Sydney's Blue Mountains Photos, Part I

Blue Mountains is one of Australia's premier destinations. There is so much to see and a day is not enough to explore many of its tourist attractions. My family and I drove this time  to the Blue Mountains's Scenic World. It's about one and a half drive from where we live but it's about two hours from Sydney's City Centre by car, bus, or train.

Scenic World – in the World Heritage-listed Blue Mountains of Australia – offers a range of experiences that can be found nowhere else on Earth. First, this Scenic Railway. We were hesitant to ride, but we can't say "no" to my 5 year old son's excitement.  

This is the Scenic Railway Train. Well-designed to hold passengers for an amazing ride to the steepest inclined railway! A 415 metre descent in a dark, cold, and cliff-side tunnel into ancient rainforest. All you will hear are screams of terrified passengers!

Train descending to it's destination

Time to go to the Scenic Walkway

Majestic view of the Three Sisters taken from the Train waiting station

Which way would you choose?

The well-preserved Katoomba's Coal Mine. Look, even the miners were preserved!

Thirsty? You deserve to sit and relax on one of these Miner's benches.

Fresh Drinking water on its side!

Coal Trucks

Coal Mine entrance

Scenic Walkway offers two kilometres of boardwalk through Blue Mountains's rainforest.

This is the best part for me. Walking with my wife and son on the thick forest enjoying probably the freshiest air in Sydney, Australia

The Scenic Skyway. It's fun but it's a bit crowded.

More Blue Mountains photos to come! Please drop by next time.

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Sydney's Blue Mountains

November 2007 when I first set foot here in Sydney, Australia. We were attending the wedding of my wife's nephew. We had a quick tour to some of Sydney's landmarks including the famous Three Sisters at Blue Mountains (photo above taken November 2007). 

  

Why was it called Three Sisters?

The Aboriginal dream-time legend has it that three sisters, 'Meehni', 'Wimlah' and Gunnedoo' lived in the Jamison Valley as members of the Katoomba tribe. 

These beautiful young ladies had fallen in love with three brothers from the Nepean tribe, yet tribal law forbade them to marry.

The brothers were not happy to accept this law and so decided to use force to capture the three sisters causing a major tribal battle.

As the lives of the three sisters were seriously in danger, a witchdoctor from the Katoomba tribe took it upon himself to turn the three sisters into stone to protect them from any harm. While he had intended to reverse the spell when the battle was over, the witchdoctor himself was killed. As only he could reverse the spell to  return the ladies to their former beauty, the sisters remain in their magnificent rock formation as a reminder of this battle for generations to come. (source:bluemountainsaustralia.com)

Blue Mountains is a great place to visit especially for families. It offers various adventures, activities, and scenic sites. It is very accessible and one can have the option to go by car, or simply by catching a bus or train. I will be uploading more photos on my next blog entry about this tourist attraction.

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