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Hi guys,
Had a great day today as i was finally able to meet up with Billie! the last time i saw her was obviously Sue's funeral so its great to meeet up at a better time and with me visiting her for once! We decided to get breakfast in one of the gorgeous tea rooms of Katoomba. The mountains here are really hard to describe - there is a definite unique feel to the place. It's almost a mix of american-indian, with rural australia, colonial french and english architecture and a slight hint of asia and india all rolled into one!!! Many of the buildings have that colonial shop-front that looks like something out of a western an the towns here; katoomba, blackheath, leura and wentworth falls all look very similar. Each has a main drive running at a T from the main highway through the mountains. Along each one is a myriad of antique stores, vintage clothing shops and small cafes. It is a genuine wonder how any of them stay in business with all the competition they must have. In terms of tourism i have come right at the end of the season and its quite quiet here - business must be tough.
After a healthy breakfast (everyone here is a health nut with gluten free meals pretty much coming as a standard) we decided to head to Govetts Leap. Transport costs now for me are at nil thanks to Billie driving everywhere (cars are a necessity here the public transport is virtually none and the mountains are all spread out) so that is really helping my budget! Anyway, although i may have come in the autumn here when it is cold, i definitely arrived at the best time of year to see the mountains, Govetts Leap point was just stunning. The bush still has its characteristic blue haze around lunchtime when its had the sun on it for a few hours, and whilst the wind was blowing cold, it meant that the clouds weren't able to linger in the valley affording a pretty much crystal clear view. We then walked for about 20 minutes (i'm getting a lot of walking done!!) to a lookout which was so exposed and so high up that i honestly thought we would be blown off the ridge! It was so worth it however when i got a 360 degree view and i mean literally 360 degree view of the mountains - breathtaking! After this we headed down to Megalong valley which was more like seeing australia as i imagined it - the plains were quite bare with reds and yellows - much more like the bush we're used to seeing although we didn't see any kangaroos which was a shame! We headed to the megalong tea room and had such a nice catch up over lunch in the valley which was warm enough that we didn't need our coats THANK GOD.
By the evening we got home to Billie's house which is set in the woodland and is very much a well-lived in home of someone who travels. The aga warms the kitchen which is a good thing as it is soo cold! There are fires/heaters in every room but surprisingly no double glazing or anything so the cold literally tears through the house. The first thing that Lulu said to me on arriving however was "welcome to australia" before turning me round to come face to face with a huntsman spider . . . .WHAT AN UGLY b*****!!! those of you who have facebook will have seen it but that's when i realised i really had truly arrived in australia! It is almost a good thing its so cold as most of the snakes stay tucked away preferring the heat of burrows they made as although i really don't mind them at all it is a sobering thought to hear that the brown snake can kill you in un der 20 minutes flat.
Chilling out by the fire at Billie's is definitely what i've needed after working so hard before getting here and the fast-paced sdney night life - i still feel slightly jetlagged. However Lulu called me downstairs to the bathroom where a steaming hot candlelit bath awaited me . . am in heaven . . .see you all in 6 weeks!
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