Another week in the mountains!

This week Tony and I had a day off together and were able to get to the self guided tour...almost 1000 stairs in total!  But wellworth it to the top!  Take a look!

our work and our home

grand arch entry

Tony at the Nettle Cave

Devil's Coach house

Us haha

The Top of the Grand Arch

View from the top- the street below

On the way down

The street to Sydney/Katoomba- note this is a two way street, yep that tight!

Blue Lake- blue because of all of the Lime Stone from the Caves- also home to the Platypuses!

Blue Lake waterfall

QLD FLOODING

 We DO NOT LIVE in Queensland- we live in New South Wales, and we have not been affected by any of the flooding! Thank gosh! We have had a few people asking about how we are- we are fine and business is as usual here!
But for those who dont know---
This week has been one of the worst natural disasters in all of Queensland.  It's incredible to see the photos, and video of the flooding.  The flash floods are the worst- the amount of water running though in mins is unreal.  Unfortunately there is a death toll of 15 at the moment- and there are still 55 people missing and unaccounted for, 60000 people are without power, and 1000 people are still in evauation.  Hopefully we will all be able to help in some way....now it's a waiting game- waiting for the river to decrease...and then they can start the clean up. 

another busy week!

It's been another busy week here at the caves!  Tony and I have been working very long days for the past week or so.  We have both put in over 60 hrs in the last week working for the xmas break.  It's feeling like we are working in hospitality again!  We love it!  Tony had two days off and went to Sydney with Justin (one of the fellow Canadian chefs) to check out a steak restaurant.  They had a blast exlporing the city, hitting up to Fish Market (the largest in the southern hemisphere!), and of course eating some great food (whether it was Pho, Korean BBQ, or steak- it was ALL GOOD!)  Sarah was busy at work for those two days!  We stayed really busy, both working on New Years Eve night as well- BUT- all the staff got together in the empty restaurant and counted down til the New Year together!  It was great, lots of fun, and prolly the only New Years Tony and I will be able to enjoy together!  This year has been busy already for us as well!  We have been working on moving our stuff to our new apt.  We have been giving an two bedroom apt in the staff wing of the hotel (as opposed to the one we had on top of the hill) It's great- there is two bedrooms (one is for all our stuff at the moment!) one with a double bed (woopwoop- finally no more twin beds that are different highs!) and a living room.  The only down fall- we dont have a kitchen :(  but we do have a fridge now!  wooopwooop!  It's great!  Love that we get to keep things!  LOVE LOVE LOVE the cold beer too! hahaha

OUR 2010 in review

2010    - Started in Blue Montain, Ontario

- Tony was working at Oliver and Bonicini Café and Grill

-Sarah was working at the Front Desk at the Westin Trillium House

FEB         - Sarah and 3 girlfriends leave for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler and Vancouver

They have tickets to men’s ski jump, men’s downhill ski, men’s luge in Whitsler- then in Vancouver they had 6 hockey game tickets including both women’s semi finals and men’s U.S.A. vs Finland semis and a medal ceremony- I don’t think anything can compare to cheering on the home team at the Olympics! or Robson St after Canada won the men’s gold game! Or just the amazement to see all the red and white! AMAZING time was had by all..Russia 2014 anyone?!

APRIL    3^rd - Tony and Sarah move to Charlottetown PEI!

15^th -Tony starts his last year at the Culinary Institute of Canada

25^th -Sarah starts working at the Front Desk at the Delta Prince Edward

JULY       1^st -Tony and Sarah travel to Guelph/Markham to go to Granma Allan’s funeral, a sad but nice day, in which all the fun stories of granma were shared.

28^th - Tony gets a well earned 2 weeks from school and goes to BC to visit FAMILY!

AUG-     14^th-The Phillips’ family (Eric –Sarah’s older brother and wife Kim) get an early but most amazing gift- of baby HANNAH! 

            -19^th-Tony and Sarah travel back to Guelph for a friend’s wedding and to meet baby Hannah!

OCT        - Tony graduates from the Culinary Institute of Canada!!!!!  (Ruth and Andy Phillips come out from Ontario and Garry and Lise McGregrory come from Gibson BC to join in the celebration!!!!)

                -1 week later- Tony passes his Red Seal- he is a certified chef!!! Cant even describe     how proud I am!!!

NOV      1^st - We move all our stuff to Guelph Ontario

-7^th- We move to the JENOLAN CAVES, BLUE MOUNTAINS, NSW, AUSTRALIA!!!!! Where Tony is working as a chef-de-partie and Sarah as a guest service agent at the front desk

DEC        We are enjoying living in Australia and are loving the lack of snow!  We have been able to enjoy Sydney a few times, meeting up with friends from the summer, and are starting plans for the rest of the travels we will accomplish while on this side of the world!

dont get mad at the front liners!

I know that I cant say that I always know what you all do for your jobs, but I dont really pretend I do.  So why when you come to a hotel or restaurant or resort or parking lot for that matter do you think that you for one min understand my job or any of my collegues? I can say that I have never 100% understood accounting but I never try to do an accounts job. I can understand if you dont 100% understand the hospo (aka hospitality) work and lifestyle, just dont pretend you do.  I dont think thatyou would really believe how much time and energy is put into making your dinner plate, or getting your room ready, or the amount of hours are put in behind the scenes to make it all come out to look like its a flawless establishment. Seeing as the hospo industry is also called the service industry, we do try to to insure our customers  are happy.  Most of the time if we cant get something done for you, its because of a reason out of our control.  So next time you get on a flight and it's late, dont take it out on the flight attendant, cause really they have nothing to do with what time the flight goes out at they are just there for your safety.  And the next time your check into a hotel and ask for a late check out, dont get mad at the agent checking you in if your room is not ready- get mad at the guy who just was allowed to check out late!  And when you go to a restaurant, try the meal the way that the chef intended it to be had, dont substitute every other thing on the plate and then cover it in salt when it gets infront of you.  I dont assume that you wont ever get mad at anyone in the hospo industry again, I just ask that when you do come upon a situation you might find frustrating, remember that there is a reason for everything and try to appriciate it when things do go well.  Tell your server to tell the chef it was good food when it is, thank your housekeeper for tidying your room, and remember that we dont come into your work place, and yell at you so please dont come into ours and yell at us! Cause at the end of the day, we all have our specialities and our reasons to be doing what we do, but I hope that most people do it for the reasons we do, and thats because we love what we do. 

It's a SUNNY CHRISTMAS!!!

Well Christmas has officially come and gone this year...This like years in the past and most likely more in the future found Tony and I working.  The hotel put on a big brunch and a dinner as well, keeping Tony and the kitchen team very busy!  It was interesting though because Brunch is not a common thing here in Australia, so most people didn't really know what they were getting into when they booked in for lunch!  All walked away, the most stuffed they could have possibly been and raving about the food!  I only got called into work because another girl was sick.  I worked for 3 hours but made more money in the three hours then 8 ina regular day!  Public hoilidays here give a higher rate of pay, putting it at 2.5 times your normal pay an hour!  What a great system for us hospitality people!  WOOPWOOP!!!!  After work, I got to come back to our flat and sit on our patio, tan (as it was now about 32C) and read my book, while drinking my strongbow...LOVE IT.  Then that night after everyone was done work, everyone came up for  a beer at our place to toast the day!  It was a great way to celebrate!  As most of you know, Tony and I dont give each other gifts at all, we decided that we are going to do something that we other wise wouldnt have done as a celebration!  Well this year, the hotel will be closing down for a few days in feb so we will be travelling somewhere we hadn't thought...where we dont know...when we dont know...but we do know it will be a BLAST! 
But...We just wanted anyone reading this to know that we are thinking of all our family and friends and wishing everyone a safe, fun and relaxing hoiday season filled with love and joy!  MERRY CHRISTMAS to all...and to all...A GOOD NIGHT!!!!

10 days til xmas!

Crazy how it does not feel anything like Christmas here.  Today it’s 27C and sunny, with random rain.  Definitely not the lovely Canadian xmas weather!  This week was a pretty low key one for us after the busy one last weekend.  

Tony and I started our days off with a nice lunch date out in Lithgow, a very small town in the mountains.  It was a very nice day, in which I burnt my driving arm! Hahaha  It was sooo worth it though!  What a fun time! 

Sarah went on an adventure with three girls from work, as they went out to a farm to enjoy the local scenery and some away from caves time!  The farm was awesome, we were able to relax and laugh and laugh and laugh as we went four wheeling (some of the time it was two wheeling though- thanks to our driver philly! Hahaha), horse riding, feeding ponies, horses, rabbits, sheep, cats- you name it was saw it! It was a blast!

Yesterday Tony and I got to do another cave tour!  Man did we have a blast!  We went into the Imperial Cave, and it’s a very showy cave.  Lots of really pretty lighting and lovely columns,  stag mites and stag tights! We has a great time, wondering down to the river in the cave where our water comes from.  We also found out that our guide is lived in Canada for a while, and get this, worked at the same hotel that Tony did!  Interesting how small the hospitality industry is considering how many hotels are in the world! 

Today I have included all my own pictures of the Imperial cave and some of the grand arch (where the tour starts!) enjoy!!!

Tony in the grand arch

entrance to the jenolan caves/grand arch

us in the imperial cave

in the imperial cave

in the imperial cave

BACON?! hahaha  in the imperial cave

only icecicles i wanna see this year! hahaa

on the way back from lithgow on the 5 mile hill down to the caves..aka my backyard

coming down the 2 mile hill from oberon- note the kangaroos- and note that this is a two way road!  Tight much! hahaha

horses! on morgan's farm!