Blue Mountains, Echo Point, Three Sisters, Giant Stairway, Scenic World (Katoomba), and Sydney Airport (Sydney)

Part 8 : Read here for Paddy's Market (Sydney) and The Carrington Hotel (Katoomba)

~ Part 9 ~

Riding the bus from Carrington Hotel to Echo Point was really enjoyable, for we can observed the beauty of houses and locals living over the mountain. I bet they don’t even know what “stress” life would be. Haha! My heart started to pound even harder when I saw high cliffs and wide valleys. At that point of time, I knew that we have reached Echo Point, the most visited lookout at Blue Mountains.

We jumped off the bus and switched on our “gears”. While hubby busy snapping photos, I filled my time over video shooting. From this point, we can clearly see the southern Blue Mountains, the greatest rocks formation of Three Sisters, and Kanangra-Boyd Wilderness.

A huge and wide deck stood before me with interpretive plaques, explaining the area of Jamieson Valley. I need to allocate some time just to capture the whole plaques, for too many people were standing before me.

It was really a breathtaking moment. The scenery was superb! The plateau, the blue particles, wow! The name said it all. The blue tinge is believed to be caused by mie scattering that came from scattered ultraviolet radiation. Thus, the blue haze named the mountain.

From a distance, on my right, I can see a cable car hanging high from Scenic World down to Jamieson Valley.

Note : Go to Scenic World to experience Cableway, Skyway, Railway, and Walkway. For more info, visit http://www.scenicworld.com.au/

When I finished reading the self-explanatory plaques, hubby was already on the upper deck! He shouted for my name and we snapped each other’s photo. 

We then get closer to the railing to have a better view of Three Sisters.

“Halo, can take picture?” One Chinese guy approached me for help. I snapped the couple pictures and guess what we got in refund?

Yes, a picture of us. That’s the good thing of helping people when you travel.

Here are two summaries that I read on the myth of Three Sisters.

Three Sisters' myth and legend #1 - Bunyip the Evil Creature
One creature called Bunyip love to feast on human flesh, especially young girls. Father of three sisters had to pass by Bunyip’s hideout, so he left his three daughters on top of the cliff above the rocky wall. They stood silent but a centipede was spotted, and one of the daughters screamed. Her scream went loud till the evil creature was awakened! The father then rushed to get his daughters and with powerful magic, he pointed a magic bone and turned his daughters into stone! Then he ran away and turned himself into a bird! REGRETLY, he lost the magic bone when he turned into a bird! Kan dah susah nak cari balik mana kayu magic tuuuu! And the three sisters still stood there watching their father, hoping that they will turn back to themselves. Haih, kesian sungguh.

Three Sisters' myth and legend #2 - Forbidden Love
Three sisters from Gundungurra tribe fell in love with three brothers from Dharruk tribe. They wanted to get married but it was totally forbidden. That means tribal war. The three brothers then decided to kidnap the three sisters. Knowing the intention, one clever man turned the three sisters into stone and promised to turn them back once war had ended. UNFORTUNATELY, the clever man was killed during the battle! Ha kesian tak? Since that man had the most powerful spell, till then, no one can ever break it. So bomoh sekalian, kalau rasa hebat, silalah test power.

So moral of the story, JANGAN MEMANDAI NAK SUMPAH-SUMPAH. Shh!

Note : To see Three Sisters statues, you can go to Scenic World. Take shuttle bus from Echo Point or The Carrington Hotel.

An hour gone, we walked to the Three Sisters track, where we tried the Giant Stairway. Initially, it was an easy flat-land walk. But it required full strength and fitness when you reach the Giant Stairway.

Note : Giant Stairway entrance is just next to the souvenir shop. It is a small and clear track. Worth to visit.

This Giant Stairway led to the Three Sisters that we saw earlier on. I couldn’t remember how many steps that we had walked on but it was pretty deep down the valley where we bumped into few bushwalkers on the way down.

“Ayang, you go lah…” I forced hubby to continue the journey, while I snapped his picture from above.

Hubby finally reached the “back” of the Three Sisters. Thanks to the Australia Tourism who provides the facility to reach this amazing stones. But still, at your own risk lah. Hehe.

Note : Take extra care while walking down the steps. It is steep and slippery.

Hubby then walked inside the stones where few tourists started to walk up, back to the Echo Point. So he had plenty of rooms for himself, where he danced, moved here and there, while I captured him on video.

Satisfied with our catch, hubby and I then walked up but this time, it (the fatigue) was double up! I had to drag the souvenirs bag and crying for H20!

We stopped at the souvenir shop for a while before we walked back to the shuttle stop, and waited for the next bus. Few minutes later, we reached the Carrington Hotel, the earlier point where we hitched the bus.

On the way back to the Katoomba Station, we stopped at one Visitor Center, to get a fridge magnet. We then entered the station and waited for the train. While waiting, hubby and I spent some time to do video clips with those beautiful facilities at the station. And I was really satisfied with the result!

Note : There are few souvenir shops along the way to Katoomba Station. Stop by to get one for yourself.

We ended the day with satisfaction and happiness, where we FINALLY got to visit Blue Mountains. With out of sudden snow in Katoomba, extra splurge on basement hotel in Sydney, strong wind and heavy rain in Kiama, we managed to counter it all. And therefore, we slept in smile.

Note : Spend a night in Blue Mountains to experience different views from different lookouts. It is really worth to visit!

The next day, we checked out from Malaysian Hall and took a bus to airport. Earlier that night, we saw another accommodation that might suit you guys out there, a YHA. At the airport, our flight was a bit delayed due to unclear signal from the tower. Lots of flights were inline, taking turn to take off. So I took the opportunity to snap different aircraft. We finally had our turn and left Sydney, with thousands of memorable experience.

“HA, HABIS SUDAH CERITA SYDNEY! TUTUP BUKU!” Pfft!

Paddy's Market (Sydney) and The Carrington Hotel (Katoomba)

Part 7 : Read here for Madame Tussauds Sydney (Sydney)

Part 9 : Read here for Blue Mountains, Echo Point, Three Sisters, Giant Stairway, Scenic World (Katoomba), and Sydney Airport (Sydney)

~ Part 8 ~

That morning, we brought as minimal as we can. Last night, we decided to re-visit Katoomba, to experience the famous Blue Mountains. Apa la guna datang Sydney tak pegi Blue Mountains ye dak?

We did ask few students in Malaysian Hall on that day’s weather, and they said that one-day snow had gone. So it was a perfect day to visit Blue Mountains. Beforehand, we decided to go to Paddy’s Markets, to get some souvenirs for friends and family back home.

Note : Bus stop is just right in front of the petrol station, next to Malaysian Hall. You just need to know the bus number and which way to wait for the bus.

We rode a bus to Central Station and walked through one garden, right opposite the Central Station. Glad that it was a walking distance, in order to reach Paddy’s Markets. In between roads, we say trams that operated around the city. It was an easy and smooth journey in locating the Paddy’s Markets, where we obviously saw a brownish tower building with “Market City” stated on it.

Inside this 150 years market, we saw rows of clothing, jewelry, bags, sunglasses, anything, you name it. Back in 1834, this market were selling secondhand goods like clothes, novelties, toys and pets, targeting the white people. But looking at the vendors nowadays, it is monopolized by the Asians (particularly Chinese) and some know how to speak our language.

Note : Being one of the Australian icons, Paddy’s Markets is a must place to visit, especially when you want to look for souvenirs. It is reachable by bus (#408), train (Flemington Rail Station), or car (park at Wilson Parking Station). More info here :
http://www.paddysmarkets.com.au/index.html

I quickly bought all souvenirs at the same stall, where we bumped into 4 Malaysians who just landed that morning. We managed to change info while selecting tote bags and t-shirts with Sydney, Australia wording on it. I tried to minimize the buying, for we will be going to Blue Mountains afterwards.

From Paddy’s Markets, we walked back to the Central Station and looked for ticket counter. We purchased a return MyMulti3 ticket (AUD11.60 for off-peak) from Central Station to Katoomba, and back to Central Station on the same day. We went to the designated platform (Platform #12 to Lithgow) and waited for the train.

Note : Return ticket is cheaper compared to Day Pass. Lithgow is the last stop. To go to Blue Mountains, you have to disembark at Katoomba. Do not sleep!

A double deck train later arrived. Once we entered the train, “OMG!” I was stunned.

“Vandalism!” Hubby commented. And he continued, “See, so uncivilized…they thought they were doing graffiti. This is obviously NOT a graffiti.” 

“Teruk gile!” I condemned the activity. 

“And guess what? We don’t see this in India, though the carriage was hideous than this.”

Oh ya, these local morons even vandalized the seats! Pfft!

It was a free seating train, so we just picked a spot. Along the way, the train stopped at more than 20 stops including Linden and Wentworth Falls. We killed time by reading maps and video-acting, before we finally reached Katoomba Station, after 2 hours train ride.

The station was quite small and old-school. The building is built and painted nicely in orange and brown colors. There was a cute station master’s office in one of the rooms. On top of the rail track, there were old unused trains and a big billboard of Three Sisters. Hubby and I started to be kiddos and play around with what we saw at the station.

We got out from the station and walked towards a row of shops, where most of them was not operated. We had no idea where we should go and how far was Blue Mountain from there. Thanked God we had everything prepared in our Tour Cookbook.

Note : Bus to Blue Mountain can be found right in front of the Carrington Hotel. Look for Shuttle signboard. It brings you there for about half an hour.

And so we walked. We walked further up the hill and saw the Carrington Hotel on our right. Right in front of it, there was a shuttle signboard where lots of foreigners were queuing in a long line.

“The bus is not here yet, we eat first.” We had another 10 minutes.

Since we had enough time to spend, hubby and I decided to have a quick lunch at this hotel. No, not IN the hotel. IN FRONT of the hotel. Miskin maaaa.

We went to the nearest convenient store called Go-Lo, and bought a can of tuna, tortilla wraps, and a bottle of Arizona ice tea with peach flavor. SUMPAH SEDAP! And it was cheap! Sitting on the bench by the 100 years Carrington Hotel’s garden, we wrapped the tortilla.

We was about to have a bite when the bus came!

“Aaaaa…how? How?” I asked hubby. 

“Nevermind, we take the next bus.” 

We continued eating and while waiting, we killed time by snapping more pictures of the hotel and its garden. Not much, but ok la.

 

"Jom, the bus is here!"