Blue Mountains ... the day it rained out ...

* Alright people. Moz's evil lawyers advised Moz to put the following disclaimer - this blog is full of pictures and will slow down your download time enough t0 make you go crazy. If you have a slow Internet access, a bad standing with TMNet Streamyx or life in a civilization where only dialup access exist, please, go elsewhere ...*

For a hiking person like me, it's quite hard to resist the temptation of Blue Mountains when I was just a little more than 100 kms away in Sydney. While I knew next to nothing about the place, it had been one of those places that have always had this allure, a strange gravity pulling me towards it.

Moz at sublime point, waiting patiently for the fog to lift ...

So, when I got approval to rent a car for the weekend, and when I had Darren helping me work out the itenary and gave me maps, directions, local knowledge that poor tourists in shuttle buses just wouldn't get, there was no way in the world I'd miss it.

So, last Saturday, I turned up at the ungodly hour, 8 am, to pick up my rental car. And after 30 minutes of being hopelessly lost in Sydney CBD's one way street maze, I manage to find myself on the Great Western Highway towards the Blue Mountains.

Some info - Blue Mountains area is actually considered part of the greater Sydney metro area. You'll see signs all over the place that says West Sydney this, West Sydney that ... so while it's around 100km from central Sydney, it's still part of Sydney. We have people in the office who stay in Blue Mountains and commute to work.

Having an icecream in Blue Mountains (overlooking Jamieson Lookout at Wentworth Falls) while shivering in cold is part of the Blue Mountains experience.

So ... up I went. Weather forecast was gloomy. All week long, the weather forecast was like "Rain over the weekends, with strong South-South Westerly winds" ... which spelt doom for me. If rain isn't bad enough, south-south westerly winds really means COLD wind coming from Antartica. Brrrrrr.... C.O.L.D.

One of the many hiking "bush walking" trails criss crossing the Blue Mountains. It was absolutely easy to hike there .... lovely.

When I was up at Glenbrook, the first town in Blue Mountains, the weather was supreme - no clouds, clear blue skies in typical Aussie style - I was saying to myself that there's no rain .... what rain?

The empty, foggy, parking lot at Wentworth Falls welcomed me to Blue Mountains. It was around 10 in the morning when I took this picture.

And I spoke too soon ... 10 minutes later, the clouds rolled in, the rain came down ... and by the time I got to my first attraction, at Wentworth Falls, there's a little drizzle ... I can't see a damn thing !!! NOTHING. Just whiteout !!!

At Wentworth Falls, the fog lifted every once in a while to tantalize me with a magnificent view of the valleys down below.

Severely depressed, and feeling really cold ... I walked to 2 of the lookouts there - which was supposed to have great views of the Blue Mountains and also a waterfall - like the place is called Wentworth Falls, right? So I just listened to the sound of falling water, and took it that the falls is there after all.

This particular view at Sublime Point near Leura reminded me of the views in Nortern China.

Then, it was off to Leura, a quaint village where I drove around to Sublime Point, which is supposed to have absolutely great views. I nearly died when I got there and it was all fooggy as well ... but this guy with a prostetic leg came around and told me that I had to be patient and wait for the winds to change .... and the view will be better. So I did ... and was totally rewarded ... it was sooooooOOOOOOOOOOooooo beautiful.

Ah ... finally ... the fog lifted enough to reveal ... Wentworth Falls !!! Lovely ... so I don't have to just be satisfied listening to the waterfall ... I have something to look at !!! That's a waterfall about 300 meters deep

Then, I understood it better, and drove back to Wentworth Falls to get the view. As usual, I waited, and hit gold ... it's so cool.

You can see the 3 sisters from Sublime Point in Leura ... and it was much nicer looking at it from here because Echo Point (where you normally go to see the 3 sisters), is normally saturated with tourists.

From there, it was a short drive along the famous Cliff Drive (also called Blue Mountain Highway - Route 5), which took me to the famous Echo Point.

The Blue Mountains Highway aka Cliff Drive, is peppered with sights like waterfalls and little cascades. If you care enough to stop and enjoy it, you'll have plenty to see and enjoy.

Echo Point is where the 3 Sisters are located ... so like other tourists I just snapped away. But light wasn't very good, and there's still plenty of fog.

Ah ... finally, Echo Point in Katoomba. More about it in the next blog ...

** Next post will talk about what I did at Scenic World and the night scene in Katoomba **

Too busy ...

Q: What happens when you get sent overseas to work on short postings?

A: You do two jobs - your regular day job and the additional tasks you get to do during the posting.

So, boys and girls, imaginary readers of 'What Talk You?', I'm really trying to tell you I've decided to postpone bloggings until a more suitable time =) ... no, it's not a hiatus. I'll probably resume next Monday. In most blogs, it wouldn't even be worthy of a mention, but I really want to blog as often as I can.

I actually feel bad for not blogging often ... but it's really busy here.

It's so busy here I don't get time to pee and poo.
It's so busy here sleeping is optional, not compulsory. Of course, that's self imposed.

Anyways, I've got loads of work to clear this week so that I get to go to the Blue Mountains this weekend instead of doing work. Wish me luck, boys and girls. =)

Someone emailed me and asked why no photo from Melbourne? Because I didn't do much there. But of course, Moz always takes photos. No matter how busy or congested my schedule is. So here, Melbourne skyline as seen from Southbank, near the Crown Casino.


And for angeliu, here's some Max Brenner chocolate for liu ... this is the chocolate soufle, served with strawberry, ice cream and chocolate dip. Thick, rich, sinful chocolate dip. I like. =) ... thanks to Kelen and Joe for showing me this great dish.

Did you know? After knowing each other for over 14 years, I've met Kelen for the first time last weekend. She & Joe are such a pretty couple ... =)

Out of Hotel: Bondi Trekking

I was out today, trying to do the things Sydneysiders would do, hopefully, getting some of that Sydney energy and vibe rubbing off me.

The weather was beautiful. Clear blue skies, mild winds, temperatures in the mid 10s - if there is a better day in the Aussie winter, it hasn't happened yet.

So I hopped onto a bus and went out to Bondi beach, the famous Aussie beach. I wanted to do the famous Bondi-Coogee trek. While Bondi beach is a nice, sandy beach, and is good for people watching, I was really lured by the fact that all along the coast from Bondi to Bronte, and then to Coogee, is one of the world's most famous hikes.

This is full of pictures, so sue me if you have a slow connection.

The world famous Bondi beach. Normally, it would have been crowded ... maybe it's winter. But look closely and you'll still see die hard surfers and sunbathers.

The walk starts at the southern end of Bondi. The trail is very well marked, and you won't miss the stream of humans walking the same stretch.

OK, if you still can't find the start of the trail, over at Bondi, look for a sight like the picture above. Then look for lots and lots of people. BTW, the square building at water's edge is Bondi Icebergs - a very famous bar / restaurant.

You can then either stop at Bronte, and double back to Bondi (since there aren't many buses at Bronte, unless you take the Bondi explorer service). Or you could do what I do, and go all the way to Coogee.

Mackenzie's point, as seen on the walk, just past Bondi Icebergs. Look for the aboriginal fish stone drawing, it's quite well hidden, actually.

The Bondi-Bronte walk is a leisurely 2kms, taking around 1 hour. The Coogee walk involves more slopes, and is longer, around 4kms, but you would be able to do it in around 1.5 hours if you're not overly distracted.

Past Mackenzie's point, this is the view looking down towards Tamarama Bay, Tamarama Beach, and Bronte itself.

Bronte is a nice beach, not for the faint hearted - the waves are really hard and pounding - you actually hear the 'boom' everytime a big one hits the rocky shorelines.

Tamarama beach. Nice quaint little beach for the family. No hassles, no loud music.

Tamarama beach is a small sheltered beach, pretty friendly for the family with small cafes and children's playground.

Waves pound the rocky shoreline at Clovelly. I spent 30 minutes near this point, just enjoying the scenery, taking in the sun and the sea breeze. And of course, I'm a sucker for the sound of waves.

The view back towards Bondi and Mackenzie point, taken from Tamarama. I'm all in agreement that this is one of the most scenic ocean hikes in the world.

Me at Clovelly Point. Like I said, I'm a sucker for waves. The sound of waves, to be exact. And I'm slightly claustrophobic, so open spaces are totally welcome.

All along the walk, there are many lookout points with jaw dropping views of the Pacific Ocean. Don't you wish we had these too in Malaysia?

Looking from a lookout point just short of Coogee back at Clovelly. This must have been the bestest hike I've had all year. It's so good I'm actually blogging about it ...

The end ... that's Coogee, where the trek would end. Of course, I didn't know that when I took this photo. Coogee is a good makan place - everything from fish and chips (look for a shop that goes by the name of Chish and Fhips - just across from McDonald's). I settled for a regular cafe - overlooking the sea - of course.

Man, woman and dog, in the great outdoors. What's there not to enjoy? Now, I just need a dog *easy* and a woman *definately NOT easy* ...

Some of the cliffs are simply spectacular. And with all those rocks at the bottom, this is not a good place to take your partner if you wanna break up with 'em. It could turn really ugly.

While everyone might be just thinking about Bondi, personally, I felt that the hike itself was a much better experience. I'm not into just lying down on the beach getting sun burnt. The walk, with all of it's sights and sounds, has a greater appeal to me.

Giles Bath, near Coogee. There are a few baths, stone pools built along the coast in the early years of the previous century. This was how the beach culture really started - no one really went to the beach at those times - they just go to the baths.

Coogeee beach, part of the Coogee Marine Reserve. While strong waves and rocky coastlines may suggest otherwise, there is plenty of aquatic life under the surface. There are even marine trails, just like nature trails that have been marked for scuba divers to 'trek'.

After the trek, I went back to the city to have some coffee in the shadows of the Opera House. That's a much photographed sight you've probably seen very often, so none of that here. Dinner was at the Darling Harbour. Here's a night shot of the city from the harbour.

Angeliu, jealous? 1/2 dozen fresh Pacific Oysters for AUD15. Jealous?? Want?? Followed that with Ocean Trout, and washing that down with some nice Aussie Pinot Noir. Me love oysters.

The Sydney Office ...

OK, today, I'd like to show you guys how my company's office is like in Sydney. This office is super nice - very cutting edge, at least in terms of the interior decor ... and is a very open layout, very inviting, warm, and still, it's an office area ...

*For people who think I OWN the company, I have this to say ... woi ... stop dreaming. It's the office of the company I work for, ok? Can't I not be specific everywhere I go?*

This is the area around where I sit. The whole concept is that you have hives - open spaces which is not assigned to anyone - no one has a permanent space. You come in, go to your general seated area, and then plug in and sit anywhere a seat is available. And near every few hives, you get a sofa set with tables, a discussion area, a chillout area and a drinks station with coffee, tea and chocolate served. The picture above is taken from my seat, looking at the discussion chairs just behind me.

Coming into the office in the morning, this is the view. While there are offices, demo rooms, meeting rooms and even labs on the ground floor, this floor is mostly an open area. You chill out here, there's a coffee bar and the pantry is actually this entire area, actually. This is the same area where our guests wait. So, you can call this a reception area doubling as our pantry tripling as the coffee / lunch break area.


Taken from the 1st floor, where I'm seated, this is a view of the reception area. Nice chairs, huh? You can see the coffee bar, just at the top end of the picture ... I should take one during the day when you can see how the lights all come into play, since the building is all glass.


One of the many discussion rooms in the office. The discussion rooms are all named after scientists. This one has tables, sofas and also a few PCs. Nice, huh? There are so many nice rooms ... I don't think I can put them all here ... they all have different color schemes, layouts and furnitures. It's all very nice. And I think most of the furnitures are IKEA pieces. Perhaps Taiko can identify and confirm them.


Hehe ... totally unrelated to the Sydney office, but here to antagonize someone ... here's a shot of the tiramisu I had tonite =) .... drooling or not?