A Very Full Day

Day two of our Australian adventure was filled with beautiful sights - none of which we expected to see. This day we saw some of the less well known sight of the area thanks to our wonderful tour guides.

First up was the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden, Mount Tomah. About an hour and a half drive up into the mountains we arrived at this beautiful garden which sits 1000 meters above sea level. (For our less metric friends that is over 3000 feet.) The views are beautiful and the collection of plant life is from the cooler parts of the southern hemisphere.

One of my favorite flowers is the protea and the Garden had quite a collection to enjoy.

We had a lovely lunch in the Tomah Restaurant and then continued on our way to Katoomba. It is a small town in the heart of the Blue Mountains where you can shop, dine, be entertained and just enjoy the views. The town center is very much a resort type town. Lots of small shops where Ken bought his favorite Australian hat.

The most impressive building in town is the Carrington Hotel built in 1883. It was a haven for mountain tourism until 1985 when the doors closed. The hotel stood empty until 1991 when it was purchased with the aim of restoring it. The Carrington reopened in 1998 after eight years of restoration. The loving care certainly shows.

We left the Carrington and made our way to our last stop of the day - The Blue Mountains and The Three Sisters. Aboriginal legend has it that three sisters who were members of the Katoomba tribe fell in love with men from a neighboring tribe, but marriage was forbidden by tribal law. The brothers were not happy and decided to use force to capture the three sisters. A tribal elder turned the sisters into stone to protect them, but he was then killed in battle and no one else could turn them back. They stand in the valley to this day.

The sight of these mountains is truly awe inspiring. We spent a lot of time soaking in the beauty of our surroundings. We even came across three sisters visiting the Three Sisters.

Then it was time to get up close and personal. Look closely at the next shot and you can see the small observation area on the first sister.

As we approached, the views were captivating.

When we were closer to the Sisters, we saw our route down to the viewing area. That is when Ken became a chicken. He decided to wait at the top while Peter, Marina and I descended to the platform. 

Now in case you zoomed in, we did not do all 900 stairs of the Giant Stairway. That would take you all the way to the bottom of the valley which is then filled with hiking trails and waterfalls and lots of other great things. But our time was running short and besides, Ken stayed at the top. About 150 steps down took us to the viewing platform. It was well worth the climb.

With a last look across the mountains, we headed back into Sydney proper where we would spend the next few days touring all the usual sights. Peter and Marina would join us for a kangaroo dinner in a few days.