June 8 – 14
Having our friends here felt like a mini-vacation! Not only did we enjoy their awesome company but we were able to knock off some of the items on our own Aussie bucket list! What a treat it was for us to have them here and be SUPER busy touristing all week!
Monday –
Today we got up early and headed to the Blue Mountains. According to the weather report, today was supposed to be the least rainy day of the week so we thought we had better take the day so we could enjoy the views and “hikes” at the Blue Mountains. For our past few visits, we haven’t been able to take the longer paths down at the bottom of the rain forest, due to the location closing at 4:30 pm. Today we got there early and were able to enjoy the sky ride and views without any lines! The long path at the bottom did not disappoint and the weather was FABULOUS! After exploring Scenic World at the Blue Mountains (this time we bought an annual pass since we’ve already been 3 times…and expect to bring all our visitors here!), we found a restaurant in town, based on the reference from a local teenager (thanks, Eric!). We ran into two ASM missionaries at the restaurant/hole in the wall who thought Eric and I would be teaching their mental health class that week. Unfortunately, they had transferred out of the zones we cover so we wouldn’t be seeing them that week after all!
After the “delicious” lunch (it wasn’t actually bad) we headed to Cattai campground so the Pinedas could see kangaroos in the wild. We promised that they would see “hundreds” of kangaroos but we were lucky to see about 30! I’m not sure if the timing was off – or the weather – but at least we were able to see SOME kangaroos and take some great pics! By the time we got home that night, we had dessert (they had to try Australia’s famous lamingtons with jam and cream!) then heeded to bed – or in Eric and my case – to read 10 chapters of the Book of Mormon! Ha ha!
the blue mountains
Tuesday –
This morning we walked down to the Circular Quay then took a ferry to Manly beach. Once at Manly we tried the Butter Boy cookies (thanks for the gift, Alyce!) and took the short coastal walk to Shelly beach. It was a BEAUTIFUL day! Once home, Eric and Leonard went with our new friend Brett and his son Jason to a local golf course to practice hitting golf balls. Julie and I stayed back at the flat and caught up chatting. After golfing we walked back to circular quay for Eric’s official birthday dinner at El Camino Cantina for fajitas then enjoyed the beautiful vivid lights at the Rocks, the Opera House and the whole circular quay area.
manly beach
vivid lights
Wednesday –
Today we took the bus to Coogee beach to walk the 4 mile coastal path to Bondi beach. It was a GORGEOUS walk along the ocean!! I would HIGHLY recommend this walk! Once at Bondi I had my favorite gelato at Rivereno’s and the guys had a “snack” at Grill’d. We then took a bus, a train, and the light rail to get to The Fish Market. Eric was the super star navigator – getting us on all the proper public transportation lines and stops! Unfortunately, most of the shops at the FIsh Market were closed but we were able to have dinner outside by the harbor at The Boat Shed. We couldn’t have asked for better weather! After dinner we walked to Darling Harbor to see the Vivid display there, which included a very cool laser show over the harbor.
coogee to bondi coastal walk
the fish market
Darling harbor, more vivid
Thursday –
This morning we walked through Hyde Park, through the Botanical garden and had a morning snack at Harry DeWheels famous pies. Eric got his pie “tiger style” which came with a large scoop of smashed peas, then mashed potatoes, then gravy on top of his meat pie! I think he could’ve done WITHOUT the smashed peas. I had a chicken mushroom pie and it was just OK. That’s probably going to be my only visit to Harry DeWheel’s famous pies – ha ha! After the snack we finished our exploration of the Botanical gardens, making our way to Macquarie’s chair then headed to the Opera house for a tour. Waiting for our tour we met a college student, Tim, who had been on an exchange from U of A, who was actually from Phoenix. We were excited to visit with a fellow Phoenixcian – even though he WAS a wildcat! We told him we were serving missions for the church and he said he was familiar, that many of his friends were LDS and had left for missions around the world. After the tour (which was very good, by the way, and I would highly recommend it), I felt prompted to share my testimony and promised blessings with Tim, inviting him to visit an LDS church when he got back to Arizona. He said he would.
We planned to take a short nap once home before we headed to the temple but ended up taking a LONG nap and staying home to make dinner and watch an Alfred Hitchcock movie.
hyde park and the botanical gardens
tour of the opera house
Friday –
This morning we drove to Carlingford to attend an endowment session at the temple. We took the Pineda’s to our favorite lunch spot – the Clover Cafe – then shopping at Bondi Junction. We couldn’t let them leave without experiencing the 80’s version of “The Mall,” which is still alive and well here in Sydney! We had dinner at Grill’d then watched another Hitchcock to cap off the Pineda’s visit!
temple and shopping
Jill’s favorite!
Saturday –
This morning we said good-bye for two years to the Pineda’s and Eric took them to the airport for their long flight home. Having them here was FABULOUS but it also made me a little home sick. Knowing they were flying to Phoenix today also made me a little envious – wishing I could be flying back for the weekend to see our kids and grandkids in AZ and UT!
Sunday –
Today was “back to the grind” – ha ha! It was difficult to get back to the “mission schedule” after such a fun, busy week with friends! We had the missionaries for dinner tonight for taco salad/burrito bowls and a homemade chocolate cheesecake I made (YUM!). It felt nice to be with our Aussie family for Sunday dinner and ASM devotional. I have really enjoyed having these weekly ASM devotionals as we work to be “More Fit for the Kingdom” and work on our Book of Mormon challenge!
The Helland's Down Under 