My apologies for the delayed update! I was wrong about the zoo. Justin decided on a different animal experience, which I’ll relate as part of day 3.
Day 2: Justin and I headed to Bondi Beach (Bon-dye) – probably Australia’s most popular beach. We did a cliff walk from Bondi beach to Coogee beach which was really pretty but hard!!! It took a few hours and there were definitely some strenuous parts. Along the way we noticed a settlement of what appeared to be two different make-shift homes on the cliffs where “homeless” (I guess they’re not technically homeless since they have these shacks) people live. I was really mesmerized by this and took a couple of photos. On one hand, I am repulsed that people would set up ramshackle dwellings on a public cliff . On the other hand, I think it is an awesome way to live and a really beautiful location (better than those million dollar homes across the main street way behind them)! We also gawked at several topless chicks. Apparently topless bathing is ok here. Some fat white dude was standing near a set of gals taking photos, which was creepy. I made fun of him… so nice. :)
Unfortunately I’ve been a little moody due to ‘female issues’. I put the kibosh on something Justin wanted to do on night two – a dinner cruise around the harbor. Somehow, 3.5 hours “stuck” on a boat being force-fed food that didn’t even intrigue me wasn’t appealing. I should’ve gone along with it, though, as I know Justin wanted to do it. My babyishness got the best of me. He took me to a bar called -5 C which I’d eyeballed on day 1. Everything inside is made out of ICE!!! They give you coats and boots to wear inside. Unfortunately your not allowed to take your own photos as they have a photographer that comes in and takes them for you. We were total tourists and bought both photos. The bar was actually -9.5 C inside and my hands started hurting really bad. We were only inside for 25 minutes (they actually have a maximum time limit of 30 minutes). I was really comfy and warm despite my hands. It was really a neat place (so pretty!) and a rad experience.
After the ice bar, we wandered around and took some photos of the opera house and downtown Sydney before heading toward a wine bar we’d seen the previous day. Once we got there, we learned 2 things. The first was disappointing. Apparently American accents suck. One guy that worked there wouldn’t go into detail, but he told me he guessed I’d never been there before because he heard an American accent. At that point I got excited and asked him what an American accent sounded like; he said he wasn’t going to tell me because he’d already “offended too many people today.” Add one to that count. The 2nd thing we learned was awesome which was how the wine tastings worked! It was a do-it-yourselfer, which I’d never experienced.
There were two bars setup and one rounded table with wine bottles attached to nozzles. Above each section there were buttons that you pressed to select whether you wanted a sample, half or full glass of the wine below. They gave us a plastic card (envision a credit card) that we could insert to the area above the bottles that racked up how much we were spending on tastings. You could really run amuck here and sample WAY too many expensive wines. It was fun but we only tried four. We hadn’t eaten dinner yet and that was our true mission.
We ended up heading to the Shangri-La Hotel to eat at Altitude which has a restaurant that is set on a high story with panoramic city views. We had to wait for a table, though, and killed time at the bar. I had my first martini ever that was made with basil which I really enjoyed – both the smell and the flavor were awesome! The food, well the sword fish, was really disappointing. Justin got steak which was pretty good. In short, it was a decent experience, but we’d go somewhere else given the opportunity to do it over. We head back to the hotel that night and quickly crashed. Addendum: Justin and I became tourist lobsters (sunburned).
Day 3: Today we got up, had breakfast, and hailed a cab for the Domestic Airport. The cab driver was awesome! He told us all about the Blue Mountains and the “Three Sisters” – a rock formation of three pillars which supposedly were three sisters coveted by aboriginal tribes. One tribe turned the sisters to stone. Well, that’s a really short version of the story but you get the drift. On the way to the airport I spotted a dude walking around with an old-fashioned wig on (think British parliament) and the cab driver told me he was a lawyer and that all lawyers wear wigs like that. WTF! So, I took some snapshots of the guy. Thank goodness for informative taxi drivers. I have noticed that people here are WAY friendly and outgoing. It’s pretty cool.
At the airport we picked up a rental car and drove to Featherdale Wildlife Park. This was the high-point of the day for Justin. They had kangaroos out in the open that you could pet and feed. They also had koalas nestled in trees that you could pet as well as all other sorts of Australian wildlife including dingoes and Tasmanian devils. To me, it was just like a zoo/petting zoo, so I wasn’t all that psyched, but I am glad Justin liked it. We saw lots of gorgeous birds, one crocodile, and some freaky snakes. We also took *way* too many photos.
After Featherdale, we continued on to our hotel in the Blue Mountains. We’re staying at The Carrington, a Victorian era hotel. We were able to stay in this beautiful building for only AUD $10 more than getting a private room at the youth hostel in town, so it’s an excellent deal. We do have to share a bathroom, but everything is provided. This wing of the hotel is preserved as it was back in the day, bathrooms and all. It’s a really neat experience.
We hiked our asses off in the Blue Mountains this afternoon. A hotel employee recommended the route which took us along cliffs, beside the 3 Sisters, down King George’s steps into the valley, and around to another set of Steps (Ferber’s steps?) back up to the top of the cliffs. Phew! It reminded me a lot of a rainforest – like El Yunque and Kaaterskill Falls. Our walk took several hours but it was GORGEOUS and smelled fresh and sweet. I am guessing that’s due to the Eucalyptus but I am not sure. Apparently the Blue Mountains are so named because of the evaporation of oil on the eucalyptus trees. We saw lots of pretty birds, too.
For supper tonight we went to a restaurant in Katoomba (the town we’re staying in) called Bacchus. It’s a tapas bar that also serves pizza. We filled our empty bellies on their grub which included garlic mushrooms, Moroccan meatballs, potatas bravas and the ‘gargantua’ pizza (lots of meat) before coming back to the hotel and showering in our out-of-room showers. Now we’re exhausted and ready for sleep! Glad to keep you all updated. Tomorrow we head to the Melbourne area for a week. :)
