Wine Tasting?...

...Try wine guzzling! In the last few days of my trip I finally got around to the day trip to Hunter Valley and had an amazing time. We started off the trip with a brief visit to a wildlife park for more closeups with koalas and kangaroos. Unfortunately, it was also pouring down rain, so I spent most of the time in the snake and spider exhibits, purely for the fact that they were indoors. I didn't feel too slighted, however, since I had already experienced the koala cuddling and kangaroo feeding this October.

After the wildlife park, it was another hour-long drive to Hunter Valley during which time I got to know my fellow passengers - a fun mix of people. There were two older English couples, a Swedish mother/daughter pair, a French Canadian girl, a Canadian guy who has been living in Hong Kong for 10 years and was accompanied by his Chinese girlfriend, and 3 girls from San Francisco. Those three girls and I got along like a house on fire! They all worked in advertising and were just a few years younger than me.

The first winery pulled out a list of 10 wines and our host told us we would be tasting all of them. Then he poured the first tasting - approximately 1/4 of a wine glass! Needless to say, by the end of that winery our group was fast friends!

Then off to the next winery, which was very unusual as it was capped off with a chili-infused schnapps shot. There was no sparing in chili, as you can see in the photo up top! Then a quick lunch (thank goodness - we needed to sop up the wine and schnapps) and off to winery #3. It was odd to be there, as this winery (Drayton's) was just in the news a few weeks ago. A shipment of ethanol or amonium (I'm not sure which as I've heard conflicting stories) had been delivered and apparently had a leak which was sparked by a welder working in the building. The entire building exploded, killing the welder and the winemaker, who was also the owners' son. A third man is still in the hospital. The twisted remains of wine vats, etc. were stacked outside which sobered us all up for a bit. It was hard to enjoy our trip there too much, but we knew it was important to continue to feed their income.

One last winery and another 6 tastings before we stopped at the Smelly Cheese Shop for tastings of a different sort and a 2 hour trip back to Sydney!

I spent the following weekend with the San Francisco girls (Team America, as we were dubbed on the Hunter Valley trip) and had a fanstastic time. Saturday was spent at Maurubra Beach, then at a harborside restaurant in Watson's Bay for a birthday party before ending the night with a water taxi to Circular Quay and a few hours at the Opera Bar, one level below the Opera House and overlooking the water. So I got my fill of water views that day. I was glad the girls were heading off to travel the East Coast a few days later as it would have been much harder for me to leave Sydney otherwise! San Francisco is one place I should have been but never have, so I'll have to save that until after they return!

At this moment I am in the Sydney airport, awaiting my flight to Tokyo and then on to Chicago. It will be another 36 hours before I arrive however... two 12 hour flights and a 12 hour layover. I'm glad to have the break in between and that it's long enough to get into the city, especially now that I'm somewhat familiar with the subway system.

I can't believe this trip has finally drawn to a close. It finally hit me today and I'm still in shock. So I'll have to wait until I get home to let you know how I feel about it all!

The Blue Mountains, finally!

Yes, I FINALLY made it to the Blue Mountains and lucked out with an amazingly gorgeous day. Speaking of that, did you know that "lucked out" means the opposite in Australia? It means you ran out of luck. Which I suppose makes more sense.

Anyway, the town of Katoomba is easily accesible from Sydney and is one of the largest in the area. The train takes just under two hours from the city and the small station is right on the main street. Katoomba itself is about 15,000-20,000 residents and is a real "cafe culture". Lots of shops, pubs, etc. and a real, proper main street. It does lean a bit to the new agey stuff, but not nearly to the extent that Byron Bay does.

I arrived in the evening and got up early for a day of abseiling and canyoning. Abseiling is basically rappelling; rock climbing without the climbing part! This photo is from our last abseil, about 30 meters. The view of the mountains was fantastic. The area is called the Blue Mountains as the oils in the eucalyptus trees create a mist that in the sun appears blue. After abseiling we stopped for a quick lunch before canyoning, which is a radically different experience from anything I've done before. We hiked down into the canyon (called the Grand Canyon here, but really no match for ours) and changed into the wetsuits in our backpack. Then we put our tennies, waist harnesses and helmets back on. A great look! We climbed over the rocks in the river at the bottom of the canyon, leaping into the cold water when it was too deep to walk. At one point we had to do the "dead Russian" - jump backwards off a rock into the water below, just like the bad guys in James Bond movies do when shot on the edge of a boat. Our backpacks were waterproof and held an air pocket, so we landed on that but were amazed how much we still went underwater. After that there was just one more jump, where we had to leap over shallow rocks in a narrow gorge into a pool a few feet beyond. But the highlight was at the end - we hooked our harnesses into the line and abseiled down the 30 meter waterfall! The water was beating down on our heads the entire time and of course, being unskilled, we were all slipping all over, trying to keep our footing on a wet wall of rock. Landing in the pool of water below was an exhilirating feeling, looking back at what we had just done. Then a 30 minute hike back up to the van and into town. Minutes after we arrived at the hostel it started to rain. Perfect timing!

That night the hostel had a $7 barbecue so I sat and chatted with a Sydneysider (as they're called) discussing the US political race. For the second time I was asked if I thought voting should be mandatory. The first time I was asked, I said "of course not, it's a right not a requirement," mostly as a gut reaction, since that's the way it's always been for me, but I've now reconsidered. In Australia it is mandatory to vote, although if you wish you can just write on the ballot "you're all idiots," and not actually make any selections. The more arguments I hear about it, the more I think that makes sense, especially since you still have the option to not choose one or the other. The main argument is that politicians here have to cater to the entire population, not just the voters - which I had never thought of. Makes a lot of sense. Our politicians have no motivation to do anything for the people who don't vote. Now I know the argument would be that it's the non-voters own fault, but as someone who votes, I'd be interested to see if our politicians would change if they knew EVERYONE was voting. Of course, this is one of the best parts of traveling - learning new ways to do things and debating them.

The next morning I explored some of the Jenolan Caves on a tour, a few hours from Katoomba. There are hundreds of caves in this area, but only 5 or so are open to the public. I went through 2 of them and they're pretty incredible. I'd seen a lot of caves before, so I expected to be underwhelmed - and was completely wrong. The Indian Canopy formation in one of them is amazing - it looks like a frozen waterfall that is multiple stories high. If any of my pictures turn out, I'll post one here.

I took the evening train back to Sydney for the weekend (I miss trains! I've only been on a few on this trip), as a friend I met while traveling was going to be in town. We met on the Melbourne-Alice Springs flight and although he lives in Sydney, he's been spending the past few months leading tours in New Zealand so we hadn't been able to connect here. I was looking forward to seeing the city from a local's aspect (and with someone my age!!!!)

Still in Sydney!

Yes, I know... my blog posts have faded off into nothingness... I've taken some time off to just enjoy this city. It also has something to do with the fact that there were 10 days straight of gorgeous sunshine and I couldn't bear to be inside for any of it. My days are generally spent taking in one or two tourist sites, errands such as the grocery store and nights out with people I've met. Sometimes I'm lazy and just sit in Hyde Park with a book and people watch.

So far I've checked out the Police and Justice Museum, the zoo and the Maritime Museum, spent a weekend wandering Sydney checking out all the activities for Australia Day, stayed up all night talking with friends and watching the sunrise over Bondi Beach and seen the opera La Boheme performed (for free!) in the Domain (part of the Botanical Gardens). The opera was fantastic and they'd obviously bribed the weather gods. It rained Friday night and Saturday morning but was gorgeous and sunny by early afternoon. The opera was at 8pm, by which time the ground had dried and the weather was back in the upper 70s. The next morning it was pouring again.

One day I just spent working out at a gym that I got a short-term pass to and having my hair cut, which I hadn't done since I left! A girl had told me about a hairdressing school, which is great for people with a lot of time and not a lot of money (that's me!) so I had my hair cut there. I actually got a fantastic cut that only cost me AUD$20 but it did take 3 hours! And the shampooing process was a little painful, as the guy who cut and washed my hair kept leaning on the bowl which then pressed the front of the bowl downwards onto my shoulders. By the time he finished I was almost prone, trying to squirm out from under the pressure. You get what you pay for! Also at least 45 minutes of the time I spent at the school was drying my hair straight and it started raining a few minutes after I left (without my umbrella). Which naturally meant I had to duck into the mall next door and stay for a few hours...

That night I went to see the movie, Juno, which I found hysterical. I had heard a lot about it but hadn't realized it was supposed to be set in Minneapolis. Hearing references to Mankato and Stillwater and St. Cloud - and especially Ridgedale Mall - while sitting in a movie theater in Sydney was a bizarre feeling. I kept wanting to turn to the person next to me and say "that's where I grew up!" but I have a feeling they wouldn't have cared...

I just moved into a new hostel, only because I forgot to extend my stay at the other one and they were sold out. So a few days ago I dragged my stuff a few doors down to the new place, which is more expensive but has a lot more amenities and is significantly nicer. Unfortunately, one of those amenities is a pool and I moved here just as the rain started! Oh well. At least I don't have to deal with my weird German roommates anymore. There were two girls staying in my room for about the same amount of time as I was but they spent almost all of their time sleeping. I met other two girls in my room (one English, one Irish) and had a great time hanging out with them before they headed north, and we all wondered what the German girls did all day. Their routine seemed to be go to bed before 10pm, get up at 8 or 9am to have the free breakfast that stopped at 9:30 and go back to bed. I don't know what time they actually got up because they were both always still asleep after I had showered, gotten dressed and left the room. Once I heard them say they went to the beach, but other than that I think they just hung around the hostel all day. They weren't hostile, but also weren't especially friendly when they were awake. I never had a real conversation with them and they had no idea I spoke German. Which was especially funny when one of them complained bitterly to the other about how loud the other girls and I had been when we came home the previous day. (The morning that we came in after the sunrise, about 8am.) We had been SOOO quiet and in fact had to be quiet all the time, since they were always sleeping, and were getting pretty sick of it. Part of it wasn't even our fault since the beds were so squeaky. At least in my new place we don't have those crazy squeaky beds.

I keep planning to take a day trip to Hunter Valley and get out to the Blue Mountains, but things keep cropping up to keep me here! Weather, friends, concerts, holidays.... Not that I'm complaining. Also I've been told time and again that there's no point in seeing the Blue Mountains on a rainy day, as you won't be able to see anything or do any of the activities. And the days when I've planned to go have always rained. Oh well - I'm not too devastated about it!

Off to dinner with some new friends!

(The photo is of a skydiver landing in the bay in front of the Opera House on Australia Day. He had a huge Australian flag trailing behind him.)