Recollections – Blue Mountains and the beginning of Sydney

I’ve missed sitting down to write weekly updates, so I’m going to make as much of an effort as I can to pump out stories, words and photos from the road trip over the coming weeks.

The point at which I ended the last update about the road trip was our final day in the Blue Mountains. The next day we hit the road to Sydney, but in the morning, we stopped off at Katoomba to do some more sightseeing and activities.

I loved driving around this area. It felt like we were ensconced by greenery, which reminded me of my youth spent growing up in Whittlesea and Eden Park and the trips taken out to Kinglake on occasion.

Either way, we got to see things like…

Yep, the Three Sisters. Now, I’ve got two sisters. Never have I dared to compare them to a rock formation. With good reason.
But whatever they are, they’re quite a sight to behold. We took the Skyway to get the view above, as well as this one.

The wind was kicking up a stink the day we were there (I think the photo tells that just fine, but I thought I should make it clear in case you thought it was the most slanted waterfall in the world) and that was the result. At one point on the Skyway, you have a glass bottom floor and a 270-metre drop below you.

Thankfully they put wires on the open-air sides of the Skyway, because as the attendant informed us, thrillseekers would often try to take the Skyway out to the 270-metre drop point and base jump from there. Safety first, people!

Unfortunately the Cable Car was closed for maintenance and repairs, and had been for some weeks after a critical fault/potential lawsuit was discovered in what should have been a very routine maintenance appointment.

However, we did get to take the all-too-brief Scenic Railway into the valley below. The railway takes you through a cave and a layer of rainforest canopy before letting you out to lead you to a variety of walks and pathways for further exploration of the valley. It’s all very well mapped out so there’s little chance of getting lost if you stick to the walkways provided.

You get another view of Katoomba Falls, for one. A much more grounded human perspective where you can take in the sheer size of it.

After walking around for a while, we decided to head back up and make our way to Sydney. I really hope I get to explore more of the Blue Mountains over time. It’s quite overwhelming how much there is to see and do around there.

The drive into Sydney was a massive pain in the patootie. Seriously. As if the GPS directions weren’t bad enough (I’m still not entirely sure I should have relied on them as the primary source for directions) the traffic put the icing on the crap cake that was the drive into that other big city (that isn’t Melbourne) in Australia.

We were lucky enough to have accommodation with a friend for the time we were staying in Sydney, and I can’t thank her enough for housing us. I’ve never really felt an urge to explore Sydney, but the time had come.

We were about two streets away from King Street in Newtown. A very cool, laid-back area with more specialised restaurants than you can shake a diet-related disease, disorder or discomfort at. The first afternoon/early evening was spent traversing this district and I came away thinking that if I were ever to live in a place in Sydney, that would be the area I would be gunning for.

We stumbled across a poetry reading (that hadn’t actually started) in a chaotic warehouse bookstore that didn’t believe in any sort of coherent order or system, but it clearly worked for them. One of the *ahem* poets was putting the moves on the Crazy Canadian, for he wasn’t specifically a poet, you see, but a serious stage actor. If he used the word ‘Thespian’, I may well have clipped him around the ears.  Because admitting to being something potentially more pretentious than the act of reading out your poetry to an audience is a surefire way to impress the ladies…

A ramen dinner, followed by more discussions relating to Sydney were had to close out that first day.

The next day was taking in the sights around Circular Quay and a wharf ride out to Manly. You get some really great views of the Harbour Bridge and Opera House, and from memory it was only $13 for a return trip, so not too expensive and you can spend time walking around Manly and taking in what it has to offer. Be warned, though, should you choose to sit outside it can get quite windy and cold. The Crazy Canadian suggested we move inside after 10 minutes. If a Canadian is saying it’s cold, you’d best listen, ey?

I’ll pay Sydney this compliment, it’s a very pretty city. I can’t take that away from it, as much as the Melburnian in me wants to strip it away from it like a jealous child that just has to have that other child’s lollipop because it’s a red one and not a green one, because nobody likes the green ones, y’see.

Afterwards, we made our way through Martin Place and other major sections of the CBD before getting some dinner in Chinatown at a really neat (and inexpensive) Thai restaurant called Thanon Khao San (insert Cold Chisel jokes at your peril, you have been warned), where we shared great food and great conversation before catching the bus home for the night.

Next time… More on Sydney and Port Macquarie!