Happy New Year's From Sydney!

There's no better way to spend New Year's Eve than playing Cards Against Humanity (the Australian version) while you wait 6 hours for the fireworks to start.  We had to stake our spot near the Harbor Bridge and Opera House so early in the afternoon that even our cab driver was making fun of us as he dropped us off in the Rocks neighborhood.  But we had the last laugh as we got one of the remaining spots for our blue blanket overlooking the Harbor!  Thank you Luke, Kate, Stuart, Dan and Scott for one of the best New Year's Eves ever...

Apps and cards while we wait and wait and wait:

The zombie apocalypse on the way to the bus, after the fireworks:

Hunter Valley Wineries

Had an exception day taste testing some of Australia's best wines in the Hunter Valley Wine Region (Piggs Peak, David Hook and Peterson House) with two exception people - Dan and Scott!  From wine to cheese to chocolate testing, it was an epic day, ending with a late lunch at Muse.

My favorite winery we visited which was pig-themed:

Lunch and dessert at Muse:

My favorite sign at the cheese tasting:

More Book Recommendations

One of my favorite parts of traveling for so long is all the free time (and mental space) that I have to read books.  Here are a few more that I devoured these past few weeks in Australia:

#4 in the Outlander series:

An amazing story of a family in India:

A fanciful historical fiction about life in 1920's Paris and Ernest Hemingway's first wife:

A down-to-earth American family drama:

#5 in the Outlander series (I'm clearly addicted to this storyline now):

Christmas in the Blue Mountains...

Definitely not a white Christmas in Australia this year - Actually it was rainy and misty - But I made the best of it and set myself to the task of baking goodies for our group with some new friends (chef extraordinaires, Carol, Kate and Fiona) as well as roasting a turkey.  We spent a few days in the Blue Mountains, exploring the area and hiking in the national parks close by - Even enjoying some scenic railways and cable cars...

The apple pie, pumpkin bread and oatmeal raisin cookies for dessert:

The main courses:

The tour group celebrating:

Our tour group mascot, Dasher the Koala, at the end of the night:

Our walk through the rainforest in the Blue Mountains:

Favorite Street Musicians

Some of the best evenings for me in Australia have been when we wandered around, looking for someplace to eat and were serenaded by the incredible street musicians.  Here are some of my favorites:

Adelaide - James Hickey, singing right next to our table at dinner:

Byron Bay - Romi Sounds, spectacular singer and guitar player:

Sydney - Martin Campos:  (Shirin, this one is for you - He was playing the theme song from Game of Thrones!)

Two talented teenagers in Sydney, playing the bagpipes:

Maps of My Journey

Halfway through my journey, I thought it would be good to look back and see all the amazing places I have visited since mid-Sept.  Thank you to all the amazing guides and special friends I have made along the way - Here's to 2018 and the last three months of my trip which will take me to Tasmania, Myanmar and 2 months in India by rail!

 

Cuteness Alert - Koalas!

We visited The Koala Hospital today, a nonprofit organization which takes in hurt koalas, rehabilitates them and then releases them back into the wild.  It's hard not to fall in love with these cute marsupials!

What Did We Do Before Facebook?

I've often heard people joke about, "What did we do before Facebook?"  I found one entire town's charming answer to that question in Port Macquarie, a few hours north of Sydney.  There is a town chronicle painted on the rocks along their harbor walkway, detailing family vacations, well-wishes amongst friends, memorials, birth announcements and even marriage proposals.  Some with more artistic flair than others, but all with the intention of sharing their memories with everyone in town...

Skydiving in Byron Bay

So this happened in Byron Bay this morning...  Thought I'd be terrified to tandem jump out of a perfectly good airplane from 15,000 feet, but miraculously I was only scared at the door and enjoyed every second after that as we passed through the clouds and over the bay!

There were only two of us (from our tour group of 16) who jumped out of a plane, Stuart and I:

Unbelievable Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island

MOST. BREATHTAKING. BEACH. EVER.

The view from the beach, after swimming:

Our 70' sailboat that took us out for the day:

Star Wars in Cairns!

Needing a little break from reality, a handful of us from the tour took the evening in Cairns to walk down to the movie theater to catch the newest Star Wars - AWESOME!  On the way there, we passed one of the many trees in town that are absolutely crawling with large bats, who sleep during the day, and slowly begin to emerge on the cute, seaside town at dusk...(The town itself is a mix between Santa Monica and Honolulu with sidewalk cafes, a beautiful boardwalk along the waterfront and hills that slope right into the ocean.)

The town Christmas tree (surrounded by palm trees!):

One of the bat trees:

Bats, slowly waking up:

The Great Barrier Reef

There is no way to truly describe the beauty, colors and spectacular ocean wildlife that we saw at the Great Barrier Reef.  The water was a clear aquamarine color and the coral was every shade of salmon pink, yellow, lavender, deep purple and light green that you can imagine.  We saw sea turtles, a three-foot reef shark, a moray eel and dozens of different kinds of fish in every shape and size.  Absolutely one of the best snorkeling experiences of my life!  Underwater photos courtesy of Stuart Duffel, a talented photographer, who is on the tour with me (https://www.stuartdphotography.co.uk/) - Thanks Stuart!

From the beach, where we launched: