Riverina Roadtrip - Sugar Pine Walk

I didn't really have the most comfortable night. Turns out the Hyandai i30 back seats don't fold flat completely and has quite a significant height difference. I woke up with a pain in my tailbone as that is the area where the ridge was hitting. I also woke up quite cold as it was around 9 degrees C when I woke up and it was 20 degrees when I fell asleep. This meant that I was overheating when I was trying to fall asleep but then woke up at 4am frantically zipping up my sleeping bag. I finally woke up at 6.30am to the sound of kookaburras and slowly got ready for my day.

I wanted to visit the Bago Forest for the Sugar Pine Walk however it was a 1.5hour drive from Wagga Wagga. Since I was "in the area" I decided to still visit and I actually find it crazy that some people head from Sydney just to see the forest (it would be a 7 hour drive). Madness. I do quite enjoy driving very early in the morning, just after sunrise due to the serenity and the roads are nice and quiet. I saw this bridge on the drive there and ended up stopping and found a lot of noisy cows too!







It was a beautiful sunrise with lots of fog and my photos don't really capture the true beauty of it. There was this field with low wisps of fog hanging near the cows and it was just absolutely stunning. It was probably one of my most memorable sunrises.






I love this shot. So glad that I stopped the car for this.
I ended picking a smaller back road unintentionally and drove past lots of orchards. Riverina is known as the "food bowl" of NSW and is where a lot of produce is grown. In the area near Laurel Hill, there is the town of Batlow which is known for their apples. I saw an orchard near the side of the road and I quickly snuck out, ran in and stole two apples from the tree. One of my most rebellious moments!







Laurel Hill is part of the Snowy Mountains so naturally the landscape was very different to the Riverina Region. There were a lot of super tall trees and it was very very quiet. I have this tendency to spot things on the side of the road and want to stop to have a look at it. Sometimes it's a really good idea (like the shot above), and other times I need to remind myself that if I was to keep doing that I wouldn't get anywhere. For this instance, I stopped because I saw what I thought was an alpaca and a dog. Turns out they were just two dogs.


The Sugar Pine Walk was absolutely breathtaking. The sugar pines were planted in 1928 and are the tallest pine trees in the species. Pine trees are not native to Australia and are actually native to the Pacific Coast of North America so it was very unusual to see so many pines planted there. There was one row of trees that had been cut down so that there was a "walk way" to the end of the 500m long path. I arrived there at 9am and was the only person there.







It was so silent except for the chirping birds and since I live in the city and work in the heart of the city, silence is sometimes a very uncommon thing. Since I travel solo, my tripod and self timer are my best friends. Also a selfie stick although I am very selective about when I choose to use it. I wanted to take a photo of me standing in the greens underneath the sugar pines. What I was initially worried about was the possibility of discovering a snake however that was actually the least of my problems. I took a step in after I clicked the self timer and had instant regret since my right leg was attacked by the thorns. It was so painful that I immediately withdrew my leg and ended up with quite a few cuts on my leg. I have this wonderful photo that my camera captured.

Trying to retreat quickly from the thorny plants.

By the time I wrapped up my photos it was 10am and as I was about to leave, 4 cars turned up! Lucky I did arrive early. And I guess that is also why I like heading out early. The roads are quiet and people generally only wake up at 8am which means I get a lot of things to myself.

Next up will be Gundagai! That post will explain why I decided to visit Riverina region.

This is my fourth trip as part of #take12trips. To see previous trips please click here

Riverina Roadtrip - Junee & Wagga Wagga

Over the Easter long weekend, I went on a solo road trip to the Riverina Region in NSW. Originally I had planned on driving to Mount Kosciusko however with my healing ankle, I decided against it. I have also decided to incorporate as many maps as I can just to paint a clearer picture of where I went.

Blackwood Pantry

There are always so many new cafes popping up in Sydney that it makes it really hard to keep up with them. That being said, it does get to the point where they are a little bit interchangeable. I guess at the end of the day, cafe food are all kind of similar.

When I visited Cronulla, I popped into the newly open Blackwood Pantry.





Similar to a lot of new cafes, it had a very clean, simple and beautiful interior with lots of natural light. I ordered the Buddha Bowl.

Fried eggs, quinoa, kale, roasted cauliflower, pickled red cabbage, toasted almonds, lemon & buttermilk dressing - 17

It was amazing and it was so filling. I really loved the picked red cabbage (I am in a bit of a 'pickled' phase right now).

My dining partner ordered the Morning Glory.

Soft boiled Egg, Chorizo, Tandoori roasted Sweet Potato, Kale, pickled Red Onion, whipped Goat Cheese, Avocado - 18

Funnily enough, my dining partner and I usually end up picking the same item and the Morning Glory was my second choice after the Buddha Bowl. I also really enjoyed it, especially the chorizo. However the highlight of the entire dish was the avocado! There has been an avocado drought which has meant that I have not been able to afford avocados lately. $4 for one? No way.

I would definitely recommend Blackwood Pantry if you are in the area. It's really simple, delicious and not overly expensive food.

Cronulla & La Perouse

Another weekend, another day spent chilling by the ocean. I started off my day having brunch at a new cafe in Cronulla. I hadn't actually been to Cronulla since .... forever. I think I might have visited back when I was in primary school, however I am not certain. It reminded me of Manly in some senses, except Manly is a lot bigger. I guess it's the very laid back vibe of the place, unlike the super crowded and busy Bondi Beach.

I ended up also heading to La Perouse in the eastern suburbs. Bare Island is a military fort built in the 19th century to protect against Russian invaders. However, the concrete was inferior and it was decommissioned around 30 years after it was built.

Another sunny day in Sydney, however I feel like it sometimes becomes a little bit of a cliché. Although the sun is setting earlier and earlier now which makes me a little sad. This was never something that bothered me, but for some reason, seeing the days become shorter and shorter is affeecting me a little. I also can't believe that we are in the middle of March. Where has the time gone?! I will leave on my roadtrip in two weekend's time. Crazy!

Wollongong

Wollongong or 'The Gong' is located around 1.5 hours south of Sydney. It is the third largest city in New South Wales and an easy day trip from Sydney on the train.

I had been itching to head out of Sydney however with my still healing ankle, my options have been quite limited. I am not sure if I actually have been to Wollongong before but on first impression, I thought it was gorgeous. The proximity of the Illawarra escarpment to the city made the place feel very different to the other big cities in New South Wales.

I first visited the Botanic Gardens which was super nice!









I then headed out to the ocean and walked along the coast until I reached the lighthouses.













I didn't spend as much time in Wollongong as I would have liked and actually didn't even visit the city centre. I guess this can only mean that another visit will be in the near future. Next time I would like to visit Nan Tien temple which is the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere.

Also thank you everyone who wrote such kind words and advice on my previous post.

This is my third trip as part of #take12trips. To see previous trips please click here

D'VineRipe Longest Tomato Lunch

The Tomato Festival 2016 was held at the Botanic Garden and I had booked two seats at 70m long table for the longest tomato lunch.

This was an event that I randomly stumbled upon and as a fan of tomatoes, why not? I have a funny story about tomatoes actually. When I was a child, I loved tomatoes and I must have pestered my mum about being hungry. So she gave me a tomato to eat just like an apple. After that tomato, I really didn't like tomatoes for quite a while. But the dislike eventually passed and I found myself at the tomato festival!















The weather was pretty miserable on my way to the lunch but luckily it cleared up momentarily during the lunch. However it started bucketing shortly after I left.
There was so much food, almost too much in fact. There were 6 different items and in generous servings! My favourite were: the chutney with the cheese (I love cheese), the caramel tiramisu and the 65 degree salmon fillet (not pictured).




A slightly too dry and too salty focaccia. 

By the end of it, I was pretty sick of tomatoes and really full! It was a very lovely experience and a lot of fun. It was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon and of course, there was an amazing view, with good food and great company!

Dutch Snacks

This post is a little belated! At the end of last year, Mei and I exchanged a goodies box filled with snacks from our home country. I included things that a) I quite enjoyed and b) were quite iconic as Australian snacks. She has posted about it here.


Packaged so beautifully!







Unlike Mei, I didn't have the forethought to take photos of each item out of the packet as I was too busy stuffing my face!

My favourites were:

• Shortbread (mmmmmmmm!!)
• Lukken (although they are Belgian!)
• Stroopwafels! Of course, I love these and in fact, I should have some left. Not sure where I've stashed them now.

Thank you Mei! I love how the internet has provided me with this opportunity. Although my only issue is that I wish that Australia Post was not so bloody expensive as I would be able to do something like this more often.