Friday 13 March 2009

Sydney, the Blue Mountains and the South Coast

We returned to Sydney on Tuesday 3rd March. On our arrival we discovered that our cargo ship from Montreal to Liverpool had fallen through. This meant a significant change of plans as Meg had now committed herself to being back for mid-May (she is going to Turkey for three weeks to help set up a Probation Service). The news came like a bomb shell and we spent a lot of time trying to sort out what options we had. We could not find an alternative cargo ship – it had been difficult to find a ship for this leg of the journey - and so our choices were either the Queen Mary or flying across the Atlantic.


The Queen Mary looked possible. There is a voyage leaving at the right time and it's actually cheaper than a cargo ship. We would need some clothes as our current wardrobe could hardly be described as 'formal'. The prospect of Jeff having to wear a tie and jacket just to be allowed to eat his dinner was almost the worst aspect of the trip. It would accomplish something that thirty years of head teachers had failed to do. However, after some searching on the internet we discovered that the carbon footprint for a passenger on a cruise ship is about twice that for the equivalent flight – as well as having many other detrimental effects on the environment.
This really only leaves the option of flying – something that we are not at all happy with. The carbon footprint for a transatlantic flight would still leave us within budget (carbon that is) but only just. And it really goes against the grain. But with no other options we have decided to fly. It just shows how difficult low carbon travel is.


The purpose for our return to Sydney was to take in a performance of the Magic Flute at the Opera House. We used the excuse of my birthday to justify the costs. We have now bought each other Christmas and birthday presents for the next few years and this was mine for 2010. it was quite magical to stand on the terrace of the Opera House with our interval drinks, looking across the water at all the lights. There is surely no lovelier concert venue anywhere in the world.
We also did some walking along the coast from Coogie Beach to Bondi Beach.




Coogie Beach, Sydney

Bondi Beach, Sydney

Our visit to Sydney also coincided with the Mardi Gras parade – the biggest gay and lesbian 'show' in the world. This was quite a spectacle, starting with the 'dikes on bikes' ...

'Dikes on Bikes'

and then an extraordinary number of floats and marchers from the ordinary to the most outrageous. An event with a huge number of scantily clad men (note from Jeff – there were scantily clad women as well) could never have taken place on an evening in autumn in London.

The Parade

It was great fun to see so many people exuberantly enjoying themselves. It is a tribute to the city to hold such an event which appeared to pass of with good humour and no trouble. We didn't go on to the "Sleaze Ball" afterwards – we had nothing suitable to wear.
And then off to the Blue Mountains for some more hiking. Three days, each with a most spectacular walk. Each walk involved a climb down into the canyon and then through the rain forest before ascending to the plateau again. The mountains are a plateau about 1200 m above sea level. So the walk down to the valley involved a lot of steps. We did not count them on the way down, but counted 1239 steps on the way up.

The Three Sisters, Blue Mountains

The Three Sisters, Blue Mountains (2)
View over Blue Mountains, Nr Echo Point

Wentworth Falls

Nr Wentworth Falls

We have seen some remarkable places but the views here are in a class of their own. This must be one of the most beautiful places on the planet. If you ever visit Sydney don't leave without a trip to this area, only 90 minutes form the centre of the City.

We left the Blue Mountains on a wet, misty morning which made us feel th we had made a good decision. The rain stopped and day brightened as we hit the coast and headed south to ovenight at Shoalhaven Heads. From there to Hyams Bay where we stayed with a couple of kayakers we had met further up the coast. We decided long ago that we would always try to say 'yes' to any opportunities that came our way and so we readily accepted their offer of a place to stay. It turned out to be a really rewarding experience and when we left the next morning we felt we had made new friends.

Remarkable trees, Jervis Bay


The weather over these past few days has been very good for walking – not too sunny but quite warm – and the threatened rain did not materialise. We walked up Pigeon House mountain. Pigeon House is classified as a 'hard' walk as the last part is a matter of climbing about 50 metres of metal ladders, so we did feel a sense of achievement.

View from Pigeon House Mountain

However, when we arrived at the top we met up with 65 ten-year old kids, most of whom seemed to be bouncing around as though they had arrived at a playgound (that should provide some sense of perspective)

The kids at the top ...




Depot Beach

We then retraced our steps down the coast, via Moruya where, amazingly, we ran into Rudi who we had stayed with on the way up the coast. He mentioned that there was a festival at Bermagui so we decided to head off there for the weekend.
And there the car's radiator sprang a leak. This problem still has to be resolved - so in the meantime we are stranded in Bermagui ...

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