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Published: August 6th 2007
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Our final night in Australia
we have seen some pretty amazing sights in the last 10 weeks, but Uluru at sunrise and Sydney harbour at sunset have been our pick of the best Our train journey back to Sydney was fairly uneventful, though we did arrive back two hours later than scheduled. Checking into the same hostel we had checked out of nearly two weeks ago we were delighted to to learn that we had been 'upgraded' to an en-suite room at no extra cost, the first time we had 'owned' our bathroom since arriving in Australia in mid January.
Later that afternoon we made our way to Sydney's Channel 10 studios, home of Ready Steady Cook where we had booked 2 tickets to sit in the audience. The females outnumbered the males about 10 to 1 and the avaerage age was probably about 50. As we entered the studio there was some really competitive jostling as women tried to get through the doors to bag the first seats - we held back and felt the eyes staring into the back of our heads as we were given front row seats (until they realised they had miscalculated and stuck another 3 emergency chairs in front of us).
They day was pretty cheesy, the camp host made a slightly awkward comment to one of the contestants who was originally from Cambodia "do you
Ready, Steady, Cook
our 5 minutes of fame on trashy daytime TV..........STOP COOKING!!!!! Ready, Steady, Cook
our 5 minutes of fame on trashy daytime TV..........STOP COOKING!!!!!ever get to go back, in fact is it safe, are we allowed there??", the warm up man told bad jokes and encouraged us to make noises appropriate to whatever food was being shown, we got to vote with the famous red tomato/green pepper cards and the icing on the cake?......we were called up at the end to test the food , it's a shame we will never get to see our 15 minutes of fame!
The following day saw us heading 2 hours away from Sydney for the Blue Mountains (so called because of the coloured hue coming off the Eucalyptus trees) where we had arranged to meet Matt, Rob and James for two nights. We had been warned to expect a temperature difference in comparison to Sydney and at each town along the way the train's doors opened letting in an increasingly cooler blast of air.
We headed out to Echo Point, a viewpoint from where the 'Three Sisters' rock formation can be seen, considering the areas proximity to Sydney it was an impressive view, uninterrupted for miles. The biting wind made us decide
The Blue mountains
although not to clear on this photo, you can actually see the blue haze caused by the Eucalypt trees. to head for a drink to warm up, the only option appeared
The Blue mountains
although not to clear on this photo, you can actually see the blue haze caused by the Eucalypt trees.to be the Carrington Hotel Bar so we settled in for a few drinks before all heading to the YHA where Matt cooked us up a huge batch of mince and tacos.
Our second day started warmer and with brilliant blue skies, minutes into our 'Three Sisters Walk' we were all peeling off the layers we had put on in anticipation of another chilly day. The walk was designed to se the main sights of Katoomba (the town we were staying in) and included a 900 step staircase - fortunately we were headed downwards. There were some beautiful lookouts along the way although we were disappointed with the wildlife, the sum of our sightings being a dead skink on the way back from the walk; I am sure the fact that there was a huge group of Japanese tourists complete with the obligatory shouting tour guide may have been something to do with this. After about 3 hours of walking the cableway took us back to
higher ground and we headed into town for fish and chips.
The remainder of the day was spent with the two Matts (on guitar) and Rob (on ukulele) making a lot of
What happens when you mix 2 (out of tune) guitars and a Ucalaly
You get the UKs next Eurovision entry. L-R Matt, Matt and Robnoise as Matt tried to teach the other two some songs on their new instruments. Eventually I left them to it and went off to call home. The gang met that night for a 'Last Supper' in a Thai restaurant before heading to the one bar in town to catch the first half of Liverpool's 4-0 win over Arsenal.
We said our goodbyes to the gang (we are all off on different routes now) and headed back to Sydney with aching calves. We decided to make a last trip to the Harbour, took the train to the far side and walked back across the bridge as the sun was setting. Though we both slightly preferred Melbourne, Sydney is without doubt the postcard image of Australia and it's a pretty amazing feeling to actually be there, especially when it looks as lovely as
Green peppers rule!!!
Although they call them Capsicums over here!! it did that night.
Our time in Australia has passed so quickly, but we have seen so much of this vast country; beaches, desert, reefs, mountains, cities and rainforests. It's been easier and more comfortable to travel than Asia but not as interesting for the reason that culturally it's very similar to home; I guess that's
Green peppers rule!!!
Although they call them Capsicums over here!!why people from the UK find it so easy to settle here. Australia has surprised me, I never anticipated how big or diverse it would be and one of the main things that we have both enjoyed has been the nature especially the wildlife but also the natural sights (like Uluru). The people of Australia have made us extremely welcome, from helpful strangers to the kindness of our Melbourne hosts and the ever present "g'day, how ya goin?" from just about everyone we passed in Queensland.
Next stop Christchurch, New Zealand.
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Danz
non-member comment
Spectacular Photos
Your blog is great and photos are really beautiful. I am an Aussie currently living in China and looking at your photos make me so proud of my Home Country. All the best with your travels, Dani