mom visits australia

my mom has been with me in australia for the last month!   she flew back to the US this week, after we shared many fun adventures!  here are some photo highlights of our time together:


we explored some of sydney's northern beaches on a very blustery day.

beached

on a day drive southward, we stopped at this lovely spot for a relaxed lunch.

calming sun

 we were not the only ones enjoying this misty beach.

beachgoers

we flew north to the great barrier reef and stayed over night on a boat to maximize our snorkling time.

enjoying the salty air

we survived swimming with reef sharks, barracudas, sea turtles, incredibly diverse coral, colorful fish and we watched a giant fish turn over a huge rock looking for food. i only got stung by one tiny jellyfish.   it itched like a bug bite for a few days, but no worries.

green island

i think i saw comet panstarrs this night, but it was tough to tell.  mom wasnt convinced.  we still had a lovely view of the harbour bridge and the sunset!

sydney city light

we drove through the blue mountains and hiked to wentworth falls.   this photo only gives a hint of the full extent of the falls!

some of wentworth falls

while in the blue mountains, we stopped off to see the three sisters, all in a row. 

three sisters

we visited some lovely wineries a few hours away from sydney. 

peter van gent winery and vinyard

one day we enjoyed a sunny coastal walk and stopped at three blue ducks (one of my favorite restaurants!) for lunch. 

SPLASH! view to bronte beach

and we ended her trip with a bang - an opera at the opera house.   i enjoyed it, but didnt know la boheme is a tragedy!   oops.

mom and i go to the opera

isnt she lovely?   i think we havent spent so much continuous time together since before i moved away from home, many many years ago.   loved our time together.  :)