*Melissa*
Tuesday was an adventure. We had big plans to hop on a 7am train
for a big day in the Blue Mountains.
However, after a crappy night of sleep, which the hotel found to be a
fitting night to do construction, we woke up on the wrong side of the bed, and
already an hour behind schedule we didn’t have time for breakfast. We grumpily hurried our ways through
the streets, trying to read a map to take us to the train station. We finally made it (just missing the
next train) with little to comfort us but a few less-than-best Krispy Kremes
and a greasy Hungry Jack’s Menu (Better known as Burger King in the States).
By
the time we boarded the train, my blood was full of sugar, and I regained my
excitement to be getting out of the city and into some amazing natural scenery.
We arrived in Katoomba where we were welcomed with an
absolute downpour. Chad broke down and bought a raincoat before boarding our
“hop-on-hop-off double decker sightseeing bus”, and our adventure began.
Our
first stop was Scenic World, where there are 3 attractions. The first is a Sky
Bridge that takes you across a little valley to Scenic World central. Once
there, you take your second ride, on the “steepest train in the country” down
to the rainforest. This, in
reality, is a 10 second ride that takes you down about 30 feet. Granted, it probably is the steepest 30
feet any train goes down in Australia. The third ride takes you back up from
the rainforest floor in another little carriage with amazing views of the
valley.
I
am intentionally not saying too much about the beauty of this place, because it
is truly too hard to put in to words.
This area is absolutely breathtaking – even in the on and off rain and
the 10 degrees (yes – TEN DEGREES) it got down to. We only got a small taste of the area in the few hours we
had, but I will DEFINITELY come back to this place. I will try to get some pictures up, but truly, I think
everyone should come experience it for themselves!
By the time Wednesday came, I had succumbed to defeat. The
sun was out, and shining bright, and the freezing cold chill the only reminder
of the rain we’d had the previous few days. But, I was feeling absolutely lousy. I often say that it is impossible for
me to fly on an airplane without getting sick, and this was coming to be no exception.
We had the better part of the day
to explore before our flight back to Adelaide, and started with breakfast at
Pancakes on the Rocks (they ain’t got nothing on Adelaide’s Pancake
Kitchen!). After experiencing the
strange “aussie-style” of pancakes with ice cream and too much sugar, we
wandered our way to the Sydney Fish Markets. Everything looked amazing, and I really wanted to be hungry
and excited about so much fresh fish everywhere, but my heart wasn’t in
it. I tried to put on a good show,
but that didn’t last long.
We ended up wandering to the
shopping center, where we encountered enormous crowds and a never-ending
parade: it was ANZAC day. Not
something that Chad and I had been aware of when we booked our flights, or we
would have simply gone home that morning.
The Workshop was closed, to my great dismay, and we tried a cupcake shop
that was far below par compared to our Mini Monet’s and the Cupcake Café.
The most exciting discovery we
made, though, was a Westfield Center with 6 floors, and as you went up in the
levels, the price of the stores went up.
I say this in jest, but it honestly seemed to be the case, and I have
never felt more out of place!!
Awesome food court at the top – I wished we had discovered it sooner!!
I was quite happy to finally make
it to the airport that night, and eternally grateful that our Chief at work,
Michelle, came to our rescue and generously came to pick us up from the
airport. She had recently returned
from an overseas holiday and had the same dreadful sickness as me, too!! THANKS MICHELLE!!
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