A WEEKEND for the books

This past weekend was absolute class. I am really happy my last weekend in Sydney was by far one of, if not the best!

Friday night I worked until 23:00 and arrived home at the standard 23:50 (with of course a stop at Woolly’s for some cheap doughnuts and sausage rolls). Jason’s former roommate just passed his exams and was in Kings Cross celebrating. I was contemplating going with Jason and Xavier but their extremely late start (1:00) helped me opt for my bed. I knew it would be a smart idea to get some sleep because I had an early start the next day.

The following morning I awoke at 7:30, brushed the teeth, showered, and headed downstairs. The Potatoes (my Irish flatmates Angie and Susan) were anxiously awaiting me and pestering me to hurry. I threw in my three slices of toast and told them to settle. We had a train to catch at 8:18 and we needed to get to Central Station (about a 10 minute walk from our house). We left with me stuffing my face (as usual) and met Emlyn in front of Hungry Jacks at the station. We purchased our tickets to the Blue Mountains and met Hannah at the train. The five of us were riding the train west for two hours to Katoomba (pop 17,900). We found seats on the train and had a nice relaxing trip to the “mountains.”

Upon arrival we walked around a bit and opted against buying bus tickets to see the different sites the Blue Mountains has to offer. After a wrong turn, we redirected ourself to Main Street, which was filled with bakeries. Being it was 10 in the morning, we all had had a hard time figuring out what to order. I of course picked two things, a veggie pastie and a blueberry muffin. I was really tempted by the apple turnover and the Belgian waffles, but decided I could get them later. We walked another twenty minutes through town, detoured at a chocolate shop (the Potatoes were in heaven here because we were allowed to sample the chocolates), and headed downhill to the infamous Blue Mountains photo spot: The Three Sisters. As you look out and to your left, there are three massive rock formations (pillars coming from the canyon floor). We were impressed but not completely overwhelmed and moved by the beauty of it. Taking away from the scene was not only 300 people ooing and awing; they were foreigners who liked to take pictures of other people. We fought our way through the crowd to look at something similar to the Grand Canyon. The Blue Mountains are more of a canyon than a mountain range. The Grand Canyon is definitely much more spectacular, but this Canyon was a massive valley filled with lush green vegetation, hundreds of meters below. I felt I was standing above a massive field of broccoli. We took our pictures and immediately headed down the trail towards seclusion and the stairway at the Three Sisters. I do not mean to sound as if this place was not beautiful and amazing because it definitely was. I think we enjoyed it more and more as we furthered ourself from the tour buses and throngs of tourists.

We arrived at Spooner’s Lookout and I was able to talk Hannah into lying on the ground and spooning with me for a picture (we had to do it quickly because we could here the people photographers coming down the trail). Hannah was not a bit impressed, but I had a huge smile on my face and a good laugh. We passed a couple more lookouts that were getting closer and closer to the Three Sisters and more and more rustic. Upon arriving to the Three Sisters, we crossed a small bridge and walked to the edge of the first sister. The view was peculiar because we were not overlooking the canyon but looking at the other overlooks.

From here we proceeded down The Giant Staircase, literally a massive, steep staircase that took us to the bottom of the canyon. No sign existed to inform us where the stairs took us or how long it would take. After about 20 minutes, we reached the bottom of the canyon. My thighs actually ached a bit from the decent. We took a quick rest on the provided benches and then followed the 2.5 kilometre sign to the train and cable car back up the canyon. The walk took us through a massive forest and along a couple of streams .We passed a waterfall where I insisted wading out and dipping my head. The one thing I remembered once I had jumped to a rock was I was not in MN anymore and in the knee deep water; some strange, poisonous animal/amphibian/reptile/insect could be waiting for me. I opted to ignore that and carry on with the waterfall. After a refreshing cool down, we continued down the trial to some mining exhibits and the world’s steepest railway. I petitioned for the cable car (like the MN State Fair ride but much bigger); $10 later and a not worth it 2 minute journey we reached the top. Both Emlyn and I would have much more preferred the 45 minute journey back up the stairs; however our gentlemanly manners gave into the girls’ request.

Once at the top we headed back into town for our well deserved Belgian waffle. Unfortunately they were sold out so I opted for a ham and cheese sandwich from our favourite bakery followed by a small sugar doughnut.

We raced back to the train station and jumped on the departing train. Little did we know (nor did we realize until the train terminated) that we went the wrong way. Mount Victoria does not have much to offer other than a really quaint little country station. After a brief scare that we would be stuck there for three hours (we looked at M-F timetable versus the Saturday timetable), we had a 20 minute bathroom break before our correct train came. When it did, we rode it 30 minutes down the track to Wentworth. Again this town did not have much to offer other than the awkward pack of teenagers that hangout at the train station. The light was fading and we had some waterfalls to find. Hannah left in the process as her feet were hurting and she was extremely tired, but the rest of us pushed on to the waterfalls. We arrived just at sunset and let me tell you, this was an amazing site. The waterfall was nearly non-existent (again remember the drought) but the secluded overlook was something else. I sat on the edge of a 500 foot cliff and watched the orange clouds slowly disappear. At this vantage point you could see NO human influence: not a single road, power line, house, tower in the distance, et cetera. I really enjoyed this and am a bit disappointed that this type of view is so rare.

We watched the sunset and the stars come into a view (picture not a single light and the thousands of stars above us), particularly the Southern Cross and Venus. The group was getting a bit anxious and wanted to get back so we could catch our 18:34 train. On the walk back, we played a bit of the question game: my favourite question about if you could have a photo book with a view of every second your eyes have seen, would you have one? Your top three memories you would want to relive…and so many other questions.

The train ride was rather uneventful as we were all shattered. Upon arriving back at Central Station we all headed back home. Xavier and Jason were waiting and had just made dinner. Emlyn, Susan, Angie, and I headed to the Gaff for our free dinner and a Corona (a beer for Cinco de Mayo). At dinner, one of the bar tenders walked around handing out wristbands for all you can drink from 22:00 to 23:00 for free. We jumped at the offer, raced home to shower and get ready and arrived back in time for 22:00. After about two hours there we returned home and picked up Xavier and Jason. We stayed home for another couple of hours having a grand old time. Xavier and Jason were playing the guitar with Emlyn, Susan, and me singing. After a while, a couple women came out on their balcony and asked if they could request a song. We all screamed yes and played them U2’s With or Without You and Oasis’ Wonderwall. They were in such awe that they asked the lot of us to meet them at the corner bar. We met them for a drink and got to know our neighbours. What a brilliant night!!!

The next morning we made a massive brekkie and lounged for a bit. I rallied the troops and almost the entire house headed to the beach. We had Xavier, Petra, Lauren, Susan, Angie, Jason, and me with Emma and Emlyn as visitors! We played Frisbee, swam, wave surfed, buried me, chilled to Jason’s Thai I-pod speakers, and really enjoyed ourselves. The weather was sunny and warm and the waves were decent. At about 16:30 we packed everything and headed for the 378.

Jason, Emlyn, and I were meeting April for dinner in Lane Cove. We stopped at the grocery store and purchased supplies for nachos, steak fajitas, and ice cream and waffles. April and I cooked while Jason shared music via all of our I-pods. Emlyn and I discussed possible travel plans…I will let you all know that in the next blog.

A pure class weekend! Thank you Sydney!