Australia 2016

tufbuf

Disney Addict!
Joined
Jan 14, 2008
Hello! We got back from our amazing trip Down Under last Monday!! I'll just make an add-on trip report to Cousin Orville's and post some photos.

This was an awesome, active, hectic adventure. ABD took us up in the air, down in the water, we biked and hiked and viewed spectacular landscapes in one vast country! To get there and back, we rode 11 airplanes and stayed in 7 different hotels. All that trouble though was all worth it!

We flew Saturday night and arrived early Monday morning. It was a red eye flight so everyone had a good shuteye on the plane. The flight was uneventful and going through immigration and luggage claim were a breeze. Our shuttle though had some engine problem, and DH tried to help the driver out as to the cause. It was a weak battery and he got us going in no time. As expected, our room was not ready and won't be till about 2 that afternoon. We met with friends and headed on to take the HOHO bus around the city.



From the airport, I wondered why the streets were empty on a Monday morning. It turned out, it was a public holiday, the Queen's birthday and there was no work that day. It was great! That meant no traffic and we had a better view of the city on the way to the hotel and while on the bus.

Sydney is a beautiful, clean and safe city. We sat on the top part of the bus and it was cool and windy that day.



We first made a stop at the Sydney Opera House to check out and see if there were any shows we can fit in our schedule. It was surreal being there, having seen numerous photos and videos, it was great to be right at the opera house's steps!

This is the Harbor Bridge, viewed across the opera house


The opera house, viewed from different angles give you a different perspective.



The roof is actually made up of aggregate panels of pink granite




We walked along the Botanical Garden, created by the convicts. It was celebrating its 200th year.






I noted some funny signs all through out Australia. Here's one from the garden


Later that evening, we took the ferry to Taronga Zoo. Sydney was celebrating Vivid Sydney which is a 3 week long winter event held this time of the year. They light up the city with laser lights. I'll show some photos and I hope I can upload a video. Our friends went the night before and we were told that it was extremely crowded then. Monday night was sparse. The zoo controlled the number of people in and we got in (since we had pre-purchased tickets) about 10 minutes since we got in line.

The Sydney Opera House from the ferry boat.



These green lights were moving and made it look like tiny green insects fluttering along


I was hoping to see a platypus but since Vivid Sydney was ongoing, the animal displays were closed.


An echidna




These animal displays are not stagnant. These turtles were flapping their fins and there are different sounds everywhere, usually the one the animal makes


It's quite difficult to appreciate in a still photo though...










These were the only animals we saw that evening, giraffes feeding at night. People say the animals have a much better view than most Sydney residents. :)




The Sydney skyline




The light display on the opera house was most spectacular!











They even made a snake crawl on the roof and even made it appear the roof was undulating! I'll see if I can post a short clip!
 
What amazing photos of the Opera House. I'm so sad that they've changed this trip. Looks so active and amazing. Thanks for posting.
 
The evening party at the zoo looks fun. I remember hearing about the light show on the Opera House. Looks spectacular.
 
Wow! Your pics are fantastic so far! I'm definitely a sucker for light events, and these look awesome! Glad to hear you had a great time; can't wait to see more of your pics!
 


Thanks everyone! Mare, were you the one who posted a trip report on Italy? We had Troy as one of our guides as well.

Pre-day 2, off to the Blue Mountains. This is a World Heritage Area and about 30 miles west of Sydney. We hired a private guide from Diamond Tours who took us to the site. Ian, our guide, was knowledgeable and an excellent guide.

He first took us to a "secret" viewpoint. The sun was harsh that day so pictures aren't that great. It's called the Blue Mountains because of the blue hue you see on top of it made by the eucalyptus trees. It releases the oil in the morning and when it mixes with air, it gives a blue hue.



The cliff is about 800 feet below and no railing!





The main attraction here is a rock formation called the Three Sisters





One of the things you can do is ride the cable cars and train to get a bird's eye view of the landscape.



It has a glass bottom










Wentworth Falls


Mount Solitary in the distance, which has the same dimensions as Uluru but more verdant and Orphan Rock on the right, which used to be the attraction until it was destroyed by a storm.


Better view of Mount Solitary


On the cableway


We also rode the railway which boasts of being the steepest in the world! Very hard to appreciate in photos but it goes up backwards while you're facing down towards the cliff face below!





It has a walkway to get a better view of the eucalyptus forest



A lyre bird which is known to mimic lots of sounds!



The skyway


Katoomba Falls
 
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Thanks everyone! Mare, were you the one who posted a trip report on Italy? We had Troy as one of our guides as well.

Yes, that was me! We loved Troy; I hope you did, too! Glad to hear he's getting to see more than just Italy these days.
 
Beautiful photos. We didn't do the Blue Mountains on our trip, but definitely a reason to go back some day.
 


Mare, Troy was awesome and his team up with the local guide, Amber was perfect! We had some issues during the trip but the two handled it extremely well. Otherwise, the whole trip went smoothly. The logistics on this trip is quite daunting!

Cousin Orville, there is more to do in the Blue Mountains. If you google Jenolan Caves, that's one of the other attraction in the area which looks very interesting. It's farther from where we viewed the Three Sisters but our guide was encouraging us to come back and see the caves next time.
 
ABD Day 1: Cairns

We had an early flight to Cairns. It's about a 2 hour flight north. First impression of Cairns, reminded us of Hawaii! The area is a lush rainforest and it would rain intermittently there. Troy, one of the ABD guides was at baggage claiim ready to greet us. It was about a 30 minute ride to the hotel. At the lobby of Palm Cove, our other guide, Amber greeted us. She is one energizer bunny! Simply loaded with energy! The Sea Temple Palm Cove resort is beautiful! Our room is like a 2 bedroom apartment and it was helpful it had a washer and dryer!

The door on the right leads to one of the bedrooms with its own bathroom



The other bedroom







It's warm and humid in Cairns. We got settled and grabbed a meal at the town center which is about a 10 minute walk through the beach. The beach though is not a place to bask as they do have crocodiles in there.

We had our welcome dinner that evening. Food in this trip was delicious!! They served kangaroo that evening and I thought it tasted like jerky but more tender and very lean.



These are our guides Troy and Amber. You know you'll have a fun trip when you see them posing this way! This was a screen shot from my phone from the slideshow they took as we don't have our photos available yet!



They briefed us about the upcoming trip to the Great Barrier Reef the next day as well as not to walk on the beach at night because of crocodiles. After all the talk about crocodiles, jellyfishes and sharks, you can feel the hush in the room. It seemed everyone was nervous... so we were off for the night to get ready for the adventure ahead! It gets very busy from hereon!
 
Looks like the internet ate my response! Sigh...
It said:
"Wow wow wow!! Great photos! That light show looks really special! "

I think your photos of the zoo light show and the Opera house light show are just spectacular! So very gorgeous!

And that hotel in Cairns looks really comfortable!

But that one shot with the glass under your feet! :scared1: Yikes!

Sayhello
 
ABD day 2: The Great Barrier Reef

Breakfast at the Sea Temple Resort was pretty good. It's just a long walk to and from the rooms, which was not too bad.



This was where I tried....



Amber taught me the right way to eat it. So spread some butter on toast and put a bit of vegemite. It's made of yeast and it's very salty.

It took us about an hour to get to the wharf. Once there, we boarded the boat soon enough after getting our tickets to board, wet suit stubs and drink tickets.





It took about an hour and a half to get to the pontoon where we will be snorkeling. The catamaran took us to Agincourt Reef, which runs parallel to the continental shelf. Weather cooperated that day since it was cloudy and rainy when we left. The water was a bit choppy but the crew said it's the best they had since the last few rainy days. A lot of the people on the boat got sick. There were probably about 200+ other people on the boat. ABD grouped us into three different groups and gave us the schedule when to snorkel. Those interested in a 10 minute helicopter ride were able to schedule that activity as well.

Our group was the last to snorkel with the marine biologist so we rode the helicopter first.



The reef view from the helicopter





Several sea turtles were swimming that day which we saw from the air.

Our boat and pontoon from the air:



The reef was rich with sea life! Here are some photos:

A giant clam



DH found Nemo...





More clownfishes....









DH diving in the deep



DD doing the same





The snorkeling site, it can get pretty crowded



Overall, it was a wonderful day!!! It was awesome to be able to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef!!!
 
Thanks sayhello!! This trip is absolutely one of the best we did!!!

From hereon, I'll try not to double the photos Cousin Orville posted. He had awesome photos especially of the crocs grabbing the food! I didn't use a flash when I took the photos so the crocs look blurry. We also were not able to kayak in Coles Bay in Tasmania due to weather.
 
ABD day 3: Aboriginals and the rain forest

This day did not start too early nevertheless jampacked with activities. Our first stop was the Tjapukai Cultural Center where we were treated with aboriginal dance, song and storytelling.





Didgeridoos abound!



Aboriginal dance and song...



We tried our hands in throwing a spear and boomerang...





Aboriginal art mural draped the room



Where we had the chance to listen to a didgeridoo.. That's one tough instrument to play! It's a vocal work out!!



Another funny sign in the Tjapuki Cultural Center restroom...



Next stop was the Kuranda Village



Queensland is the only state in Australia which still allows the public to hold a koala. Soon it will be banned nationwide.

The handler fetching Hazel, the koala whom we will hold for the pictorial.



Some of the animal exhibits in Kuranda













More didgeridoos in the Kuranda market



After about a 2 hour stop in Kuranda. we headed off to the Skyrail to get a bird's eye view of the forest below in a cable car.







Barron Falls





Cairns landscape... breathtaking!



Last stop for the day - crocodiles!!!



Our venue for the day's dinner...



Our boat awaits...



But first! We get a chance to hold a snake and/or a baby croc for photos. Here's one of the handlers with an olive python



DH and DD had it around their neck, DH was freaked out but wanted to show DD that he can overcome his fear! LOL. I'm too wimpy...

Crocs smell food...



Boris, a large croc grabbing the chicken



Crocs in the dark...



Feeding crocs in the dark by hand, uhm.... probably not a good idea...





Tonka, a wombat



This is the highlight of the evening for me. Pavlova, a local Aussie dessert - yum!!! It's made of merengue and cream with fruit!

 
Wow! Loving this trip report. Thank you so much for taking the time to do it. Such a benefit for the rest of us in planning/deciding. Many thanks.
 
My husband laughed at the bathroom picture. He has one on his phone from when he was in Afghanistan.

Thanks for the report. Australia is very, very high on my list
 
ABD day 4: Off to Uluru!

This was an early bag pull day. We each had a boxed breakfast to take with us on the plane. Even though there are a number of internal flights in this trip, it's pretty easy to pack since they are not strict with liquids. You can pack them in your carry on. That really helped.

We get a glimpse of the red center...



It was about a 2 hour flight to the Uluru. Our assigned coach did not arrive so our guides had to get a last minute coach/guide to take us to Uluru. We took lots of group and family photos in this stop.



This is one of the highlights of the trip for me. Many locals have not even been here! An Australian visit will not be complete without seeing Uluru. It tells alot about the aboriginals who knew how to take care of their land.

Our first stop was a visit to the cultural center. Photos were not allowed inside. It had a lot of framed stories/legends of the land, how Uluru was shaped. Unlike the aboriginals in Cairns, the ones here were more reserved and tacit.





Next, we started hiking Uluru...





Uluru has many facets. It's amazing how different it looks in different angles











That's our last minute guide, who did an awesome job stepping in. One has to be a certified guide to take tourists in Uluru.





It has also has water holes like this one



The most amazing sight, which our guide showed us, is Uluru in the rain with water falling on its side! It's a very rare sight but surely one to behold!

There was also some ambiguous art found on the rock. The aboriginals beginning is very vague. They boast of the oldest culture in the world, about 50000+ but no one mentions how they came to be.



By this time, because of the late coach, many were getting hungry and hangry. We finally got to our lunch place close to 2 pm for some pizza. It's in the town center very near our hotel, Sails in the Desert.

The hotel pool







It's an old hotel but clean. I didn't hear any bed bug bites or issues with the room as Cousin Orville mentioned in the other hotel. The restaurant appears new. Remember not to overdo the pizza lunch because the dinner buffet was a treat! The food here was amazing!!



This is where special meals are ordered...





They even have a chocolate fountain which you can indulge in to your heart's (or stomach's!) delight!!

Later that evening was stargazing. This was fascinating!!! It was just really cold! We were able to see Alpha Centauri, the closest star to us, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter with three of its moons!

Photo of the moon that evening in Uluru

 
Day 5: Kata Tjuta and off to Sydney!

The astrologers the previous night showed us the Milky Way up in the sky. They said there is a 30 minute window when the moon sets and just before sunrise when the sky would be in complete darkness making the stars more visible as well as the milky way. That is between 6-6:30 am. *yawn* So DH and I and our friends and tour mates went back to the sight where we star gazed. I tried to take a photo of the Milky Way. It's not the best. I didn't bring my nicer camera since I was trying to travel light.



This morning, we hiked to Kata Tjuta, a group of large domed formations about 40 km from Uluru.













Uluru in the distance



We had a boxed meal for lunch this day. Our flight leaves at 1 pm and another 2+ hour flight to Sydney.

I found another funny sign in the airport restroom...



And we leave Uluru...



When we arrived in Sydney, it was already dark and rainy. Everyone was just eager to get to their hotel rooms and freshen up. The hotel was changed to the Shangri-La Hotel a few weeks ago instead of the Sheraton at the Park in previous trips. It's a very nice swanky hotel. This was supposed to be the adult dinner night but most of us didn't get a chance to change and dress up as we arrived 30 minutes before dinner time. Again, the buffet was delicious!









 
Your picture of the starry sky looks lovely, and it sounds like everything's been plussed up with the new hotels.
 
Thank you, Cousin Orville! We realized later, the Milky Way is much brighter and more visible in Port Arthur, Tasmania. And thanks to your group and last year's group, I bet your comments made an impact on the hotel changes this year!
 
Day 6: Harbor Bike Tour, Harbor Cruise lunch and Opera House Tour

This was the view that greeted us from our hotel room window...



Or the HDR version...



Next on the agenda is a bike tour along the Sydney Harbor. We walked to the bike place from the hotel. It was a fairly easy bike ride with a couple of uphill climb. The biggest challenge is to remember to keep left!

This is a contemporary art work we saw along the way





Panoramic view of the harbor





We biked up halfway on the Harbor Bridge and took some great photos!



Panoramic photo from the bridge



After the bike tour, which lasted about 2 hours, we had some free time before the harbor cruise lunch. We met in the wharf and waited for our boat.



View of the Opera House from our boat. It's a fascinating work of art and architecture, I can't help but be awed!



Our lunch room, again food was great!





Now we're under the bridge!





The Sydney skyline





After the cruise, we headed to the opera house for our private tour.





One of the 6 stages inside the opera house. We were only allowed to take photos if no one is rehearsing on the stage, such as this one.



I call this the purple room. The carpet is very purple. This area can be used for parties, sometimes it may cost as much as AUD500 per head!





View of the bridge from inside the opera house



The concert hall, Prince held a concert here shortly before his passing



Landscape view



Stairway inside

 

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