music: Swagga like us- ft. Kanye West, Jay Z, lil wayne) T.I
I’d gotten what i could out of Canberra (read: drank all the wine the city could offer), so I decided to catch a ride with
Vanessa to Sydney as it was a free lift out of Canberra. Since I’d been to Sydney a few times already and wasn’t too interested in throwing my money at their clubs and shops, I decided to spend a few days in the yet unvisited by me
Blue Mountains. I made this decision last minute, so the night before we left (Wednesday) I quickly booked a flight on the Saturday night from Sydney to Melbourne and emailed a fellow couch surfer to see if his couch was free to be surfed upon.
It was; he called me Thursday afternoon to say that he could indeed host me and show me the best spots to hike around the Blue Mountains. 
(Couch Surfing? To answer your questions, it’s a facebook-like website, where travellers around the world offer places for people to crash a few nights, to meet up for a drink, or a bite to eat. It’s a good way to get to see a different side to the place you are visiting and meet locals, rather than backpackers. Backpackers are cool, but they know just as much as you do about the local area. Furthermore, with couch surfing, you are less likely to fall into the expensive tourist traps…)
(Blue Mountains? This is a national park a few hours out of Sydney, with some of the most beautiful mountains filled with great hikes, great sights and a chance to be out in nature).
(Why was Vanessa going to Sydney? You might not care… but the answer is funny! To see a live performance with her mother of… wait for it…wait for it… DR. PHIL!!! Heeheehee.)
I talked to Brett (my host) and he owns a few shops, one of them being in Katoomba, the town I was staying in. When
I got to Katoomba, after a beautiful train ride, that slowly went up too 3000 feet above sea level (Australia gets cold up here!!!!) with a beautiful view of the red cliffs that are the blue mountains (they’re blue from far away… true story), I dropped my stuff off at his shop and headed out right away to get the most out of the day.
There was a short (but beautiful) hike where I got to see the epic Three Sisters, and a look into the valley, where about two weeks ago, a British boy was found after 12 days of being lost in the forest. Note to self: don’t wander off the track and bring cell phone. The bushes were dence and huge… not the type of place you wanna play hide and go seek with yourself.
I met Brett later that night, after he was finished work. He picked me up and we headed to his beautiful place on top of hill. We got to know each other over a few drinks (go figure) and then, him and his mates took me to a Korean
place for dinner where we shared a couple bottle of wines over some kimchee. AFterwards we headed to a local pub for some (…many) drinks.
I woke up the next morning, after a night of numerous bottles of wine and numerous shots of tequila. I was super keen to go on my previously planned 7 hour hike, through the National park. I wanted to hit up the sights and struggles of the Wentworth trail and the National Pass. I’m pretty sure Brett was amazed at my stamina… he kept reassuring that I was ok. Pfftt… wine and tequila? Nothing Lindzy can’t handle (I will need a double espresso of course).
I spent the day hiking and loving it. Guys, It was absolutely beautiful. The pictures don’t do it justice (unless I had a camera like Ben Vellas… 
Ben!!!! I’m not right next to you!!!)
Before I had even reached the Wentworth trail, I was already pretty tired from the National Pass hike, and going around in circles for a good hour, untill a friendly jogger pointed me in the right direction for the Wentworth trail.
“Experienced walkers only.” The sign read… Now, what is that supposed to mean? I’ve been walking for about 24 years now… does that count? Sounds like a dare to me! (always keeping the britsh backpacker in mind…)
I set out on a steep walk down through gorgeous waterfalls and rocks and rivers, which brought me to a thick, but
still decently marked trail. The deeper I went in, the more the idea of snakes (and how Australia has all of deadliest, RIGHT HERE!!) kept crossing my mind. Somehow that 4 hour bit took me 2 hours… fear makes you faster i guess!
That was untill I got to the “Slack Stairs”. Just cause something says ’slack’ doesn’t mean it’s easy. I have never climbed so many stairs in my life. I had to stop a couple of times for a little tea break. Again, the sights were beautiful, but if i ever see 2000 stairs in a row again… *shake fist*.
The day was a success (note: when rereading this post to edit and I saw this statement, I laughed to myself and
thought: “Pffft, my LIFE is a success.” True story.) ESPECIALLY when my host brought home his hilarious roomate
and friend, and a huge order of curry takeout that they insisted I eat some of.
I finished the night off with some hilarious Australian television programming: Summer Heights High. A mockumentary and possibly the funniest show i’ve ever seen. Next stop: Melbourne!!!
(Note: I did talk to Brett after my 7 hour hike, and apparently he couldn’t keep up with this (moi) master drinker.
AFter one hour of having his shop open, he had to put a “Be Back at 11:30″ sign on his door, so that he could
take a nap in the back and sleep off the tequila… weeeaaaak).
