Beth's Oz Adventure

Enjoying my final week in the Blue Mountains, this week have retraced the steps of Charles Darwin at nearby Wentworth Falls. V spectacular, although the steps back up were a killer!

Have still been wwoofing too (http://www.theflyingfox.com.au/), this week was even entrusted with AN AXE as well as a hoover! Earring enterprise also progressing nicely and have sold my first 3 pairs!

Well my time here is sadly nearly at an end and am leaving tomorrow to start heading north up the coast to Byron Bay. First stop Port Stephens and hopefully some dolphin spotting...


Wentworth Falls

Wood chopper extrordinaire

Still here in Katoomba and loving it! Been exploring the area a bit more now and done a few walks though think the rest of Oz has visited here over easter as has been v v busy. Also went on the steepest railway in the world up the cliffs, is almost vertical with no seatbelts and only a chain to stop you falling out! Luckily survived my journey and was very relieved that no infants were lost or damaged either!

Visits to the amazing chocolate shop are now daily and am working my way through the menu - they have choc cheesecake to die for and I think the hot chocolate should be a controlled substance! In the absence of any jobs there have volunteered my services and am going there this week to watch the master chocolatier at work!

Have also been getting creative and have been making earrings from shells I found in Merimbula. Hoping to sell them to rich tourists up in Byron Bay to fund the next leg of my trip, wish me luck!

Am now in Katoomba in the Blue Mountains wwoofing in a hostel here. I work for a few hours in the mornings doing a bit of cleaning, washing, and even lizard catching today! Yesterday went to Echo point and saw the 3 sisters rock formation & v spectacular views. Was followed by a visit to the amazing Blue Mountains Chocolate Company where of course I did not sample any of the products, and definately not the chocolate brownies ;-)

Much chillier up here than on the coast, we even have a log fire in the evenings. Nights are drawing in too & is dark at 6pm, winter is definately on its way!

Been in Sydney for the last few days seeing all the sights, Bondi beach, harbour bridge, opera house etc, and even spotted a very aged looking Clive James by the harbour. Also went to the Rocks, the oldest part of Sydney where the Europeans first settled & now has a fab market. Favourite bit by far had to be the botanical gardens complete with huge colony of flying foxes (fruit bats), very spectacular to see and v noisy!

Now off for adventures of the more rocky variety in the Blue Mountains a couple of hours west of Sydney...

Greetings from New South Wales! Have spent the last week making my way up the coast from Melbourne. Spent a few days in Lakes Entrance and Merimbula, both nice little coastal towns with amazing beaches and lots of pelicans!

Now in Wollongong, a couple of hours south of Sydney. Here I visited the Nan Tien Temple - the largest Buddhist Temple in the Southern Hemisphere and home to no less than 10,000 buddhas. Lots of them were stone statues around the temple doing everything from gardening to building a snowman! My favourite though had to be the one I can only describe as reinacting Saturday Night Fever!

Tommorrow I travel to Sydney then it's Bondi Beach here I come!

Merimbula beach..

Nan Tien Temple