Glide, Camp, Meditate...

Nature has always amazed me....Oceans act as your endless swimming pools...star studded skies act as your roof in the night...wind  helps you glide & fly over the mountains and greenery... and as you swish past the jungles the green cover pulls you in to discover more....and once you are lost in this - Life goes into meditation mode - a celebration!!

This holiday season ... it was all this and much more....!

The Route - House to Bald Hill to Kiama and Nan Tien Temple

This journey was 300 Kms spread across 5 days  ...the first stop was Stanwell tops followed by an Overnight Camping at Coledale Beach then moving forward to Kiama blowhole with an overnight stay at Albion park and then visiting the Peaceful Nan Tien Temple on the way back....and all through the way, you get amazing experience driving through jungles & mountains .....

As we started leaving the hustle and bustle of Sydney life...a calmness descended...through lush greenery of Royal national park....and in an hours time we had our view of the big blue ocean...which makes you feel how minuscule one is in the whole scheme of things....a humbling feeling !

Our first stop was the Stanwell tops ( Bald hill look out) - Few of the selected places in Australia famous for Hang gliding....well the wind was not great that day and we opted for Para gliding (I could not do much - but my better half did take her chances)...

Our next stop - Coledale Beach - idea was to camp on the beach and enjoy the sea....sleeping under the clear sky filled with stars came as a bonus....

Coledale Beach has well managed camping reserve. The campsites are huge to accommodate an 8 person tent plus your vehicle.

You can while away your time on the beach, sleep under clear skies which gave a great view of the stars and get blown away by the early morning Sunrise ...

As the day started, we had a quick breakfast and drove towards Kiama. The idea was to spend some time at the Kiama blow hole and go ahead with our hotel check in....

 

The famous Light house at the Kiama blow hole stands as a sentinel of time .... the witness to genesis of Australian human story....

We were in for a bonus and able to squeeze out some time to visit the Cathedral rocks look out and Shell harbour beach....

Cathedral Rocks Look out....

The following day ...we had only one stop on the way i.e. the Nan Tien Buddhist Temple ... This was my second visit to this place and every time I visit - it always has an amazing peaceful aura around it which makes me feel contended and at ease with life....

The autumn Sun had called it a day...it was slowly getting dark...Our Holiday had come to an end but it had rejuvenated all of us...with a promise of revisiting more such places....

Cockatoo island: A blissful place amidst the city

I am sure many of us find ourselves in a common dilemma, every year.

The  dilemma of - where do we go, as a family, which will not be very far from the city, dear on the pocket but quite and blissful.

Year after year have tried to answer this question, be it Bangalore, Mumbai or Hyderabad. This year I had another new variable added to it - a new city - Sydney !

Fortunately I was able to find a place which was in the heart of the city and yet so detached....it's a small island in Sydney - Cockatoo island.

This island has been used as a convict prison, ship building & repair yard during the world war days and now is a UNESCO heritage site. It is famous for its Glamping - which is basically Luxury camping!!

This island getaway provides a good one night stay in pre-erected  & BYO tents at a reasonable cost. A great place for kids - as they have a fun time running around and also get to watch their kids movie at night....inside the prison barracks!

It takes you back to the early days when it used to be a ship building  yard and you can still see those old- rusted craned jutting out all around...

The Sun sets over Sydney harbor bridge at the 

Some additional activities like night camp fire, or guided tours (though there exists audio tours) would have been great.

In case you do not like birds chirping early in the morning - then you better pick up the ear-plugs from the information kiosk !

Tips for travelers:
-  Island is 20 minutes ferry ride from Circular quay / Barangaroo Wharf or a 30 minutes ride from Parramatta Wharf
- Do order for an extra sleeping mat
- Check your tents for spiders and other insects ....before you rest
- It has an extensive kitchen - so do carry things like bread / butter/ milk / rice etc. for preparing breakfast or barbeque
- Do carry a thick blanket as it get colds in the night and a torch as it gets dark!
- Below is a map for your quick reference