The great Oz adventure – Part IV

Gold Coast


After three days on the road, we finally arrived at Gold Coast. My sister-in-law and family put us up in this beautiful apartment, over-looking the main beach and the wharf.

 
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If you are in Gold Coast, do check it out http://www.brightonshores.com.au/.

The reason why we are here is because of Ann. She has missed it the last time we were here.
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Yeap, that’s Kai and Ann

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Good grief…a land of daredevil rides! Happiness?

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Kai’s cafe

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Surfers Paradise is paradise no more. See the background. Yes, all tall buildings. Surfers are gone…

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The beautiful beach

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Commercialism has totally killed the character of this place. The Gold Coast I saw 10 years ago is completely gone.
The great Oz adventure – Part III

Road trips


Road trips! Yea, we love it. The spouse and I simply enjoy road trips. This was our first road trip in Oz, we did a lot of checking and reading up and we saw this picture…

 
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(Picture from magazine) Yes! We got to do it…but we never got to see it. Wrong highway!

Nevertheless, we still had a great time. Always remember this rule…
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So, we begin our trip from Sydney to Gold Coast. 11 hours car ride with two stops in between.
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We got upgraded to a hybrid car. No need to use car key leh. Power car! Count my blessings.

We left Sydney for something more serene.
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That’s the beauty of doing a free and easy trip. You take your time and enjoy the beauty as and when.

First over night stop, Port Stephens. Nelson Bay

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Crabbing..

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Delicious Indian food in ang moh country.

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Rise and shine, breakfast time!

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 Yummy breakfast. Any surprise, I put on weight from this trip.

Then we head for Port Macquarie
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View from our room. No posh hotel. It is just the humble Best Western. Good and affordable.

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Ann with her dandelion

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The surfers and the beach goers painted on these rocks. Beautiful. Why must everything be so prim, polished and cleaned. Why is artistic expressions considered vandalism?

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The world is big out there!

The Blue Mountain

As promised…

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Beautiful blue. This was what I took with my camera. The driver told us that it can never get better than this. Blessed beyond compare!

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Glass bottom cable car


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The three protruding mountains have a story behind them.

The commonly told legend of 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 a neighbouring tribe (the Nepean tribe), but the marriage was forbidden by tribal law. The brothers were not happy to accept this law and so 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.

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Look closely, can you see the bridge between the big mountain and the first “sister”?

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That’s the bridge. In the heart of the first “sister”

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Notice the colours on the rocks. Beautiful isn’t it. That’s the beauty of Mother Nature when left untouched.

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What is this?

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Yikes! That HUGE!

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See how they love and preserve nature. They don’t get rid of them to build. They build around it in order to preserve it.

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An old mine

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Flowers can grow on rocks. Amazing.

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All the trees are very tall, really tall.

Each time I go to these places that are far from the city and crazy crowd, there is an unspeakable joy. I really think it is where I belong. Perhaps, someday when the kids are grown up and independent, I will run a B and B. Quiche for breakfast?