I'm Going Where?!: BEST. DAY. EVER. Honestly.

Today was amazing. Thrilling. Extraordinary. Stunning. Unbelievable.
Regardless of what I say, what photos I share, what encounters I explain, I will never, ever be able to do this day justice. As you continue to read, know that today was tens of times more remarkable than anything you can imagine.

We began the day with a short bus ride to the Olympic Park, home of the 2000 Summer Olympics! The largest stadium held 125,000 spectators for the games, but seats have been removed since and it now seats 80,000, which is still remarkable! We wandered around the outside of the complex and read the dozens of posts outside that name everyone who contributed to the 2000 Olympics. The Olympic Torch was also on display, and it’s remarkable! So regal. There were also video screens that replayed some of the highlights of the games.

We continued on to Featherdale Wildlife Park, which was the best part of the trip yet, and even by the end of the trip, I think it will still be my most memorable day. I had the most fun I’ve had in a while! Upon arrival, we all scurried out of the bus to meet a baby wallaby that one of the staff was carrying around in a blanket. I got up close to his face and stroked him, and fell in love. Then, upon receiving my ticket, I bolted to a desk where I bought a dollar’s worth of kangaroo food, which ended up being in an ice cream cone. We continued on to pass a wombat and some birds when we noticed that there were very few fences. The wombat was caged because a sign said that it bit, but I pet it’s back regardless. When else am I going to pet a wombat?! There were wallabies just hanging behind a wood barricade, but they could’ve hopped under it into the walkway if they would’ve liked. I didn’t stay in the area for long, because we were only given 80 minutes to explore, and I wanted to see the kangaroos and koalas! We walked into a new area, and all took turns holding a python, which I’ve never done. Not poisonous, nobody worry! We walked further, and there were about a dozen wallabies just hopping around. I grabbed my feed and crouched down, and noticed that one of them had a baby in its pouch!! They ALL came over! Some of them used their front paws just like hands. One sat up, grabbed some cone, and held it up to his mouth! When I was done with that, I went a posed with the koala and stroked its back. He was sleepy, but absolutely precious! We continued past another gate to find DOZENS, literally about 60 kangaroos roaming free. Needless to say, I bought two more kangaroo ice cream cones. I crouched down again and have never seen so many precious faces looking up at me. When they came up close, they put their little paw hands on top of mine and stuck their noses in the feed. Then they tore off part of the cone and chewed it in the most adorable manner. It was breakfast time, so they were all hungry, and they never once turned away food. There were also plenty of kangaroos to go around, so there was no need to wait for others to be finished. I stayed there for 20 minutes or so. I couldn’t tear myself away! Around the perimeter of the pen, there were cages with different types of owls, all of which were stunning! We continued on when we realized we were short on time, and discovered penguins, a crocodile, dingos, peacocks and a funny looking fluffy chicken thing (roaming free), some macaws, more koalas (with babies, which I hadn’t noticed!), more wombats, many extraneous birds including an eagle, and some emu. Time was up, and I bought a shirt from the gift shop, since Featherdale was the place where my heart was stolen. I fell in love. It was the best time ever, and I could’ve spent days in there.

We continued on for a while longer until we reached Leura, an adorable little town with a chocolate shop, a sweets shop, a bakery (I got a DELICIOUS beef and potato hot pie), and other little places that had anything you could need. I wish we could’ve spent more time there!

From Leura, we continued to Echo Point, which was an amazing lookout point that showed cliffs, valleys, and the three sisters, which is a rock formation with a legend behind it. It’s said that a long time ago, there were three sisters that were to marry three different men. One day, the father found the three men tormenting animals that they had caught, and knew that he could never have his daughters marry such men, so he turned them to stone.

From there, it was a quick drive to the entrance to the trail. We hiked downhill and passed by the same waterfall multiple times, and each time, the view was better! It was raining, but I think that made the trip even more beautiful and it made it seem more real. The forest is vulnerable too! We didn’t see any wildlife on the hike, but we were told that we might be able to see koalas if we looked really carefully. Towards the end of the trail, we stopped at a rock wall and yelled "YOOO-EEEE" at it, and listened to our collective voice echo back. This is how Australian parents call their children in from the playground because each child can recognize his mother's call. At the bottom of the trail, we caught the train back up. The steep train. In fact, it was the steepest funicular railway in the world, and I believe it! We had to hold on to stay put! I shared a row with Sterg and Bridgette, and we were half laughing, half terrified the entire time. We went backwards up the hill, and were wondering what would happen if the counterweight failed. Of course, we survived, and it was thrilling!

Sadly, that was the end of the day. But it was a fantastic day. A really, truly, remarkable day. Now, we’re watching coverage of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and I just did three fantastic TimTamSlammers. We have class tomorrow morning, and then we’re visiting the Art Gallery of New South Wales, which should be really fun.