After a short bus trip from Canberra we arrived in Sydney to pouring rain. We got settled in our hostel and wondered into town to have a look around. We booked up some day trips and activities because we knew pretty well exactly what we wanted to do in our time in Sydney.

The next day (Wednesday 14th) we rose early for a day trip to the Blue Mountains. We stopped for morning tea along the Nepean River before we started to climb up into the mountains. Our second stop was at Kings Tableland, a flat rocky viewpoint, with a sheer drop off the edge, which gave spectacular views across the mountain ranges. The guide told us to be careful of the edge, however Marc wanted to dangle his feet off, much to my horror! Got some good photos though!

The mountains get their name due to the fact that the eucalyptus trees' vapour refracts the sunlight giving the mountains a blue appearance. Not all that blue really but blue enough.

We also stopped off to see the Three Sister's rock formation, and had a ride down the world's steepest inclined railway down to the valley floor. We went for a walk through the rainforest, before catching the cable car back up to the coach.

On the way home we saw Olympic Park, and how London should look in 2012 (hopefully!). Finally we caught a ferry along the Parramatta River and arrived back at the Opera House.

On our 2nd day we booked a climb up Sydney Harbour Bridge. On the way there we passed a record store with a cue outside, wondering what it was we craned our necks to see none other than Take That signing cds and the like! Unfortunately we didnt have time to stop or get a decent photo. The Bridge Climb was an orgainised climb with a company, proper suit, safety harness, radio etc. Brilliant views of the Opera House and the Sydney skyline, obviously there was the obligatory photo at the top taken by them that you could purchase afterwards. The whole climb took nearly 3 hours, so with plenty of the afternoon left we visited Sydney Acquarium.

The next day we went to Bondi Beach for the day, scorching weather and plenty of waves. Not all that big in Aussie terms but 8ft waves were big enough for us, and Marc spent a good hour diving into the waves and getting tossed around.

The next day we went to the other beach in Sydney, Manly Beach. Unfortunately the weather wasnt quite as kind and we got absolutely drenched. We had arranged to meet with some of my family who live in Sydney and went back to their house for a BBQ which was lovely.

A late night was followed by an early rise to catch a 7 hour bus to Port Macquarie.