The Wonderful Land of Oz

Well, I have a new goal in life.  To move to Australia.  Ah, Oz.  I've always wanted to visit, but didn't expect to come away wanting to live there.  That's only happened once before, and it was when Keith and I went to Hawaii.  I still wouldn't mind living there either, but this is a post about Down Undah.

We spent 5 nights in Sydney (well, technically Pyrmont) in an apartment, and 3 nights in a house in Katoomba (Blue Mountains), 1.5 hours west of Sydney.  For the record, I preferred the Blue Mountains.  Cities just don't do it for me, even though I've lived in large cities for the majority of my life.  (I may have written about this before...)  The older I get, the more I prefer nature, peace, and quiet.  The kids do too as evidenced by their behavior.  They always seem happier in natural settings, playing outdoors as children are supposed to do!  Lacy will throw fits and demand to be carried in the city, but she can hike nearly tirelessly in nature.  Fewer people, less noise, less distractions, more natural beauty, fresher air, happier family.

As far as cities go, however, Sydney is a great one.  They have an extensive public transportation system, so we didn't need a car while we were there.  When we couldn't walk somewhere, we either took a ferry, bus, train, light rail, or a cab.  Unfortunately, we are actually pretty crap at using public transport, always just missing the ferry, or going to the wrong bus stop, but I'm sure we'd figure it out if we lived there.  We would fail miserably on The Amazing Race though.  Luckily, we weren't in a hurry.  We basically did one major thing each day we were there, and that worked for us.

Highlights in Sydney:
Circular Quay/ Opera House/ Royal Botanical Gardens
Ferry to Manly Beach where Keith took a surf lesson
Bondi Beach to Bronte Beach coastal cliff walk (Amazing!)
Seeing "Wicked" for a 2nd time (Natalie & I)
Playing at local parks
FOOD

Highlights in the Blue Mountains:
Featherdale Wildlife Park (on the way to the mountains)
Scenic World
Hiking, especially at Wentworth Falls
FOOD

Honestly, the food in Australia was just SO scrumptious.  The produce was fresh and often organic, the little cafes serve much tastier coffees than the Starbucks you'll find on every corner in America, everything just seems clean and healthy, and we had some of the best meals of our life there.  Part of me wants to move to Oz for the food alone!

Now, I think pictures do a better job than words for this one, so without further ado...

Our first sighting of the Opera House, from the ferry to Circular Quay

Royal Botanical Gardens

The first of many yummy, fresh meals

Awesome, what can I say?

On the ferry to Manly Beach

It was a cold, overcast day at the beach!

The kids enjoyed playing in the sand while Keith took a surf lesson

After buying some warm hats (and a coat for Natalie)

Walking around Sydney

Bondi Beach
Harton didn't last long in the frigid water, but Keith and Natalie had a great time!

Landon & Lacy stayed on the beach

Starting the Coastal Cliff walk at Bondi Beach

Beautiful views on the 2 hour walk

We stopped at Bronte Beach, ate dinner, then took the bus back

One of the best meals of my life here.
Teriyaki salmon with veggies and potatoes, wine, creme brûlée, and a delicious cappuccino.    Sigh...

The boys having fun at a park at Darling Harbour

Keith took these 3 to the aquarium while Natalie & I saw "Wicked"!

The Sydney skyline view from our apartment

Leaving Sydney via the Harbour Bridge

We stopped here on our way to the Blue Mountains

One of the highlights... petting a sleepy koala!

We also got to feed and pet kangaroos!

At the Three Sisters in the Blue Mountains

Riding the world's steepest railway at Scenic World

In the cable car

The Skyway with a glass bottom

Another view of the Skyway

We got some yummy chocolate here

Katoomba Falls

The view from the Scenic Railway

Relaxing at a park

Relaxing at another park

Leura Cascades

A great hike under the cliffs

Wentworth Falls

A storm was rolling in!  We finished our long hike just as it started to downpour.

And to close it out... one more of the iconic Sydney Opera House on a gorgeous day

This is a mere sampling of the many pictures I took on this trip.  It was a beautiful destination, and it was difficult to come back to Brunei afterwards.  I am usually happy to come back to Brunei, so that was a first for me, and why I now have the goal to move to Australia!  Probably won't happen, but then again, I never expected to be living in Brunei either!  You just never know...