I'm back! What a trip! We crossed three states, our car broke down once, we ate (a lot), we staid in a beautiful back packers resort in Apollo Bay, met people from all over, got yelled at by some lady in YHA because we turned our lights on, but through it all I came home with a greater appreciation for Brisbane and the beautiful sunshine state that is Queensland.
Our first stop on the trip was the Blue Mountains. I think the whole time we were there, I was in a state of shock, I could not believe this was Australia. If someone had dropped me off in the middle of no where up there and said guess where you are, I would have said hands down, Canada.
We staid there for a night, and then ventured down to Sydney, stopping a long the way to visit the Hunter Valley winery, the magnificent three sisters and a few glorious lookouts. I highly recommend anyone coming to Australia consider taking a road trip, not only do you get to see a lot more but, I guarantee you'll step away from your trip with deeper sense of appreciation for the country.
I have to say, I really enjoyed Sydney. For me, it was everything I'd imagined a big city to be like: tons of people, massive traffic jams, a Starbucks on every corner. Sydney was big, loud and full of life. I loved every second of my time there however, I will admit by the time I left THE BIG APPLE of down under, I realized one, the winter weather there was a lot colder than I had anticipated and two, I am so not a big city girl!
We managed to take in the major tourist attractions when we were there, from the harbour bridge to the opera house. You know, seeing these two major iconic land marks of Australia was the pinnacle of my 'Australian dream.' I had always wanted to go to Sydney for as long as I can remember, and standing out front of these two places was quite astounding and very emotional. Standing there and gazing out unto the the great harbour, I guess you can really say I truly realized how lucky I am.
The 29Th of June we left Sydney at about 2am and headed to Melbourne. I think in total the car ride was about 8hrs, but don't quote me on that one! It was nice, we passed the time with music, snacks and chit chat, had breakfast at McDonald's and even stopped outside of Canberra to take our picture on a massive submarine.
Before actually entering Melbourne we went up to Mount Buller. HOLY CRAP was it cold! There was even snow. I knew we were going there, but to be honest I did not expect THAT MUCH snow! It was beautiful don't get me wrong, but I think with the wind factored in, well all I can really say is BRRR. I think the funniest part about going up to Mt Buller was that I went up in a jean jacket, a pair of boots and a scarf. Yes, I know, a jean jacket what in the heck was I thinking! My friend here from the USA told me before I left, make sure you have a warm coat, I thought how cold can it really get? Wow was I wrong. My friends from Malaysia and Singapore who went a long with me were WAY more prepared then me!
By the time we'd finished playing in the snow, we were ready to hit the road to Melbourne. I'll never forget the drive into the city. The night city scape was so beautiful, I felt like I was in the movies. Anyway, that night we checked into Urban Central and crashed for the night, it truly is an understatement to say we were tired, we were WHACKED!
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