Day 8: The Blue Mountains

I was up and about before the sun on our first real day as tourists rather than pilgrims. Apparently French clergy also wake up at ungodly hours, because I found myself in line to wash up between two French priests. But even they needed their cup of coffee in the morning, something they hadn’t had as yet or so I surmised from their remarks au Francais to one another over my head.

After I was ready, I roused Celeste and went to breakfast in the cafeteria while I waited for her. We ate a quick meal of Wheetabix, prunes, and toast and were off to the bus stop, proudly wearing our brightly colored WYD backpacks and with a bounce in our step. Because we were still unfamiliar with the bus route, we ended up getting off a little ways before our stop and had to walk the rest of the way to the YHA (Youth Hostel Australia) where we were told to meet our tourbus.

Our tourguide, John, a middle-aged man with long gray hair he pulled back into a ponytail, sunglasses, and a gentle Aussie accent, picked us up about half an hour late to take us to the Blue Mountains for the day. On our way out of the city, he picked up a group of pilgrims from Texas, a group from Brazil, and a guy from NC who was just visiting Sydney on his way to the outback. The merry group completed, we continued the two hour drive out to the foothills of the Blue Mountains, a World Heritage Site.

Why are the Blue Mountains blue? No one seems to know. The name is misleading as well, since the Blue Mountains are not mountains at all, but a plateau full of eroded gorges. And the site is not simply a geological beauty; the plateau has a thick layer of coal throughout the gorges, the remnant of the lush tropical rainforests that used to cover New South Wales. A large amount of coal exported from Australia is mined in the Blue Mountains.

Upon our arrival in the foothills, we all got out of the van to stretch our legs a bit. To our delight we spied two adult kangaroos grazing on grass along the edges of the wood where we stopped. We were able to get pretty close (about four feet away) from the creatures. It was my first glimpse of a real-life kangaroo and I must admit I was really excited! One of the ‘roos even had a joey in the pouch, which was absolutely adorable.

When the kangaroos had hopped away, John led us over to a low wooden table where he had set out supplies for coffee and tea: hot water, instant coffee, tea bags, sugar and milk. He told us about the different kinds of wildlife in the area while we finished waking up. Then we were back in the van and off to the top of the plateau, via a deli where most of us bought sandwiches for lunch.

At the top, John split us up into two groups, one that would continue in the van for the next three hours, and one that would follow Dennis (another tourguide who met us at this point) for a three-hour hike down into one of the gorges and back up again. Both Celeste and I were in this latter group, along with some of the Texans, the realtor from NC, and all the Brazilians. Soon enough we were off at a fast clip down the side of the gorge.

We enjoyed a lively three hours eating berries from the bushes along the trail, snapping pictures of strange plants, chatting with the North Carolinian about his trip and with the Texans (who seemed to think I was in high school), and simply taking in the waterfalls, cliffs, and other sights we encountered along the way. It was at about this point that one of the Brazilians – the only one who spoke relatively good English – started flirting with me. We hit it off pretty well, I would say, despite the language barrier. (Below: my Brazilian friend)

Tired but happy, we eventually met up with John again and his van. The drive back to Sydney seemed long, perhaps only because I was falling asleep the whole time. I couldn’t believe how cold it was outside! How strange to leave the United States during summer and visit Sydney in the wintertime. I never thought I’d be wearing a heavy coat and scarf in July. (Below: The famous Three Sisters rock formation in the Blue Mountains)

We climbed out of the van in Sydney, and I was promptly stopped by my delighted Brazilian friend who alighted at the same stop. He invited me out for dinner and drinks, but alas! I didn’t feel right bringing Celeste wherever he wanted to go and was forced to turn down his offer. I consoled him by giving him my contact info, and Leste and I made our way to the local McDonalds for a cheap (thanks to the free passes handed out for WYD), quick dinner. I suppose we could have gone on to the convent for dinner, but neither of us relished the idea of serving 200 French pilgrims again so soon.

We rolled back into the convent at around 9PM and went to bed. I think I fell asleep before my head hit the pillow! (Wait – what pillow?) Our cousins were nowhere to be found, having gone to a show that night at the Lyric.