We had to leave for the airport at the ungodly hour of 4.00 am to catch our flight to Sydney - not fun. And our luggage (I'm sure it was mine...that extra suitcase I've had to purchase...) was 14 kgs over weight, but the girl didn't charge us and hopefully we will get an equally nice person checking our bags on Tuesday. The Australians have always been rather guarded as to what is brought into their fair country, so your bags get x-rayed on the way out of the airport.....poor Errin was stopped and had her wrists slapped for not declaring some honey she had bought as a gift. They missed the rather large bottle of mango/chilli sauce I had in my case!
We rented a car and hightailed it out of Sydney, heading north to Horsfield Bay and Henry Towers - we didn't even see the Opera House or the Harbour Bridge as we left the city, so it didn't feel real that we were actually in Australia! However, here is a rather good night shot Errin took of the Opera House...no, she had not been drinking.....
This part of the country has been in a drought situation for a long time, and there have been many bush fires - the freeway we were driving along had just opened up after being closed for 2 days because of them. So, what did it do? It rained for 2 of the 3 days we stayed in Horsfield Bay!! We were amazed at all the colourful birds that frequented the deck at Eric and Jaqui's place - we felt like we were in an aviary...and the noise was incredible! We had a most enjoyable visit and spent a few hours wandering around the Australian Reptile Park.
Everyone knows these characters - but bet you didn't know that kangaroos have really soft fur!
One of the highlights for me was meeting my cousin, Caroline, and her two daughters. We spent a most enjoyable day with Caroline - thanks, it was great!
And here are our hosts - Eric and Jacqui, plus their two cats. It was a lovely break and we thank you very much for putting up with us!
Ahhh, Australia Day. What can we say about that day? Except that the drinking started waaay too early and went on waaay too long!! Needless to say, there are some parts of the evening that will remain a mystery...but my dear friends have filled in the details. Hmmm.
In order to celebrate the Big Day, one has to get into the spirit of the thing and here we are, with our delightful hostess with the mostess, Carmel, in our newly acquired Aussie togs.
The fireworks in the evening were spectacular and Carmel was a genius when she parked us in the bar right by Darling Harbour where the display was going to take place.....it did mean that we had to drink to keep our excellent spot. All downhill from there.
The next day, which was not a great morning for one of us, we went on a trip to the Blue Mountains, so called because of the hue the eucalyptus, and are actually older than the Grand Canyon. The drive out there was not the most comfortable for me....hangover, hot, sitting in the back......I know of one bush in Leura that has been "watered" recently....and that's all that is being said.
Errin and Carmel with the Blue Mountains behind and below are the Three Sisters.
Interesting art work outside the Tourist Centre, and I'm sure I could have done something more interesting...but there were too many people around!
It's always fun to meet up with people you know from home, and here is John "surfer dude" Hurlbert. He's heading back to Calgary on Tuesday and will have to get a haircut before he goes back to work!!
We had a fun day at Manly Beach, where Errin is going to get a surfing lesson tomorrow (should be worth a few photos!).
See you in Calgary John!
See you in Calgary John!
Manly Beach, a great place to surf...and we both agreed that the cute guy count was off the chart!!
The Opera House, as if you didn't know.
Sydney is such a beautiful city we felt that it deserved one of these........
Since we are climbing the Harbour Bridge tomorrow, and Errin is surfing, it looks like there will be one more blog - stay tuned!
Ciao,
Errin & Joan
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