"Dear Australian Blue Mountains: I love you"

An update on my new apartment and roommates will be soon, but after returning from an amazing day in the Mountains I absolutely must spout about my time. The day was long and exhausting, but hands down my favorite day in Australia thus far. Alexis and I met at Central Station at 7:45am and caught the 8:15 train to the Blue Mountains. Sydney’s City Rail has set up a great deal for a 2 way ticket to the Blue Mountains plus an unlimited on and off pass for the tour bus that travels around the town of Katoomba. I only spent a small amount of time in Katoomba before our bus tour, but the small-town in the mountains reminded me of Boone and warmed my heart. There we ate brunch at an amazing coffee shop where we each had a pot of tea and a giant meal. It was absolutely exquisite and perfect before the long day we had ahead of us.

On the train- excited to see green and not buildings.

Epic breakfast

Alexis!

We then hopped on the double-decker bus (on the top level, of course) and headed to our first stop at Scenic World. Silly name, but freaking cool. The first part was a ride across the valley in a gondola-esque Skyway train. Inside the Skyway was a glass bottom floor to re-emphasize how high we were. Alexis was such a champ despite her fear of heights.

We had the top floor of the tour bus to ourselves. Such tourists!

A nice overlook before getting on the Skyway.


Glass Floor!

At the other side of the valley we got another gondola down into the basin. From there we went on a nice hike on their wood-covered path through the bush. The vegetation was incredibly beautiful and reminded me a lot of the rainforests of Costa Rica. On our bushwalk we learned about the coal-mining hayday of the Australian Blue Mountains. Because it is now a national forest, most mining remains have been removed, but there were some remnants left for the enjoyment of tourists like me. We got to see into one of the mines as well as a recreated coal-miner’s hut. At the end of our hour-long hike we made our way out of the valley on the steepest railway in the world, named the “Mountain Devil.”
I was surprised at how much fun I had at Scenic World, but it might just be the fact that I was itching to leave the city and the first sight of Mountains made me feel more at home than I’ve felt since I’ve been in Australia. It’s funny to me that I have become such a mountain girl, because as a kid I would hate it when we had to go on our day trips to the mountains when all I wanted to do was go the other direction to the ocean. Now, here I am 30 minutes from the beach and I would rather take a 2-hour train ride to see the mountainous skyline.

"Mary's Lookout"- For you, mom!

Beginning of the ride down...

...Descending...

...At the bottom looking back.

Miner's cabin.
(You can see me in the window waving!)

Natural spring with delicious water.

View from the Railroad as we creep backwards up the mountain.

Riding the train. Alexis afraid of heights? It doesn't look like it!

So before the big red bus came to scoop us and carry us to the next stop, Alexis and I took a brief afternoon break to enjoy the sun and a tall cone of gelato. I can’t explain the draw that Australia has on me that causes me to crave ice cream, but this day was the worst I had ever had. I’m not usually a sweet-toothed girl, but I think the hot sun mixed with a bushwalk made the ice cream look ever so enticing. There was no way to say no to this cone either- it was the cheapest I had seen in Australia thus far.

This is the exact reason I gave up ice cream for lent.

Next stop was at the 3-Sisters where a few options for hiking are given to the tourists. Being the risk-takers that we are, Alexis and I opted for the toughest hike possible. The name “The Great Stairway” is a bit intimidating, but Great doesn’t begin to describe the staircase that we attempted to conquer. I think “Crazy-ridiculous Stairway” might be more fitting. Alexis and I huff and puffed down about ¾ of the mountain-side stairway before we realized that there was another bus to catch within the half-hour and going up was going to be a lot more strenuous than our descent. We made it back to the top alive and literally sprinted to catch the bus. Exhaustion overwhelmed us but we still attempted another hike at the next bus stop. The signage was a bit unclear and we weren’t about to blaze our own trail through the Australian bush, so we succumbed to our fatigue and took the bus to the next town, Leura.
Leura= candy store + cute jewelry + great vintage shop.

The 3-Sisters.

The Crazy-Ridiculous Stairway

The rock on the right is one of the 3-Sisters. From here the staircase began.

We (kind of) conquered the staircase!!!

It was a really wonderful day and much needed for Alexis and I as we both had our Missing-Boone Blues. I tried to capture the beauty that the Blue Mountains hold, but there is not a camera in the world that can accurately summarize their splendor.