Christmas in Sydney

We have had a lovely week in Sydney over Christmas and it was all go! We started with the open top bus tour around the city and then one along the coast via Bondi Beach, Double Bay and Rose Bay. It is a lovely city with a variety of fabulous architecture, lots of parks, churches and shops.

This is us at the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge!! (134 m high)

On Christmas Eve we made the ascent to the top of the Bridge. We exchanged our own clothes for a sexy all in one (see above!) and were covered in a selection of bits and pieces - hats, glasses, hankies, headphones, radios, raincoats, fleeces; all attached to us by cords. The fabulous guide we had (another Claire!) gave us 2 pouches which were a parachute and a life jacket in case we had to jump from the bridge........ and you know, we all believed her! (these were the coats!!)
We also had a safety harness that attached us to a guide wire all the length of the walk. Off we went up steep ladders, along the underside of the roadway, more ladders, along the arch of the bridge, over the bridge, and the same in reverse back down. The views were fantastic even though it did start to rain and we all got our raincoats out. We were not allowed to take our own cameras or anything you could drop! So we bought the 2 photos above as they made us laugh!
If you want to see more about the bridge here is a link to their website http://www.bridgeclimb.com/theClimb/BridgeClimb/sydney_climb.htm


This is what we looked like from below - the flags were the size of a double decker bus.

In the evening of Xmas Eve we went to a carol concert at Darling Harbour. Lots of people in shorts and T shirts and silly Santa hats! If you are on face book, go there to see a short video I took! You will laugh - especially if you work in an Infant School!

Christmas Eve carols at Darling Harbour.


Christmas Day. Can you see where we are yet?

We visited many places in Sydney. On Christmas Day we did hot spots of the area - and no shops. Brad and Anthony bought us Santa hats and we wore them nearly all day! The Opera House is lovely and shimmers gold in good light and generally reflects the weather above. We caught the tail ends of the Christmas services in both the Anglican and Catholic Cathedrals; walked through the beautiful botanical gardens seeing more flying foxes; and visited Hyde Park.


A stop off at Bondi Beach

An average day of boating mayhem on Sydney Harbour.

This is a view of the Harbour from one of the Granite Pylons on the Bridge. This is just an average day on the water here. We bought a day pass for £8 and went up and down the coast on ferries and buses. We went on a large ferry (to Manly Beach), a small ferry (to Darling Harbour) and a catamaran (to Watson's Bay). From Watson's Bay we walked through streets with lovely houses (Paul Hogan used to live here....The owners of Raffles in Singapore live here). All very posh and expensive. One house pointed out to us was $12 million. I don't think we will be moving in. We had a cream tea at a delightful Colonial House and took the bus back just in time to be caught in a major down pour! You could even see each raindrop fall on the choppy sea as we went back to our hotel on the ferry.


A lovely view across Darling Harbour.
The arrow shows our hotel.

We had a great apartment in a lovely old wool store building from the 1930s that had replaced an earlier one that had burnt down. We would have had a view of the harbour apart from the tree in front of our window (and the Convention Centre in front of the tree!). The posh folks in the Penthouse suites had a better view!

We are now back at Claire and Anthony's for the new year then we are off to Canberra and back down to Melbourne.

At Home with The Brad part 2

Back at Brad's and on her day off we went back to Stockton Sands (all 32 kms of it!) We hoped to take a 4WD adventure through the sand dunes but none of the Tin City or shipwreck ones were running. Tin City is like a squatters area made of tin shacks put up from the 1880s as shelter for ship wreck victims. It expanded into a shanty town in the depression in the 1930s and has been used as a location in a variety of films including Mad Max.

So, we did the next best thing - sand boarding! We drove to the top of the highest sand dune in a 4X4 coach. Sand board...sit on it...push off.. down you go...that was all there was to it! (or so they reckoned). Even on your bum was hard but we all mastered it in the end. On foot was another matter. I only got half way down, Gordon a bit further, and Brad all the way to the bottom. Show Off!! If you are on Face Book, go there to see video evidence! We came back in a land rover which was much more exciting coming down the dunes at 45 degrees! The driver drove us along the sands and then dropped us off for a quick dip in the sea.


It was good to cool off in the sea after all that boarding. The sand gets everywhere...and I mean EVERYWHERE!!


Claire went out to buy some Christmas presents .....and this is what she came back with! It looked excellent when up though it is still so odd to be celebrating Xmas in the heat and, more weirdly, in the summer!


On Saturday we went back into Newcastle to visit Fort Scratchley and take a tour in the tunnels. It is the only fort in Oz to have fired upon a naval enemy in the whole of the country's history. This was at a Japanese sub in 1942 - and they are still excited by the story. The 1901 guns still fire when cruise ships come in and are in perfect working order after all these years. Great tour and as it was quiet John (tour guide) came out with us and chatted a bit more about the fort. He grabbed the gun's barrel and it slid round with ease.


While we were at the top of the fort we could see as many as 30 huge ships waiting to come into dock to be loaded with coal. They load up 5 at a time and the tiny tugs guide them in and out. It was so fascinating as the ships were enormous and came through what appeared to be such a tiny gap in the breakwater. Driving around the area we often see coal trains with up to 90 trucks full of coal, often pulled by 4 engines.


And on that note here are some pictures of the open cast mines the coal comes from.
We have never seen anything so large. The digger has a bucket that is as wide as 2 carriage ways on the main road - we saw one being taken to the mines with 5 accompanying vehicles and a police escort. The dumper truck must have had wheels in excess of 10 foot in diameter.


On our last day before heading to Sydney we went for a meander through the lovely Hunter Valley. Pretty hills, rock faces, houses, brooks and vineyards. We also stopped off at our first real Aboriginal Rock Art. It was at the end of a 1.5 km dirt track and there was little or no info about it. Very interesting and we am now keen enough to see some more.

The Blue Mountains

Though the trip up to the mountains was only about 3 hours, it seemed much longer with all the ups and downs at quite steep inclines. We first drove through the Great Dividing Range - much prettier than the motorway even though it was foggy and drizzly towards the end. We stopped for lunch in Windsor; this one didn't have a castle, just lots of rain.

We stayed in an old house on a quiet road in Katoomba. Inside all the walls were covered in pressed steel patterned panels which made it rather chilly. Lucky each room had fires and the bed an electric blanket.

I know - it had to be done!


With and without the low cloud.

The first day was a bit of a shock - chilly, damp and you could see no further than 20m in front of you. The view above at Gordon Falls says it all. The second picture is what it looks like in decent weather. We battled on visiting the falls and another one in a dingly dell and not covered in cloud. We also visited a lovely Art Deco house built between 1932-7, but by the time we had become rather wet in the garden, we had to call it a day. On the way back we had a lovely cuppa and cake in an antique shop with 100s of teapots along the walls.

The Three Sisters On the Skyway!

Luckily the next day was blessed with blue clear sky. Mind you it was still a bit nippy at times and very, very windy (see the video below!). We went to Scenic World where you go down a 52 degree incline on an old coal miners railway to a walk around the rainforest below. This is intermingled with remains of the old mines at the bottom of the cliffs. We then went back up in the cable car and then onto The Skyway. This is a glass bottomed cable car that runs across the valley. Very exciting, especially with a glass floor; swaying in the wind; and fabulous views across the mountains and of the waterfalls.


A windy day in the mountains!

Another spectacle was at Jenolan caves. It was another hair raising trip on steep descents and hair pin bends into the bottom of a valley. The road actually took you directly into the caves and through the mountain. We visited Imperial Cave on a guided tour that was very informative and fun until she turned the lights off - I was not impressed, especially when the small child got all the sympathy. I was just as petrified!

The beautiful Imperial Cave at Jenolan

On leaving the caves, the ascent was twice as steep, but luckily not as long. We stopped at Oberon to get petrol and discovered this Guesthouse.


Did someone from Thanet move here!?

We drove back through the most beautiful rolling countryside - I was in love. From here you could see why the Blue Mountains get their name. In certain lights you can see the oil vapour from the eucalyptus trees which gives them a blue tinge.


Fabulous views across to The Blue Mountains.

We visited one of the original village sites called Hartley Village with 2 churches, a courthouse, 3 pubs and a hotel - all built of locally made brick.

Hartley Village


Us at Govetts Leap Falls
The area as a whole was made up of beautiful views and towns with a selection of Victorian to Deco architecture; cafes; antique shops; and book shops. What more could we want? Don't worry, we are coming home at some stage!

We also went to explore the northern parts of the Blue Mountains which, as you can see from the final picture, were just as varied and good. We climbed up and down numerous steps hewn out of the rock face and walked under dripping water. The falls were benefiting from the recent rainstorms we had had.

We had a great time here and came back to Claire and Anthony's via the Pacific Highway and the lovely Lake Macquarrie (not to mention toll booths on the motorway!) to persuade them to visit next time they get a break from work.

At home with The Brad - part 1

We are staying with Brad and Anthony in their lovely bungalow in Aberglysslyn near Maitland. It is great to be in a proper house and to be able to come and go when you want and do your washing!! This is Claire after a game of touch rugby! I know - we never thought we would see the day either! Next to her is Gordon with his new friend Gus, Claire and Anthony's 8 year old lab.
The nearest town in Maitland. We visited it on a Sunday so we could be arty and avoid the shops! Very pleasant town; good centre with several antique shops - a good place to live (don't worry we are coming home!).


Just to prove that it does not always shine in Oz!! We have had about 3 or 4 big thundery down pours in NSW - and we have only been here a week!


The nearest city is Newcastle - and we think it is great. A variety of lovely buildings; cafes; quirky shops; art fairs; and gorgeous beaches. You will probably see more photos later in the year.


We visited various small towns in the area. The ones that stood out were Morpeth and Lorn. Morpeth has a lovely old shop rather like Scotts in Margate - you so desperately want to buy something, but nothing is quite right. It had been the workshop of a joiner in the same family from 1838 to 1968! The other picture is of a solicitors in Lorn that Gordon thought was too good to leave off the blog!



We went to Blackbutt Nature reserve in the centre of the city of Newcastle where we saw many of the native creatures we had already seen in the wild close up. We got to see our first wombats though they were both asleep! It is a cross between a badger and a bear with stumpy legs. On the rainforest walk we saw even more flying foxes; this time there were 15,000 altogether roosting much nearer the ground for a better view....and one even pooed on me!!



At 2pm we went in to the animal enclosure to have "An Encounter with a Koala". Michelle, the keeper brought out Jarrah, a 6 month old girl. She talked about her and answered all the questions we had. Then - best thing ever, we had a stroke. She was so soft and sweet and gentle - as long as you stroked her back. I don't suppose she would have liked being poked in the face.


One of best beaches we have been to was near Anna Bay in New South Wales. Birubi Point is a massive expanse of beach that is solid enough for 4WDs to go on and is backed by huge sand dunes that must go back a mile inland. Absolutely fantastic. We could not even see the end of the beach where we were as it is the largest moving coastal sand mass in the southern hemisphere.


I couldn't make a snow angel for you this December, so will a sand angel do instead!!

South Queensland

The long pier at Hervey Bay

We stayed in a lovely town called Maryborough (more later) and visited the surrounding area. Hervey Bay is just a long line of little seaside resort towns. Quite nice with a long beach, aquarium, shops and so on. All a bit repetitive. We liked the tiny town of Burram Heads better - a real old fashioned beach holiday place.


Carlo Sand Blow

Another lovely place was called Rainbow Sands and as the name suggests, the sand comes in about 5 different colours. We sat on the beach; went for a paddle; watched sky divers land; and tried to avoid the 4WD that charge up and down the hard sands of the beach! Lovely pair of sea eagles soaring above us.
Another thing to see there was the amazing sand dune that is about 50 foot above the sea - not the usual place for a dune. The sand was blown up the cliff face and along the valley and is now encroaching into the forest. A steep (and hot) climb, but the views were worth it. You couldn't walk barefoot on the sand as it was red hot (so I walked in Gordon's footsteps!)


Queenslander style house Me and ????

We liked Maryborough - the City. A place only needs to reach a population of 20,000 in Queensland and it automatically becomes one.
We started off with an historical guided tour lead by "Bert". He showed us all the interesting building; told us about the flood problems; how trade started and much more. It started as a wool shipping port on the Mary River and developed into sawmills, boat building, first steam train built in 1880s; and they still build the modern train carriages. The original settlement had to be literally lifted up and relocated as when the river floods, it can flood up to the second floor of a building.

Can you see who I am with in the other picture? PL Travers (Helen Goff actually) was born in Maryborough and they are proud of the connection. The statue is outside the bank where her father was manager and where she was born. They have renamed the street Cherry tree Lane!

The houses in this state are of a particular style referred to as "Queenslander style". They are built of painted wood with intricate verandas and on stilts to allow the winds to pass under and keep the house cool. One of these - Mavisbanks - was open to the public. Well, where to start. It is hidden behind a jungle of ferns. When we got in, a grubby looking bearded guy took our money (though he didn't have enough to give me all my change!) and started the tour. Well, you could call it that. More of a wander around the overcrowded house pointing at and muttering about (knowledgeably) some of the objects. The items ranged from antique knee hole desks, shoes, dolls, china, lamps to a model T Ford in the garage. An antique dealers dream. The items there ranged from the 1880s (house was built 1874) to the 1940s and a good majority of the things were in the mail order catalogues published in the 1880s that he had originals of! The most modern thing was a TV and DVD player as the couple actually lived in the house. It was great as you could touch and pick up anything you wanted to!! I was in heaven and it was all very eccentric. We talked about it for days!

We next drove down to Brisbane, but our stay was not destined to be long. I don't know why they thought they could do this but Sting, Billy Joel, Circe du Soliel and some famous Dutch violinist all went at the same time as us! Bit like Joseph and Mary - no room at the Inn!!
I the end we managed a small but decent hotel in the city centre for 2 nights. And when I say small, I also mean our room. Big enough for a double bed and not much else. Harry Potter would have thought it was luxury - not under the stairs but behind the lift.
We did a whistle stop tour on the sightseeing bus and the City Cat (catamaran ferry on the river) and saw as much as we could. Lovely city; fabulous buildings; great parks and good shops. We were particularly taken with the water dragons (lizards) in the park and the fabulous Xmas lights on the Casino.



Water Dragon in the park Gordon makes friends!




Christmas lights outside the casino (former treasury!)

On Wednesday evening we got on a coach which took us and our luggage over into New South Wales. We got off at Casino railway station where we took the night train to Sydney getting off at Maitland. You could see why the state was so named. The views were of green rolling hills and valleys, boyo. At Casino we were overcome by the most enormous thunder storm. The rain fell so hard, lightening flashed and the thunder sounded as if it would knock the station over. And then, all blue skies with a rosy red sunset. We went first class (only seats) to get away from the backpackers and an annoying local yokel; had tea; tried to sleep; and were woken abruptly at 4.15AM with "are you for Maitland?". When we said yes the reply was "we are here", so we had to quickly gather our things and get off before the train moved on. The station was deserted, but luckily before we could get too low Anthony came to collect us! Oh to spend the rest of the night in a bed!
And now - NSW!!