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Think of blue before you step into Australia’s Blue Mountains — cobalt, sapphire, ocean, denim, periwinkle, turquoise, deep blue ink — you sure have known all these blues. But have you heard of 1.3 million hectares of land that acquires a blue haze? No, not from the sky, instead, from the eucalyptus trees. Scientists call it mie scattering (The process occurs when incoming ultraviolet radiation is scattered by particles within the atmosphere creating a blue-greyish colour to any distant objects, including mountains and clouds). Forget science, gaze at the blue expanse and think of the aboriginals who have lived in the area for millennia —the lyrebird that fluffs its pretty tail and mimics the sound of a railway engine, the wallabies, the long didgeridoo, a wind instrument made of hardwood, Three Sisters perched atop a valley, the world’s steepest railway and a cable car that sways 977 metres above sea level.
That’s Blue Mountains, a Unesco World Heritage Site that’s barely a 90-minute ride from Sydney. The blue of the mountains will swathe you blue, but hold on to the blues because there is no way you can walk the expanse of the eucalyptus-replete valley. Hurtle down! Yes, that’s right. You can hurtle down the world’s steepest railway in what was once a coal mine. At the Katoomba Scenic World, the modern coal carriages descend 310 metres through a cliff-side tunnel into the ancient rainforest of Jamison Valley. If you think, this is an ordinary ride, perish the thought. You can ride at a steep 64 degree incline! You are not the only adventurous one, though. Since 1945, 25 million passengers have hopped on to the train called Jessie and then walked the Jurassic rainforest. If the train does not rush enough adrenaline, cut the boulders of mist on the steepest and largest aerial cable in the southern hemisphere. Safe inside the glass cabin, peep out to gaze at the mountain peaks called the Three Sisters and a cliff-rock christened Orphan Rock. You can hike and trek up the mountains. But hiking up the dissected plateau surely is not for the faint at heart. The less-adventurous can do a guided Segway tour in Fairmont Resort.
In the heart of the Blue Mountains is a little village called Leura. Leura is chic, quaint and lives up to its reputation as a favourite honeymoon destination for Sydneysiders in the 1940s and 1950s. Much before the honeymooners cooed in the mountainous region, the area was inhabited by the Gundungurra and Darug aboriginals. The first documented use of the name Blue Mountains appears in Captain John Hunter’s account of a 1789 expedition. The area still resonates with the myth of Dreamtime creatures Mirigan and Garangattch, half-fish and half-reptile, fighting an epic battle that scarred the landscape into the Jamison Valley. The aboriginals at Waradah Cultural Centre narrate real stories of how they hunt kangaroos, weave baskets from bush leaves, the symbolism of their body paint motifs and how the long, hardwood didgeridoo is played to mimic the emu, lyrebird and joeys. And how it also strengthens the lungs! Adventure, music, shopping — Leura charms the visitor with handmade chocolates at Josophan’s; hand-carved wooden rats and kangaroos; hand-knitted scarves; murals on the walls and an old garage that has been turned into a stylish eatery. Leura Garage restaurant has tyres on the walls and old car petrol tanks and carburettors hype the décor. The menu offers a garage sub. Whether it’s sandwiches, pastries, an antipasto platter featuring serrano ham freshly cut, Leura Garage overhauls ordinary ingredients into scrumptious dishes.
When you are in the Blue Mountains, mark a day for Jenolan Caves, perhaps the world’s oldest cave system. Lace your shoes and step 421 steps of the Chiefly Caves, the first cave in the world to be lit by electric lighting. Geologists would have you believe that it takes 6,000 years to carve an inch of such stalagmite and stalactite formations. But the history of Jenolan goes back 400 million years. That explains the craggy limestone formations that are composed of ancient shells and corals; the bones of Ice Age animals like the Tasmanian Devil and Thylacine which can still lie deep on the caves. Inside the cave is the Cathedral Chamber where gypsies twang their guitars in the 54-metre high ceiling that is not only cluttered with infinite stalactites and stalagmites but also bats that flutter in the grottos. The acoustics in the Cathedral is arguably the best of any performance space anywhere. Beyond the cave is a dungeon – 120 metres into the earth’s womb — where expensive wine is stacked in a dark cellar. Wine connoisseurs dining at the haunted Miss Chisolin’s restaurant actually hobble down 210 steps to the dungeon to pick their wine for dinner. Wearing a helmet and headlamp, you can travel back in time along the cave passages, hear Jenolan’s mysterious stories during the Ghosts night tour This autumn, the Blue Mountains caught a tinge of regal splendour with the British royals visit. Did the ancient mountains borrow the sheen of the Duchess’ tiara? Go to Blue Mountains. The Three Sisters will tell you the secret!
Globetrotting
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