion from the news, so I wanted to take a different approach to the matter and talk about something peculiar is happening here Australia, which is the “disappearance” of toilet paper in the supermarkets, or better the looting of it.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.04.21
  • Sandboarding, the OZ alternative to surfing
  • In Australia there is a super fun sport activity called sandboarding which can be practised on one of the numerous small islands off the coast of this country and also in some other areas where the sandy beaches are hilly and offer a good spot to use a board to slide off and enjoy this activity somewhat between surfing, snowboarding and sledding.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.04.13
  • COOBER PEDY
  • I have visited the most amazing place here in Australia – in my opinion – and I wish to tell you all about it: Coober Pedy in the Outback.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.03.06
  • Sydney's art world
  • It is true that when we think of Australia the first things that come to mind are probably not the museums but, our capital city Sydney is one of the world cities which stands out for its rich cultural offer.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.02.21
  • Tasmania
  • Australia is by extension as large as Europe - perhaps something more – and this continent/country has that wild and dangerous charm that makes our minds dream.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.02.06
  • Watsons Bay
  • Since I do not originally come from Sydney, my discovery of this city goes on with a preference for walks by the sea. After my first favourite hike to Bondi Beach which I mentioned in my previous blogs, I went this time a little more to the north to explore the beautiful and peaceful Watsons Bay.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.01.23
  • Blog Jan
  • I remember that I had written my first blog on this site about the variety of animals in Australia and I’m very sad to write that the paradise for animals (and humans) this country used to be is now a distant memory and our paradise is now burning like hell.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2020.01.10
  • Horse Races in Australia
  • It has been since the year 1840 (only 5 years after the foundation of Melbourne) that the Melbourne Cup, the most prestigious horse race in Australia, stops the entire country every year. The event is organized by the Victoria Racing Club and it takes place every year in November at the Flemington racecourse.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.12.11
  • OZ Art
  • Australian art is one of the oldest artistic traditions in the world, dating back at least 30 thousand years ago. But what is Australian Aboriginal art?
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.11.08
  • Australians love to play sports and whatever the discipline
  • Australians love to play sports and whatever the discipline, their practice takes up a very substantial part of their lives, to such an extent that most of their free time (what they do not occupy by making BBQ with friends and relatives) is dedicated precisely to play sports and train for them!
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.10.28
  • A day at Manly Beach in Sydney
  • On weekends, local people (especially those like me who work indoors) like to spend time outdoors and either visit the beaches for a swim (sharks permitting!) or the nearby mountains for a hike.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.09.27
  • The Vivid Festival of Music in Sydney
  • The Vivid Festival of Music in Sydney is one of the most anticipated events of the Australian music scene. Vivid Sydney is the largest festival of lights and music in the country and it has now celebrated over ten years of editions.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.09.17
  • OZ food
  • When you visit Australia, you will surely come across some typical dishes: don't hold back, but try them! Some of them will ignite your curiosity! Probably starting with the types of meat that are hard to find in supermarkets abroad, such as kangaroo meat, there is a great deal of foods that you can find only and exclusively here!
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.08.13
  • Luna Park
  • If you live in Sydney or you have been to Sydney, you probably have visited the Circular Quay (a district famous among tourists and for local residents in the evenings,
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.07.11
  • A.F. Sydney
  • Visiting Sydney is always a wonderful experience, but when you have many days available you shouldn't miss the Blue Mountains.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.06.26
  • BONDI BEACH
  • Sydney has over 70 beaches and many of these overlook the port. Many others are found along the coast and the closest to the city centre is Bondi Beach.
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  • Australia Sydney
  • Alberto Ferrando
  • 2019.06.12
  • Australian animals
  • For my first blog on Australia I wanted to write about what I love the most about this amazing country and what impressed me the most upon my arrival years ago.
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