Blue Mountains Overnight Trip!

Hi everyone! My name is Lauren Marx and I’m from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I’m enrolled in CIEE’s Australian Conservation from Land to Sea program this summer! 

This past weekend we traveled to Blue Mountains National Park. Part of the reason I chose to travel to Sydney was not only to explore this beautiful city, but to also broaden my view of this amazing continent and travel outside of the city and that’s exactly what we did! On this two night, three day excursion we traveled a total of about two and a half hours west. However, our first stop was only about an hour away, called Featherdale Wildlife Park. There, we got small guides, called passports, that told us where all the animal exhibits were located as well as cups of food to feed kangaroos and wallabies. We saw numerous types of birds, koalas, wombats, goats, donkeys, ducks and more! Then we got to feed and interact with the kangaroos and wallabies, it was such an amazing experience because feeding authentic Australian animals has always been something I’ve dreamt of. Following this, we had a small animal lesson with our guide, Lauren, who brought out four different animals including: a reptile, a wallaby joey, a snake and lastly, a koala! She gave us several facts about their lifestyles and the way they interact. Then, we got to see them up close and even pet some of them! It was truly an incredible experience. We all got lunch at the park’s cafe and then proceeded to get back on the bus to embark on our journey to the Blue Mountains! We checked into our hostel, got our room assignments and a few minutes to settle in before heading out on a walking tour of the city. After some free time to get dinner and relax, we had the opportunity to go on an optional hike to visit Australia’s legendary Three Sisters at Echo Point! The hike was a little chilly and the Three Sisters were hard to see because they weren’t lit up, however, we got to see something even cooler! We all laid down on the ground to stargaze and we saw a shooting star! It felt like a once in a lifetime experience to see a shooting star while staring into the clear, Australian skies at Echo Point.

On Saturday, we woke up, had breakfast and headed out on a late morning hike. When we arrived at the start of the hike, we met our tour guide, Damien, who also happened to be our tour guide when we snorkeled in Manly Beach, a week prior. As we ventured out on our hike, we saw many different views of the mountains and interesting rock formations along the way. The last stop on our hike was to Wentworth Falls, a breathtaking waterfall overlooking the mountains. It was truly amazing to see in person. Our second part of the day consisted of taking a short bus ride to Scenic World, home of the world’s steepest railway. We had a very eventful few hours there before heading back to Katoomba and our hostel for the rest of the night.

Sunday was a travel day back to Sydney, but still an amazing day overall! We left relatively early and headed to a surrounding town of Katoomba called Leura. It was more of a quiet town, but there were lots of small shops and cafes. Following this, we took the bus all the way back to Sydney and had the rest of the day to relax and have freetime. My friends and I worked on some of our homework and projects and later went out to shop, get dinner and play some games at an arcade before heading back home for the night.

Studying abroad in my highschool years has had so many benefits on the way I view myself, others and the world. It truly has made me a better person and this program has allowed me to step outside my comfort zone, meet new friends from all around the United States, try new foods, have new experiences and be in a place I never thought I would be able to travel to. This is a trip and overall experience I’ll remember for the rest of my life and I’ve developed so many personal skills and benefits that I will always have with me.