We touched down in Sydney last Thursday afternoon, and after a few hiccups with the car rental (the only real one of the trip), we arrived at our home for a week in Woronora, a beautiful suburb about 25k south of Sydney's CBD. Friday was spent hanging in the neighbourhood. Our first stop was the park on the other side of the Woronora River for the girls to play for awhile before heading over another bridge at Forbes's Creek to The Boatshed, a local café heartily recommended by our hosts, Joy and Phil. There we had a lovely breakfast/lunch (isn't there a word for that?!?!) and met Jane & Jon, the owners. Jane sat with us and took out her maps to share her knowledge of the city in terms of what we should try to see while here (In subsequent days, we returned to the café and were treated very warmly by Jon & Jane; they certainly added to our enjoyment of this stage of our journey, and we would definitely recommend any visitors to Woronora stop in for a visit). With those helpful hints in hand, we decided to take one of the local walks recommended (and expertly described!) by Joy & Phil. We headed up a trail towards the cemetery and ended up with a gorgeous view of the river valley below. Teaghan took the pics of Judy & me at the top. Along the way, we spotted cockatoos, lorikeets, and kookaburras, which made the walk up into a guessing game for the girls (i.e. "What kind of bird do you think made that sound?"). We were lucky enough to catch a kookaburra perched on a branch some 20 metres distance "laughing away" - very cool!
Saturday & Sunday, we took the train into central Sydney to visit Paddy's Markets , Chinatown, and Darling Harbour. Paddy's is famous for shoppers looking for souvenirs, and the Chinatown, while seemingly smaller than Montreal's, provided a welcome rest for a good meal on the way back from the Harbour. One of the highlights (ok, for me!) was seeing an "exact replica" of the HMS Endeavour, which Capt. James Cook commanded on his first voyage to Terra Australis Incognita from 1769-71. This particular weekend was probably more crowded than usual as a light festival, Vivid, was in its final days. We did manage to stay for the first presentation of the evening (a light and water show set to music) that was very enjoyable, but our planned ferry trip to Circular Quay to see the lights projected on the Opera House was thwarted by excessively long lines at the terminal. No worries - we took that same ferry Sunday afternoon, and though the day had turned overcast and blustery, we still enjoyed the 30-minute ride through the harbour with great views of the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge & Sydney Opera House.
Today (Monday) we decided to head out to the Royal National Park (a short, twenty-minute drive from Woronora), the second oldest national park in the world. There, we decided to try a track (again recommended by Joy & Phil!) from Wattamolla to Marley Beach. While the morning was sunny, the afternoon again turned overcast, and it was raining by the time we arrived at the trail head. Undaunted (ok, ok, after a bit of persuasion!), the Proud girls put on the rain gear and headed out on the track. It was a gorgeous walk through banksia and other shrubs and trees along the coast. We covered most of the track through steady rain and arrived at an outlook on the cliffs, where we were treated to an amazing view of the sea with a rainbow in the distance. Unfortunately, because of the rain, we weren't able to take any photos. We didn't quite make it all the way to Marley beach as the rain picked up, so we decided to head back (when we were able to snap a few). While pretty much thoroughly drenched by the time we arrived back at the car, our spirits were not dampened. Judy and I are so proud of our girls! We talked about the importance of not giving up (related to the hike) on things in life in general, and we all agreed that we had made the right choice to undertake the hike despite the conditions. It was a great day!
Saturday & Sunday, we took the train into central Sydney to visit Paddy's Markets , Chinatown, and Darling Harbour. Paddy's is famous for shoppers looking for souvenirs, and the Chinatown, while seemingly smaller than Montreal's, provided a welcome rest for a good meal on the way back from the Harbour. One of the highlights (ok, for me!) was seeing an "exact replica" of the HMS Endeavour, which Capt. James Cook commanded on his first voyage to Terra Australis Incognita from 1769-71. This particular weekend was probably more crowded than usual as a light festival, Vivid, was in its final days. We did manage to stay for the first presentation of the evening (a light and water show set to music) that was very enjoyable, but our planned ferry trip to Circular Quay to see the lights projected on the Opera House was thwarted by excessively long lines at the terminal. No worries - we took that same ferry Sunday afternoon, and though the day had turned overcast and blustery, we still enjoyed the 30-minute ride through the harbour with great views of the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge & Sydney Opera House.
Today (Monday) we decided to head out to the Royal National Park (a short, twenty-minute drive from Woronora), the second oldest national park in the world. There, we decided to try a track (again recommended by Joy & Phil!) from Wattamolla to Marley Beach. While the morning was sunny, the afternoon again turned overcast, and it was raining by the time we arrived at the trail head. Undaunted (ok, ok, after a bit of persuasion!), the Proud girls put on the rain gear and headed out on the track. It was a gorgeous walk through banksia and other shrubs and trees along the coast. We covered most of the track through steady rain and arrived at an outlook on the cliffs, where we were treated to an amazing view of the sea with a rainbow in the distance. Unfortunately, because of the rain, we weren't able to take any photos. We didn't quite make it all the way to Marley beach as the rain picked up, so we decided to head back (when we were able to snap a few). While pretty much thoroughly drenched by the time we arrived back at the car, our spirits were not dampened. Judy and I are so proud of our girls! We talked about the importance of not giving up (related to the hike) on things in life in general, and we all agreed that we had made the right choice to undertake the hike despite the conditions. It was a great day!