Sydney – The Blue Mountains (Seanic World) (Day 10)
Once Bethany had made a picnic for us all and we were all finally ready; we set off to the Central station to take a train to the Blue Mountains. A destination on Mum’s do-list after her and Gran wanted to go when they were in Sydney a few years ago, but didn’t get time. As children, though, we didn’t know what to expect.
Having found the station and our way in we found out we were (as mum and dad put it) 58 minutes early for the next train (the trains go once an hour at 20 past the hour, so we missed it by 2 minutes).
So a quick drink and snack were had before we boarded the train 58 minutes later. The trains were double-deckers, that’s what they reminded us of anyway. Mum and dad commented that the trains were very good and spacious and that because the tracks and space in Australia allow for it the capacity of trains was really good. Imagine if we had double-decker carriages, we would have to change our whole railway structure, every tunnel would need to increase in height and also the electric capacity for the trains that are electrified. It was great to see and travel on for the 2 hours it took to get to Katoomba train station.
When we got to the station for the Blue Mountains we got 2 taxis (as they don’t have any taxi’s in this small town for 6 people) to Scenic World and proceeded inside. What mum hadn’t told us was that Scenic World allowed you to see the Blue Mountains in a fun way, well we found it fun, mum and dad, we are not so sure!
The scenic railway which was the old way to get miners down the mountain was even in 2022 the steepest railway in the world and really did require you to hang on as you went down. 310-meter descent and 52 degrees steep. And what made it more fun was that you could also go back up the mountain backward and do it all again! You could also adjust the benches to laid-back or cliffhanger depending on how much you wanted to cling on! – There were no seat belts.
The first time we walked the scenic walkway around the base which was made up of a 2.4km boardwalk, this was an interesting way to explore and there was plenty of information about the old mining that was done on the mountain. We cannot imagine making a living that way, but they did.
A more gentle way to get back to the Scenic World top station was the cableway which gives a 510-meter ascent/descent from top to bottom or visa versa. Great views of the Blue Mountains from here safely inside the cablecar. Though we did find out from here that it is actually the eucalyptus evaporating from the trees that makes the forest appear to be in a blue haze.
Last was the scenic skyway which was a horizontal cable car that is 270 meters high in the sky and travels 384 meters across from the Scenic World top station to the Skyway East station. What made this a great experience was that in the middle of the cart you could see through the floor into the canyon below, which was twice as high as the Sydney bridge. There were also some bars that you could feel the breeze come through and was great for pointing the camera through to get that perfect picture of the forest and the 3 sister rock formation.
After we had a go on all the rides for a second time we caught the bus back to the town. As we had an hour until the next train back to Sydney we found a sweet shop and we were allowed to spend some of our spending money on some treats for the train ride home. Mum and Dad thought it best that we had some “proper food” so we eat at the local fish and chip shop and then got the 17:20 train back to Sydney.
One final note about the train, there were quite a few backward-facing seats which we didn’t think about until a passenger got on and proceeded to make it into a front-facing seat! Bethany and Mum were amazed “How did he do that?!”. Turns out the bottom part of the seats is fixed but the top parts can be pushed to the front or back of the seat to make it a front or rear-facing seat, which in turn makes it into a set of 4 seats facing each other – very sociable. sets of seats face each other……very sociable.
Sydney – Best Running Location Ever (Day 10)
Dad here (Mark) I have been doing my version of running/walking for a few years now and still try and get out 3 times a week. I usually go out in the morning or later in the day (not to avoid the children I promise), anyway, I knew what I wanted to achieve; having walked to Circular Quay with the family earlier in the week. So off I set at 8 am coughing and spluttering past commuters heading to work, only being held up by everyone’s favourite traffic lights, as I have mentioned, when the person is on red, 99% of people stop. So for me, it was nice to have a break but it did break up my stride and cause me a few issues, do I, don’t I try and cross – I just kept seeing the game Crossy Road in my mind, and we all know how that ends!
Anyway, I achieved my goal and there was virtually no one around at that time so a couple of photo opportunities were taken of my less glamorous side, and a quick Facebook post and I was set off, back to the family. I have run abroad before, but having this at the end of my was magical!
Sydney – Mainly Beach & Night Pictures in Circular Quay (Day 9)
Today we set off to explore Manly beach, a place that none of us had been to apart from mum, who visited it with Gran when we were in Australia before.
On the way to the ferry in Circular Quay, there was time for some more photos around the Opera House.
The ferry ride was nice and easy and we got some more great photos as we passed the Opera House before turning right and across the water to Manly. The journey was about 20 minutes and very efficient.
Once there we wanted to do 2 things, play in the sea and find somewhere to BBQ our food. After walking down the town’s high street onto the long beach and walking up and down for what seemed like forever, we couldn’t find any BBQs.
Dad used the internet to find a list of public BBQs and off we set……about 45 minutes later and a couple of miles we found one! On a quay where locals were fishing and there was a play park. So we played and we cooked, and again very edible. Just as we vacated the BBQs we were pleased to see some more locals arrive in numbers with Wok in hand to take our hot dogs type meal to another level.
Due to how long this took by the time we walked back to the town, the lifeguards had all disappeared and the sun had gone in and no one was in the water, a little disappointed we had a look around the shops and reboarded the ferry to once again go across the water back to Circular Quay.
On the way back Adam took a great shot of the Opera House (see photos).
We choose to have tea at the fish and chip shop on the quay where we had eaten the week before and then walked around the harbor opposite the Opera House for some more photo opportunities.
At night (the sun went down at about 6 pm) the city looks so different as can be seen from the photos, so after viewing the sights from afar we went up close again, and snapped some photos of the bridge as well and actually went inside the Opera House just to see what it was like. The only way we can describe it was concrete and not as fancy as we thought it’d be. It was good to say we had been in it though.
Sydney – Bondi Beach – Big Bus “Hop On, Hop Off” Tour (Blue Route) & Australian Museum (Day 8)
We started today by not being able to find our tickets to get back on the Big Bus tour. We ran to the bus stop anyway; still not being able to find them…..Adam stalled the bus while Mum and Dad caught up in the hopes that the bus driver would take pity on us and take us to Bondi beach. The bus driver was lovely and let us on with our original electronic ticket. Within 25 minutes we arrived in Bondi.
We got off at Bondi stop north and had 2 hours to look around. The view from the hill into the bay was a great sight. Round to the side of the bay you could really see why this was a great bay for surfboarding as the waves were big and seemed very powerful. Like before in Perth, it again was a waiting game for the perfect wave before people attempted to get on their board and ride the waves.
The children’s pool was closed, which we were disappointed about but there was a sign to say it was being repaired after heavy storm activity in April. Just near the pool, there were kindly 4 surfboards marked “North Bondi Share Board” available just to take and use, we weren’t that brave, but it was nice to see.
Moving onto the beach we found the 2 flags where swimming was allowed which were being patrolled by the beach rescue lifeguards, they even used a megaphone to instruct the surfers to make sure they didn’t wander into the swimming area.
We all had our swim clothes with us, so we all got changed except Alexander, who doesn’t like going into the water. Bethany decided to build sand castles rather than get wet and cold. The brave ones ran straight in for a swim! Apparently, we were easy to spot as we were in the 1% of the swimmers that didn’t have wet suits on.
We had a great time for 30 minutes and then Adam came out shivering, leaving Matthew having the time of his life for another hour. Riding the waves and swimming, both on his own and befriending people who were doing the same thing.
Meanwhile back on the shore, Alexander was playing in the sand, whilst Bethany was burying Adam in the sand and turning him into a mermaid.
Finally, we had to go, so after calling Matthew back in and getting dressed we went back for the bus. (as a note they had BBQs in a park to the left of the bay to use, had we realised, before we would have come prepared and stayed a little longer.)
On the way back on the bus we had a great view of the main waterway leading to the Opera House and Sydney bridge, what a view! The sun was out and the water was full of boats making the most of the water and the weather.
Finally back in Sydney, we wanted to go to the Australian Museum. Free to enter and split into several sections we spent a couple of hours looking around. Our favourite parts were the history of Australia which included lots of information on the history of the Aboriginals too, which we all wanted to understand. The dinosaur exhibition was great too with lots of information about the creators and also our favourite part a t-rex autopsy (which had been done for television) was on display. We also liked, although a bit weird the floor with the stuffed animals, from birds to mammals along with all things found in Australia.
It was a great 2 hours and allowed us to learn so much about the past of Australia.
Finally, when we were in the room we had 2 visitors, we tried to take a photo on our first day in Sydney and then found one behind the hot tub a couple of days later, but today we had a rainbow lorikeet parrot on our windowsill.
Sydney – Sydney Zoo & the Big Bus “Hop On, Hop Off” Tour (Red Route) (Day 7)
A nice walk in the sun down to Darling harbour first thing so we could attend Sydney Zoo (a note that the queue for the Sealife centre was huge) but no issue for the Zoo. It is sold as having Australia’s big 5 – Koalas, Kangaroos, Crocodiles, Wombats and Platypus.
It was well laid out and the perfect size for a location within a harbour having both inside and outside areas. Lots of members of staff around to answer our questions and we also watched a good talk about the koalas but that was later in the koala café, (where we waited forever for mum’s coffee). The café was surrounded by Koalas.
We saw lots of animals of course but our highlights were the lizards which we think also included we think the one that scared Bethany in the botanical garden on our first walk to the opera house. A tree kangaroo which was shy but very fluffy. Snakes that dad was happy, were asleep along with the spiders that were inside their nests. Frogs that were lots of amazing colours. A scorpion that was neon green when under ultraviolet light and a lovely ostrich with vibrant head colours.
But what we had really come for was the Kangeroos, Koalas and the crocodile.
The Kangeroo enclosure was outside and had about 6 small kangaroos eating, one though was with a zoo keeper who informed us that it could be petted as long as we kept our hands away from its mouth – we think that’s what she said as we were already stood by her side stroking the kangaroo. The coat was quite hard and soft all at the same time, and an amazing experience.
We then passed the crocodile enclosure where we read a sign that informed us that Rocky, their rescued sea water crocodile, had recently, sadly died suddenly and everyone was deeply saddened by his passing.
Then we made it upstairs to the Koala viewing area that had about 10 all asleep. We grabbed a drink and a snack and spent 20 minutes trying to take a good photo. Whilst this was happening a zoo keeper gave a presentation and gave us the following facts;
- Koalas sleep about 20 hours a day as eucalyptus leaves have no nutritional value and therefore don’t give the Koala any energy.
- Koalas have no natural predators in the wild due to them hiding up the top of trees and the main danger they have is when they want to move trees and are on the ground when if unlucky they have the potential to be attacked by dogs and foxes.
- It only takes 30 days until a baby koala is born but then another 6 months until it comes out of its mum pouch.
- Baby koalas eat pap when they are old enough. Pap is mummy koala’s poo!
A really good one and a half hours was had by us in the Zoo, we would definitely recommend going, and it was included in the 4 attractions pass.
From here we hopped on the Big Bus hop on and off tour we sat upstairs as the sun was out, but we had all forgotten about the wind factor from the speed of the bus, we were freezing, especially dad who gave his hoodie to Alexander.
Dad had the camera but found it challenging to take photos while the bus was moving! To be honest Mum and Dad enjoyed the journey far more than we did. We think it was because of the time; we had to do the whole loop in one go, and we didn’t have the time hop on and off and explore.
When we got back to the start of the tour at Darling harbour we had some food. Adam went for steam BBQ pork buns and chicken dumplings, he thinks they were really delicious! The BBQ dumplings were sweet. Mum and Alexander had KFC in a box that read Christmas in July, that naturally came with mash potato’s and gravy – bit odd as it also came with chips. We all had iced coke or iced pink lemonade – which was also delicious.
After tea we had a play in the arcade and then went to the outdoor playpark, whereas the sun was setting it was even colder than on the bus.
Sydney – Sydney Tower, Darling Harbour & Sydney Madame Tussauds (Day 5 & 6)
Our day started early as Dad was determined to make it up the Sydney tower and we did. A small wait in line to watch a 4D video promoting Sydney which was worth the 10 minutes to build up the tension of going up the tower.
It’s the 8th highest tower in the world according to the graphics as you make your way into the lift and are slowly lifted to the viewing tower.
Once outside the beauty of Sydney is plain to see, the harbour just looks out of this world and today’s clear blue sky meant we could see for miles and miles. Our highlights included watching planes come into land on the same flight path we arrived on just under a week ago. A view of our hotel across Hyde Park, the Sydney Bridge, Opera House (very obscured view), and our favourite Darling harbour, as well as seeing the trains coming into the station and just how far you can see the city stretch including surprisingly some more high rises in the distance. We should say that Mum and Dad enjoyed the views more than us, and we could have come down after 30 minutes.
But by far the most amazing sight as we watched out of the window was a plane drawing “SS Marry Me” in the skyline with smoke – we all loved watching the plane draw the letters. Dad said this certainly was better than him proposing to Mum on his knees in the New Forest all those years ago, and we just all hoped that SS said yes.
After an hour we came down and made our way to Darling Harbour for some lunch, noting that an international boat show was taking place in the Harbour, it wasn’t there earlier on in the week and Dad kept saying work hard and you could get one of those…..our favourite was one that had a BBQ, hot tub and large inflatable slide from the top down into the water.
After lunch, we went to Sydney’s Madame Tussauds (again part of our 4 attraction tickets). None of us knew what to expect and we all must confess we really wanted to go to the Zoo but Mum and Dad said save that for tomorrow as there was only an hour and a half before the attractions shut. Bethany thought it would just be boring, full of old historical figures.
Well, what an hour we had, so much fun, every room we could interact with the waxworks, having pictures taken with them, admittedly a lot of the Australians we didn’t know who they were but others we did recognise.
Lots of photo opportunities from the Royal family to Batman, to Einstein, to Kylie Minogue, and Dads favourite, a women called Nicole Kidman! There was also a catwalk, a stage, a cricket field, a bar, and a Gotham City, action adventure type city too.
We have only shown a small selection of photos but rest assured with got lots more and as something we didn’t expect to like, we loved it!
Sydney – Shopping and the Cinema (Day 4)
A late start today with a trip up the Sydney tower was cut short as on our way the clouds came over and a quick family conversation about our options led to Bethany’s favourite pastime; exploring Sydney’s shops.
We did need a few things and managed to get what we wanted as well as some things we didn’t . We even saw a flip, flop (thong) vending machine. At the World Square shopping centre a huge bull sculpture greeted us and we explored the halls for quite some time, noticing that there were probably more places to eat than shop. At another entrance to this shopping centre there was an amazing sculpture of a dragon (see photos).
We wondered about looking at more shops and then came to a cinema with a Minions – The Rise of Gru poster on display. We all wanted to see the movie so went and purchased tickets. The only way this could be done was via ticket machines (think McDonalds) whilst we were there a friendly local explained it was Tuesday and he was a member he qualified for reduced price tickets (not sure he should have done) so he helped us purchase our tickets for $12 each (half adult price and cheaper than child price). We were very grateful to him!
As was the norm when we went to the cinema we purchased popcorn and a drink and as normal it wasn’t cheap but what was a surprise was that there were only 2 choices of flavours salted or caramel, which was new to us, no sweet popcorn like we have back home. Of course, we went for caramel that had literally just been made so was very hot, it tasted buttery and sweet and caramelised, with a hint of salt. It was delicious!
To gain entry to the film you had to self-scan your ticket (there was someone to supervise the machines) and we were in. The film was great and we laughed and chuckled whilst eating our goodies and drinking. We don’t get to go to the cinema as much as we would like in the UK so this was a nice treat.
When we came out it was dark, so we returned to our accommodation and chose to have dinner in the attached restaurant to our accommodation. This is a Thai noodle bar – we believe it is used as a training facility for students to learn their trade.
The meal was very nice and there was too much on our plates, in some cases, a hot sauce really did mean hot and was just about bearable with a litre of water to cool down each mouthful. We also played scrabble and exploding kittens whilst we waited.
Sydney – Darling Harbour & Sea Life Centre (Day 3)
A quick dip in the pool in the morning and then Mum and Dad surprised us as they purchased a 5 attraction ticket for Sydney. This included entrance to the Sea Life centre, Madam Tussauds, Sydney Zoo, the Sydney Tower, and a hop on hop off bus ticket. We hoped it wouldn’t all be done in one day! (£300 for the whole family)
The good news was that today was the Sea Life centre and it was in Darling Harbour a very nice harbour and about a 20 minute walk from our accommodation.
We were all so excited to be inside- there were loads to see and do. First was the penguin enclosure, it was lucky timing as we got to see them being fed.
Then we found an octopus, which we loved the way it used its suckers to climb the glass. Then we looked at the puffer fish along with various others, so colourful and such a great place to see them. Alexander was particularly excited to see Dory and Nemo and their friends. We also saw a turtle that had a huge neck!
After this, we went down into the depths and walked through a see-through tunnel which allowed us to feel like we were under the sea with all the fishes swimming above us. This was full of sting-ray and they are beautiful creatures and the ones we saw were a lot bigger than we expected. This tank also enclosed a Dugong called Pig, which was being fed lettuce on racks every 10 minutes 8 hours a day!
The shark tank was next and again we walked through a see-through tunnel admiring the beauty of these creatures, we learned that they are mostly born about 150km off Melbourne’s coast and then move up the coast as they grow. It was fascinating. They have even tagged some sharks and then track their movements using satellites. We hope we won’t meet any when we go to Melbourne.
After this we went and found another penguin enclosure that had snow on the ground to mimic their normal environment, they were very funny waddling about.
And finally, we got to touch sea life in the petting pool – sea slugs, starfish, and anemone (which felt sticky as it tried to grab us) to name a few. It was great to feel the different textures of them all and appreciate their importance to the ocean echo system.
On the way out of the Sea Life centre we were ushered into the gift shop, and all bought something to remind us of our visit, thanks to Gran, Nanna, and Auntie Debbie for giving us some spending money for our trip.
Upon leaving the Sea Life centre we stayed in Darling Harbour and found the play area and explored for a while. There was a great water play area which we can only imagine during the summer months would be amazing, it was good even in winter until Alexander got his full foot wet! There were also 2 large slides which for some reason were really hard to slide down, we were not alone in struggling with this.
We then had some dinner in Darling harbour before heading back to our accommodation – another good day was had by all.
Here is our video of the Sydney Sea Life centre: Sealife centre Sydney
Sydney – Circular Quay, Opera House & Sydney Bridge (Day 2)
We started our day with a dip in the hot tub (the pool is being repaired much to our frustration). Whilst in the hot tub we saw one of those amazingly colourful lorikeets (see photos). We are not sure if it was unwell, but it didn’t make any attempt to fly and it did have a little movement so we watched for a bit and hoped that during the day it had regained its strength and had now flown away.
The clouds were out as we left our hotel to walk the 25ish minutes to get to the Opera House. We got about 5 minutes into our journey when Dad wanted a photo of St Mary’s Church (see photos) only to find that we hadn’t put the batteries back in the camera after we last flew. Lithium batteries can no longer go in the hold and must go in hand luggage, so off Dad trotted to reunite the battery with the camera. We had a play around the church and then had an ice cream dipped in sherbet from a Mr Whippy ice-cream van that was delicious while we waited for Dad to return.
Our journey took us through the Domain (another green area) and through the beautiful `Botanic Gardens. A lovely walk looking at some of the plants and fountains until Bethany met a local in the undergrowth, she let out a scream, and the Eastern Water Dragon ran off as fast as its 4 legs could carry it. No pictures unfortunately of the reptile or Bethany at that moment as they both moved too fast!
When we finally got down to the water and started getting closer to the Opera House, which step by step, slowly came into view. What a sight and it was as grand in scale as Mum and Dad had told us about. Several photos were taken upon the steps, but this proved a challenge for 2 reasons:
1 – trying to get all 4 of us to look in the same direction and smile is as Dad calls it mission impossible
2 – trying to get a picture of just our family in the picture was again very challenging
Dad said we might need to go back again and have another go, he’s determined to get a killer shot, but we are not as convinced it is necessary.
We then went into the middle of the pier, and we got a family portion of chips as it was now mid-afternoon, they came with chicken salt! Which was different but not something we had tasted before. Dad made sure we were undercover to eat our chips as he’d seen seagulls steal chips before in Circular Quay.
From here we continued around to the opposite side of Circular Quay, where we passed a guitarist playing AC/DC tracks on his guitar, he seemed very good for someone so young, and then we stumbled upon a street performer who had drawn quite a crowd and was on his last 3 tricks of his 45-minute set. He whipped a toy Koala in 2! Juggled swords and axes and finally swallowed fire all while telling jokes. Matthew said he thought the man was clever how he’d aimed some of the jokes at children and some just for the adults – we’re not sure what he means.
Then we continued walking and taking photos, walking past the international cruise terminal and right around to the underside of the Sydney bridge another iconic piece of Sydney that our parents wanted us to see. At this point, it became clear just how far we had walked to get to this point and of course the distance we had to travel to get back. Adam took Mum’s phone and started navigating us via google maps walking navigation. It said we were 38 minutes away from our accommodation. It actually took more like an hour to walk back and poor Alexander was getting very tired and asked to stop and rest, but all of the establishments we passed were pubs and you had to be over 18 to go in. Mum has promised him that she’ll look into traveling via the metro tomorrow. We are all tired now and are just going to watch a film again on Netflix before we do it all again tomorrow.
Sydney – The Arrival (Day 1)
On our flight from Perth to Sydney, it was the first flight ever that we had Wi-Fi whilst in the air! We could connect our Ipads, phones or laptops to the internet and watch YouTube or the Qantas entertainment app and watch the same sorts of things we did on the other planes but this time on our own devices, it was great! We had our very own entertainment system. We could even charge our Ipads too! The plane also had screens every few seats but in the ceiling and they gave out headphones so you could also watch the film they were showing which was Hairspray. It was something we all hadn’t experienced before and was a definite bonus.
When we arrived into Sydney, being a domestic flight, there was no passport control that usually holds up the process so we went straight through into baggage reclaim. Now sounds perfect but we then sat there for 30 minutes waiting for the carousel to start moving and even then it seemed to be 20 bags at a time then a 5-minute gap before another 20 were put on. If you just had carry-on luggage you were onto a winner.
Finally, our luggage started to come out 1, 2, 3, 4, 5……..and then nothing. The same 3 bags that had been going around since the start were still there but not our final case. Dad told us all that it was ok and not to worry as this had happened before and he would find baggage services. Mum was more worried as she’d packed so that everyone had a case each this time (rather than her usually mixed up cases), meaning one of us was going to have no clothes at all………….but then the suitcase appeared, much to everyone’s relief.
Dad says we don’t need to hire a car here, so we went outside to get a taxi. Mum and Dad had considered a bus or train into the centre of Sydney, where our accommodation is, but thought even then trying to wheel 8 cases for anything over 5 minutes was going to prove a challenge, so they decided on a taxi as we were only around 15 minutes from the airport. We expected to have to get 2 taxis when the lady helping said the word “maxi” and gestured with her hands in the air a big square and as if out of nowhere a single Toyota vehicle appeared. Seating 8 and with space at the back to take a wheelchair with this person seated, which was where our luggage sat. We were very impressed with this ride, loads of room in the boot and enough seats for all of us too! We were off.
About a 20-minute journey with us all, (Dad in particular) looking at the meter to get to our hotel/apartment building, $80 dollars (£46) later, we arrived.
First impressions of the Hyde Park Plaza were good, the reception was nice and clean, and we waited there for our host to arrive. When she did she took us up to the 15th floor (top floor) and into our apartment.
The view from the window even at night was fantastic, so colourful as it was night and we are in the heart of the city. That distracted us but not Mum in terms of the 1 bedroom apartment we were in. From only having a table with 2 chairs to no cooker and then the fact that the second double Ikea day bed didn’t appear to have enough room to be pulled out were just some of her issues.
On the plus side; the TV had Netflix and the hotel had a rooftop pool and hot tub which we went up to see and noted that it opened from 6 am until 10 pm at night which was even longer than the last place. Dad had then made a grave error with us all though, no Wi-fi!
We nipped out to get some supplies and a bite to eat; Hungary Jack’s which is actually Australia’s Burger King! Not sure why it’s not called Burger King but the Children’s meal type toy was branded, Burger King. We then found an IGM food store and just got enough supplies to last us for a couple of days, went back and watched a movie as Mum and Dad tried to get our suitcases to fit in the 1 bedroom as there was no room in the rest of the apartment once we had moved the furniture to get the beds out. But Dad wants to remind us that it’s all about location, location, location versus price! Right Dad, Mum’s face still says not.