Katoomba - Blue Mountains in Australia

Oh boy, one more train ride before sailing to North America.  B & I boarded a train in Sydney and rode 2 hours north to the Blue Mountain. 

After only a few hours there, we decided to stay another night.  The weather was gorgeous, and the scenery was amazing.  Our hotel was a block from the train station, downhill - but back uphill to the town and dinner.  We rode the Ho-Ho bus all 29 stops around several little towns and all the sights.  Think Grand Canyon-like but bigger and with a rain forest at the bottom.  The Blue Mountains are Australia's 14th UNESCO World Heritage sight and are over 4 million years old.  

The next day we went directly to the Scenic Railways and rode the 3 available rides in just over an hour.  Normally with huge crowds, it takes 1 hour to ride one.  They have 3 different rides: a skyway, a cable car and the world's steepest train.  They were all amazing, but the train was the best.  I am not really fond of cable cars as I don't like heights but they were very smooth rides.  I also took a short walk at the bottom of the gorge in the rain forest.  It was awesome!  (I will load photos now, and try to caption them later - so check back...) 

We ate pizza the first night and went to a pub the 2nd night. 

The trains in Australia are terrific and run so smoothly.  It is so easy to travel around Australia between the buses, ferries and trains - it's just a great country to explore... I am a bit sad to be leaving, as probably we won't make it back - but we will remember this trip fondly and a special thanks to Greg and Anna for their wonderful hospitality.
Friday the 13th we sail on the Noordam through parts of the South Pacific, Hawaii and end up in Vancouver, Canada in May.  G'days Mates and no worries... See you on the Seas