Australia 2018: Cockatoo Island

One of my favorite days that I spent in Sydney, I took the ferry over to Cockatoo Island.  Cockatoo Island reminds me of Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay. It has a long history from the days when the Aboriginal peoples used it as a base for fishing, until it's days as a shipyard and dockyard in the 1980's. Now it is the site of art installations and a location for filming movies, most notably, the recent film Unbroken. Cockatoo Island was transformed into the Japanese WWII camp for that movie.   In the 1800's the island was a prison. The buildings were constructed by the convicts. On the tour, just like touring Alcatraz in San Francisco, they have recordings from people who actually lived here when it was a prison, when it was a shipyard. So I highly recommend the audio tour.

The Rivercat Ferry like the one I took to Cockatoo Island

The buildings were constructed by convict labor

Glamping on Cockatoo Island for $200 dollars a night

The shipyards were in use up until the 1980's

Cafes and Bars on Cockatoo Island can keep you hydrated and fed on your day trip over to the island.

 A Young Henry's Cloudy Cider on a hot day hits the spot

Like Alcatraz, which was occupied by Native Americans in protest, Cockatoo Island was also occupied by an aboriginal group in 2000 for 4 months. 

At TV show currently was filming while I was there

art at Cockatoo Island

another art display at Cockatoo Island

Cockatoo Island can be done as a day trip from Sydney very easily. It is right in the harbor within sight of the bridge! Boats leave from Cingular Quay and from Barangaroo Wharf to Cockatoo all day long.

2018 Postcard: Ireland

One of my favorite places in the entire world, Ireland! Thanks to all my friends and family who visit and send me postcards.  I need to travel to Ireland more often myself!!! 

Australia 2018: The Blue Mountains

So Ryan and I just spent 19 days in Australia, 5 of those days, we spent in the Blue Mountains outside of Sydney. We took the train from Sydney 2 hours out to the town of Katoomba and we stayed at the Blue Mountains Backpacker Hostel. We were not able to get a private room, however, we did have a room with only 4 people. So we shared with a fellow from Brazil, named Anderson. Anderson was in town for a month, working for the railroad. Then for one night, we also shared with a fellow from the Netherlands named, Arnold. The Blue Mountains Backpacker Hostel was extremely clean and in a lovely building. It was a great location, not far from the train station and very close to everything in Katoomba. Included with our stay at the Hostel, we got a ticket on the Hop On Hop Off bus in the Blue Mountains. It was good for an entire week! More days than we needed. I took the bus every single day to get to trailheads and other towns in the Blue Mountains.

Our first day in Katoomba, we did the entire loop of the Hop On Hop Off bus to get the lay of the land. Then we decided to see Scenic World. Scenic World is an area that was once full of coal mines. The Railway there was originally built to bring up coal from the mines to the top of the ridge. It is now the steepest passenger railway in the world at 52 degrees.

You can hike around Scenic World at no cost, however to ride the Railway, the Cableway and the Gondola, it costs money. So we spent one day riding all the rides at Scenic World, although we would come back and hike thru the area for another day.

The Blue Mountains are called that because of the blue haze that you see, supposedly it is because of the eucalyptus trees. The oil from the trees is in the air and causes it to appear bluish. 

Glass floor on the Gondola

See the shadow of the Gondola

The next day in the Blue Mountains, I rode the bus out to Katoomba Falls and Ryan of course walked out from the hostel. We hiked around Katoomba Falls and then back to town. One of the routes we took were the Furber steps, these are approximately 990 steps chiseled into the side of the cliff back in 1908. 

Katoomba Falls

Katoomba Falls

Katoomba Falls

Furber Steps

Three Sisters

The main rock formation to see in the Blue Mountains is The Three Sisters. The legend behind the three sisters is that three sisters, Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo, lived in the Jamison Valley as members of the Katoomba tribe. They fell in love with three men from the neighbouring Nepean tribe,but marriage was forbidden by tribal law. The brothers were not happy to accept this and decided to use force to capture the three sisters. A major tribal battle ensued, and the sisters were turned to stone by an elder to protect them, but he was killed in the fighting and no one else could turn them back. At the base of the Three Sisters was another 900+ step staircase that Ryan climbed, called the Grand Staircase. After experiencing the Furber Stairs, I took a pass on the Grand Staircase. 

Honeymoon Bridge

View from Honeymoon Bridge at the Three Sisters

The other towns near Katoomba are called Leura and Wentworth Falls. The Hop on Hop off bus goes through all three towns and each town has cute shops and cafes. The train also stops at all 3 towns. So Ryan would continue his hike to get more miles and I would quit and go to town for a few hours before we would meet up back at the hostel for dinner time. 

Hot Chocolate at the Gingerbread House in Katoomba

I could have spent many more days visiting more areas in the Blue Mountains. It was fabulous and I highly recommend it! Can totally be done as a day trip from Sydney if you only have a day. I recommend checking out Katoomba, and visit Echo Point to see the Three Sisters.

2018 Postcard: National Parks

I just love these Retro looking postcards from the National Parks and many of my friends and family members have sent me cards from different parks that look like this! 

2018 Postcard: Airplanes and Airports

Happy Birthday to me (this week) and everyone knows that I love airplanes and airports and aviation, so I often get these kinds of postcards sent to me from friends and family. Thank You!! I love it!!

2018 Postcard: Paris

Oh my goodness, 2 postcards from Paris that do NOT have the Eiffel Tower on them!! What are the odds?

Books I read in February 2018

The photo above is art made by Jane Mount and you can purchase prints of her work and even create a customized bookshelf for yourself. Just go to her website:  Ideal bookshelf


The Grave's a Fine and Private Place by Alan Bradley (library) loved it, the latest Flavia de Luce.
When She Woke by Hillary Jordan (library) A futuristic Scarlet Letter. I enjoyed it.
The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory (library) I saw this book recommended in several magazines, it was highlighted at my library....It is just a romance, nothing special. No Time Traveler's Wife or even a Nicholas Sparks....just a standard romance. *sigh*
Unaccompanied Minor by Hollis Gillespie (library) This was a fun book. The daughter of airline family is basically "homeless" and gets around by non-reving around alone. She knows all the ins and outs of the airports and airplanes. And then a flight gets hijacked and she is there to save the day!! It is quite silly, but much of the airline stuff was real and true. It was written by a former flight attendant.
Light it Up by Nick Petrie (library) Loved it, the latest Peter Ash book.  I like these, they can be compared to the Lee Child's Jack Reacher novels. Action, Adventure etc.
Sixpence House by Paul Collins I loved it. Reminded me of Bill Bryson, I laughed out loud several times and I want to read portions of it to friends over the phone!! I might have to buy a copy to have at home to reread.
Contents May Have Shifted by Pam Houston short stories.essays? about life and love from a traveler. On the whole, I enjoyed the book, but I am a person who loves travel and travel writing. Many of the essays were quirky at best. So not for everyone.
The Woman in The Window by A. J. Finn (library) I liked this one so much more than Girl on a Train or Cabin 10 or whatever. It does have an unreliable narrator, which is all the rage, but I loved that this character was addicted to old black and white movies, thrillers.  This book reeks of Gaslight and Rear Window. I am sure it will be a movie soon also. I really liked it. I might have to buy it to read again and again.I want to see if she really did leave any clues in the writing to justify the twists and turns!
Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks (library) short stories and very good. That character in You've Got Mail who is obsessed with typewriters....I think now it might have been based on Tom Hanks himself!! LOL
Lessons from the Mouse by Dennis Snow Applying Disney's secrets of success to your life.
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena Thriller about a couple whose child is abducted when they are at a dinner party next door (their babysitter had cancelled and they took the baby monitor with them.
The Oysters of Locmariaquer by Eleanor Clark I love oysters and I really wanted to love this book too. It was just okay. If you are an oyster fan, give it a go, but if not, don't bother. 
Heather, the Totality by Matthew Weiner (library) short novella really, I thought I had it figured out, but it did end differently than I thought.
On Secret Service by John Jakes (library) I learned a little bit about the beginning of the Secret Service in the USA. Not as riveting as I thought it would be.
H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald  I learned a lot about hawks and I learned a lot about the book by T. H. White called Goshawk. It did have some great imagery. I had read a lot of great reviews about the book, and it was nice. okay.
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie (Audiobook) So this is narrated by Dan Stevens of Downton Abbey fame. I just got this to listen to Dan Stevens read to me.  I am still on the waiting list for  his version of Murder on the Orient Express and I got this to tide me over. I listen to these in the car when I am driving around.



To be Read:
The Man Who Spoke Snakish by Andrus Kivirdhk
The White Van by Patrick Hoffman
Her by Harriet Lane
Dear Mr. You by Mary Louise Parker
Chasing Monarchs by Robert Michael Pyle

2018 Postcard: Sydney, Australia

Another example of friends who travel to far flung locations sending me postcards of their travels, they are so appreciated, I thank each and every one of you! And of course, I try to send you guys cards from my travels too, Ryan and I plan to go to Sydney in March, so look for postcards!!

2018 Postcard: The Movies

If you know what a big movie fan I am, you might send me a postcard like these. Yes, some of my friends know me well. 

2018 Postcard: Love from Maryland

Just in time for Valentine's Day, love from my friends who live in or visit Maryland

2018 Postcard: Lake Tahoe

Considering I have friends who live at Lake Tahoe, it is not surprising that I get postcards from Lake Tahoe. If you sent me a card in the past couple of years from where you live, you will probably see it pop up on this blog this year.