Hopping Back On The Road

River Houseboat

After my second time in Sydney, I rented the car and hit the road.  The first stop was an area called the Blue Mountains, which was a few hours west of Sydney.  I left my bags in Sydney when I had been traveling and went to pick them up.  I did not realize I was a day early and the bags were not there.  The bags were stored in another location.  I had to go to a place outside Sydney to get them.  Of course I got lost.  I finally found the place and picked up my bags.

Three Sisters Blue Mountains

 I was hoping to get to the Blue Mountains before sunset but it was not looking good.  I was tired and just wanted to find a hotel but decided to see if I could take a quick look of the view.  Well when I got there the view sun was just setting and the colors where absolutely amazing.  It looked like Mars.

3 Sisters Motel

After hanging out there and watching the sky color change, I hopped back into my car to find a hotel.  About half the time, I do not book hotels and just pop in as I see one along the road.  This one was a no brainer (my Mom has two sisters)  It was called the "The Three Sisters" and is actually named after the three rock formations that I took the picture of.  The guy at the reception happened to be very nice and helped me plan the rest of my trip.

The next day I was to hike the Canyon and take in the spectacular view, unfortunately it was drizzling with a dense fog, so it was good that I at least saw the view the night before.   I walked in a slight drizzle and dense fog through a rain forest.

It was very peaceful and tranquil and I real enjoyed the hour and a half hike.  The walk was transcendent  I took a cable car up to the top of the bottom and gotten in my car and drove.

Byron Bay

I drove through the Australian country side en route to Byron Bay via Wisemans Ferry.  The drive was through some hills and when I reached the river I took a car ferry over the river.  In Australia in certain places they do not have bridges so they set up car ferries to take you across.   After crossing the river, I followed the river almost all the way to my next stop, a small beach community.  The rivers in Australia are amazing.  They are very wide and at some points seem like small lakes.
The next day I was headed to Byron Bay, which is a a bit of a hippie and alternative community.  On my way, I got lost a bit in the country.

Large Male Kangaroo

I was ready to turn around and then I noticed, one small kangaroo in the wild.  Then I saw two others.  I stopped to get my camera and it turned out there were around 20 or 30 of them.  This was in farm country so the fences you see were for cattle not the kangaroos.

Watching Them Hop Is Amazing

I probably spent a half hour taking pictures and unfortunately, my camera had some problems.  But I still managed to get some good shots.

Click To Blow Up This One.

They stare frozen and look at you and seem as curious as they are of them.  This shot on the left looks like a painting.  Make sure you click to on this one to blow up.

My  Bungalow and Hanging Laundry

 I found a great place to stay in Byron Bay.  It was a small Asian style hut, in the back of someones house.  It had hard wood floors and was very clean.  It was owned by an Australian, who was married to a Thai woman and she did my laundry for free.  She hung out to dry, never thought it would dry, it didn't and she put it in the dryer in the morning.  It seems that the laundry gods look out for me.

Great Restaurant Overlooking Town In Byron Bay

 I went swimming on the beach under cloudy skies.  And then went for an energy treatment.  This is where you are not touched by the practitioner.  The energy comes directly from his hands.  I told him about my kangaroo encounter.  He said the meaning behind the kangaroo is that they cannot go backwards.  They always move forward.  This was good omen on the trip.

On to Brisbaine, where I stayed twice.  There was some kind of festival, where there were a million young people hanging out in the city.

I stayed near China town and found a tea ship, where I had my second Chinese tea experience.

I returned to Brisbane later and walked around the water front, which was quite lovely.  There was a Max Brenners and I thought of my niece Brittany, who loves it there.

Surfers Paradise Beach Late and Cloudy

The last city on the road trip, was Surfers Paradise, which I found was a combination of Datyona Beach, Orlando, and Ft. Lauderdale.

It was more Florida than Florida.  The only difference is there were lots of Asians and Asian restaurants.  You almost felt like you were in an Asian country.

Ferris Wheel Near Casino Surfers Paradise

It seems that ferris wheels are very popular these days.