Australia 2016/2017
Travelling with friends (New Year)
📌 By Jakub Mikula | January 01, 2017
In the end of 2016, I travelled to Australia. It is the furthest from my home country than I have ever been before and yet so similar with its culture and people that it made me often feel I was in Europe. And as a new year has come I hope to go even further. Not necessarily in travelling, but in anything which I can learn with to be a better person. And travelling is such a great way how to explore not only the place but oneself.
Most of my trips are mostly nature and cities are often only a means of transportation or transfer. But this trip was somewhat different. I visited the most extraordinary nature sites in New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria (Vic) but also experienced the beauty of Australian cities in those two states. And this would never happen without friends whom I accompany on this trip and who made it an amazing experience. I only hope I was as good company to them as they were to me.
As soon as we arrived to Australia we hit the road with our eight-seater van. We spent a night in Albury and continued to Melbourne. And this is where I had the chance to explore an Australian city.
It was on one late evening when I went for a walk. And the night had brought me to a river lined with many different skylines, many of which made me stop, to take a picture. Stop and think how far have we come and how further can we go.
As far as only we want. And there is nothing to stop us but us.
After Melbourne, we drove to the Great Ocean Road. It is one of the Australia’s most scenic coastal drives. The spectacular cliffs of Port Campbell National Park are made of soft marine limestone. The beginning of the deposition of the remains of marine life started about 10 to 20 million years ago (according to the information table there), and as the sea level dropped and rose again, the relentless battering of the sea and rainwaters undercut the cliff edge.
Followed by one night in Canberra we finally reached Sydney once again.
It was the fireworks that brought us to Sydney for the New Year’s Eve. The Sydney’s skies lit up twice. At 9pm and at midnight. After the first firework when the crowd slightly dispersed I took the chance to fight my way to a great spot near the fence at the Circular Quay. And to secure my position I remained there for more than two hours, shoulder to shoulder with other enthusiasts to witness the great show. And it paid off. At least I am happy with the pictures :)
The countdown and a new year.
After the taste of the Great Ocean Road I had been hungry for another delicious piece of Australia’s nature. And there it was. Located at about an hour’s ride by train from Sydney there lie the Blue Mountains. Easily accessible trails located within walking distance from the Katoomba train station made it the perfect destination to quench my thirst for another nature adventure. I plunged into a postcard-worthy scenery of stunningly lush forests. The long stretch of eucalyptus trees surrounded by many steep cliffs without a sign of any human interaction - Blue Mountains National Park - was a jaw-dropping scene. True to their name a shade of blue can be seen when viewed from a distance believed to be caused by the abundant eucalyptus threes. If I only had more than a day to explore the region…
On the last day, I welcome the chilly winds of one of Sydney’s coastlines and I soak in the view of the Pacific Ocean.
Embracing each opportunity which crosses my life and accepting each failure as a motivation to work harder to become a better person. There is no failure, there are only things we did not work hard enough for them to happen.
I’ve yet to encounter a kangaroo. But I’ve seen some koalas and met fascinating people who inspired me in many different possible ways. I also found out how annoying flies can be, especially in Melbourne. Who’ve been there knows :) . And I’m looking forward to hit the road soon again.
Happy new year!
(the cover photo - overlooking the sunset from a Melbourne skyscraper - Eureka Skydeck. The quality of the picture may not be perfect as it is viewed from behind the glass, but hopefully good enough to get a slight sense of how beautiful colours were formed in the sky).
This post was originally shared on https://www.facebook.com/notes/jakub-mikula/australia-20162017/740788326068566/