Wine & The Beach

We survived driving the car on the opposite side of the road! When it was my turn to drive, I kept saying to myself "drive on the left, drive on the left"...it became my mantra for the day! I kept hitting the windshield wipers instead of the signal, but no accidents, so that's good! Hunter Valley was beautiful - green rolling hills and 142 wineries nestled in between! We went to 16 in total. In our humble opinion, the verdelho, semillon and shiraz are the best the area makes. The absolute best that we visited was Iron Gate, a boutique vineyard (they don't sell it anywhere but at the estate). Cara, thanks for recommending that we hit that one..we loved it and bought 4 bottles! Tempus Two was the other really great winery that we visited. McWilliams, Lindemans and Rosemount are others that we saw...you can buy those at home!

In addition to the great wines, Hunter Valley makes some phenomenal cheeses, olives and chocolates. We overindulged in brie, bleu and cheddar. I ate more than my share of the best marinated kalamata olives I have ever had...and lots of fudge. I am really looking forward to working out again in China! ;)

We went to Scarborough Vineyards (M.C., Barbara Jean, little and big Truman...just because of you!)...the picture of the vineyard above was taken there. After tasting the wines, we saw our first kangaroo hanging out near their vines! The kangaroo was massive! I had no idea they'd be that big. After a day of wineries, we went on a kangaroo hunt. We found several grazing in a field. Really cool!

We headed from New South Wales up to Queensland where we ended up at the Thala Beach Lodge in Port Douglas (Matt McNeel and Sierra - thanks for recommending the lodge - we loved it!). It is truly paradise on earth. The Lodge was way out of my price range and way too fancy now that I'm unemployed but luckily I paid for it while I was still working! The view of the Coral Sea from the beach is attached. We spent a day and a half doing nothing but reading, sleeping in hammocks and walking on the beach...a vacation from my vacation! The food at the resort was phenomenal! We each had Moreton Bay Sea Bugs and Yabbies (freshwater crawfish)...those will be added to my notable nibbles list I'm keeping!

Back in Cairns today...Mendy is exploring the Great Barrier Reef via submersible boat and I'm hanging out in the city. I got eaten alive by a spider in my bed last night, so it's been fun dealing with that!

Sadly, Mendy and I part ways tomorrow. She heads back to Sydney for her flight back home on Wednesday. I leave tomorrow for a two night sail/snorkle to the Outer Barrier Reef. I'm looking forward to spending a couple of days on the reef! It's been great having a friendly face from home to experience this beautiful country with!

After the sail, I'm flying to Brisbane and heading to Rainbow Beach. After one night there, I'll be going in a 4x4 jeep to Fraser Island. It's the largest sand island in the world...the views should be incredible! Also, there is a large population of dingos on the island...I hope they don't eat my baby! (ha ha...think Seinfeld!). I'll spend one night on the island getting really sandy. After Fraser Island, I head to Byron Bay for 3 nights. I'm staying at an Arts Factory where they have a recording studio on-site. I just might make my own music CD..I'll sell them for a really good price (seriously, please buy one from me...I'm going broke!) ;)

Thanks for your posts and emails! Hope all is well with each of you! It will be another week before I post, so talk to you then! Cheers from Cairns!

Sydney & Blue Mountains

Here are my titles for the posted pictures: 'Where's Mendy?!','Sunset with the Sydney Harbour Bridge', 'Mendy and Jamie Drink Wine at the Opera Bar' and 'Jamie is Bored Waiting for the Trolley in the Blue Mountains!' Notice the sandals with white socks....I'm trying to start a new fashion trend down under!

The Bridge Climb was an awesome experience. We had perfect weather and spent close to 2 hours at the top of the bridge. The bridge climb process was a Six Sigma work of art - I've never seen a more well organized and perfectly executed process! We had to do a breathalyzer test before they'd let us climb. I've never had to blow in one of those before, so that was a new experience! The climb was over 1400 steps and got up to 440ish feet at the very top. It was beautiful to see a 360 degree view of the city! After a long day of climbing, we celebrated by having a fantastic dinner at the Opera Bar which is right in front of the Opera House and across from the bridge at the Harbour. Awesome cityscape views, including the evening ritual of the local bats flying overhead from the botanical gardens out to catch their dinner (just like in Austin, TX for those of you who have seen the bats fly there...these are much larger bats though!).

We went to the Blue Mountains today. The weather wasn't great - cold and rainy. We had to buy gear to survive! It was a beautiful area - lots of waterfalls, open valleys, the famous Three Sisters peaks. Mendy was smart and rested at the top enjoying the rainbows in the valley while I did the 'Great Stairwell' path. It was insane. At one point I thought my heart was going to pop out of my chest. The climb was very steep...I was the only one on the path, so it was cool to hear all of the noises from the animals in the surrounding wilderness. When I finally realized that a) I might die because I am so out of shape from riding in a truck for 6 weeks in Africa with virtually no exercise and b) I was all alone walking straight down a mountain...I gave up. So, I didn't make it to the bottom, but I am here to write about it which is a good thing I guess!

We're off to Hunter Valley tomorrow for two days of wineries and relaxation. I can't wait! Will write more once we get up to Port Douglas (Great Barrier Reef) later in the week. Cheers!

Hello Sydney!

I arrived with no problem in Sydney on Thursday morning. I finally washed my clothes from the Serengeti in a proper washing machine. My clothes thanked me for that - they were disgusting! I spent the afternoon walking around Daarling Harbour, Kings Wharf and Circular Quay. It was a great moment to see the peaks of the Opera House come to view as I turned the corner while walking under the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Sydney is a beautiful, clean and very modern city. Everyone is friendly and seems happy and relaxed - it's fantastic! I shopped on Pitt Street for some clothes that didn't look like safari clothes and went to bed early, still adjusting to jet lag.

Mendy arrived safe and sound on Friday morning. We had breakfast and then caught the bus out to Bondi Beach. It's a beautiful little beach, no more than 1/2 mile wide with rocks/cliffs right up to the edge except where the beach is. The water was freezing, so we didn't go for a swim. We walked around the cliffs and then had a picnic on the beach. It was a very relaxing way to spend the day! Back in Sydney, we went to Paddy's Market where I bought an adorable fedora hat just like Bek and Keira, two of my favorite Aussies. I also got a green and yellow scarf to wear to the Wallabies vs. All Blacks game Saturday night (see below!). We went to a few pubs (it was Friday after all!) and met some very nice Aussies who we shared a few beers and laughs with.

Saturday was a busy day! We woke up and went for a run up to Paddington's Market. It's a quaint, retro area of Sydney with lots of cool shops, cafes, etc. I made Mendy go with me to Max Brenner's (DS and Julie - it's nothing like the Max Brenner's in NYC, but the chocolate was just as delicious! And they have huggies for hot chocolate!). We walked around the arts and crafts market, but I am not allowed to buy anything else because I have no money or room to carry it! So, I just window shopped!

From the market, we showered and headed to the Sydney Opera House where we saw Aida. Thankfully, they had subtitles because it was in Italian, otherwise I would have had no idea what was happening! The costumes were beautiful and their voices were incredibly powerful. I really enjoyed it - my first opera ever and in the Sydney Opera House...very cool!

Last night, we headed out to Olympic Park for tailgating and the Rugby game. It was a blast....Today we're climibing the Sydney Harbour Bridge. So, watch the news tonight to be sure there were no horrible climbing accidents! Tomorrow we're headed up to the Blue Mountains for some hiking. Tuesday, we're renting a car and driving to Hunter Valley, a wine region about 2 hours outside of Sydney. Should be very interesting driving on the opposite side of the road than we're used to!

Mom, thanks for the adorable card...it was great to hear your voice! I appreciate the $ you sent...Mendy and I are going to spend it on a nice dinner at the harbour tonight and save some for another nice dinner in Port Douglas. I love you! Take care everyone! Miss you!

Rugby Game!

Mendy got a great shot of some Wallabie fans lifting me up during tailgating! I don't think they broke their backs...but who knows! We had a great time tailgating outside of the ANZ Olympic Stadium. Although we paid a small fortune, our tickets were on the 50 yard line in the nosebleed section. The stadium was awesome - I've never been in an Olympic stadium before. It was fun to learn about how rugby is played from the people sitting near us! The final score was Wallabies 18, All Blacks 19. The Wallabies (AUS) vs. All Blacks (NZ) team was the 2nd of 3 games. The All Blacks were already up a game, so last night they captured the Bledisloe Cup. The Aussies looked good though. I really enjoyed the game...the guys are way tougher than American Football guys. I must find a rugby player to hang out with while I'm in Australia! ;)