ConTEXTart in the Blue Mountains

The 2015 SvenJen adventure to Katoomba saw two very excited Bunnehs making their way straight
to the house we had booked in the heart of Katoomba, called The Yellow Door, already nicknamed 'The Golden Door'.
Immediately after settling in, we set out to explore, and I couldn't help but make two lovely purchases at the book shop. Study of Pose is both ridiculously beautiful, and insanely heavy, but an absolute must at $20! With the weather being so beautiful, we make sure we go and view the Three Sisters in the warm afternoon light - spectacular.

 After evening ablutions, I exit the bathroom with the door handle still in my hand, hysterical with laughter - a good omen for a trip of hilaritiez!
Friday dawned with drizzle, but we took it slowly, lingering over coffees before setting out in fine mist. Poor Jenelle must wait whilst I stop to photograph a miniscule snail, having to wait for him to re-emerge after I disturbed him! After a breakfast at The Hatter's Cafe, the morning is spent blissfully shopping at the Anglicare op-shop, where we made some awesome finds, including a brand new leather jacket for me, which will be very handy in New Zealand. After a brief respite at home, we set off to meet Janet de Boer and Co. at the newly renovated Hydromajestic  (above left, displaying new jacket!). It is very impressive, and the room for the High Tea's looks just luverly, but it is all too busy for our group, so we head down to the Megalong Tea Rooms, where all but the Bunnehs, still full of brekky noms, indulge in lovely looking soups. Next stop is Blackheath, where we spend a very enjoyable afternoon wandering the town. We particularly enjoyed the large local arts and craft shop, where we see some very beautiful botanical prints, fantastic forging, wonderful woodwork, and basket weaving. The VictoryTheatre Antique Centre (right) is all too much for two tired Bunnehs, who soon head home for some lovely vegetable soup of their own, having channelled their own mother's on the way home in conversation, and reluctantly admitted to it!!

Saturday dawns drizzly again, but we set off for the Three Sisters anyway, who are completely absent from the view! We walked out to the restaurant Solitary, which looked like a delicious option for a lunch or dinner (sadly, Breakfast Bunnehs never really made it out after their favourite morning meal!) So enjoying our relaxing holiday, we struggle to drag our pelts to Korowal School for our first morning of class with Anne Leon!! Having had a session of show and tell, our interest is piqued, and we are eager to begin, in particular, with a shibori method for creating a snakeskin-like effect that we no haz seen before!! (result - right).
Animal print Bunneh Jenelle is particularly excited, and this is the first technique we try together, as the preparation is a 2-Bunneh job. We achieve quite a bit, even getting some over-dyeing on the more subtle pieces done. This creates a lovely layering, and of course, Jenelle gets one of the most impressive results with one of her over-dyed scarves! Sadly, we both had pieces that picked up printing off the pvc pipe and nikko off the acetate plates. I was also happy with the results of eco-printing on watercolour paper, a mere 15 minute process.

Being Saturday night, we had hope to emerge from the burrow, but we arrived home to find a hip-hop/jazz concert happening at the Youth Centre next door, which we were able to enjoy from our deck - who needs to go out?!! Therefore it was veggie soup again, and having ironed an displayed our goodies to ourselves, we go to bed tired but happy!

Sunday arrives in perfect form, and we head off for our walk with some eco-print foraging in mind. Of course, we forget a bag, and after peeling our eyes for random plastic bags, actually start foraging in bins- a new low! Sharp-eyed Sven spots a discarded fabric Aldi bag in a front yard - clearly worth 100 points!! We then happily stuff found leaves in our bag, and return home for scrambled eggs on the back deck. Never before have we been so reluctant to workshop - we were just having too good a time!! We are so reluctant that we are 20 minutes late, but redeem ourselves with our awesome eco-haul  and getting straight into it.  Having brought our own lunch, we are free at lunchtime to wander the other classes and the traders, where I buy some Indian wooden print blocks. At the end of class, we take a wander around the displays of all the workshops, as well as some extra traders. We are supposed to be displaying our own results, but are so tired that we quickly head home. Not before we encounter Janet de Boer, though, in full regalia as a penguin! (below right).

The Bunnehs finish their day exhausted but happy, with an impressive stash, and enjoy an early night.

Monday morning dawns like no other Monday - we no haz to be anywhere or do anything!! Our walk leads us down past Scenic World, where there are cable cars and trains through the mountains. We prefer to walk down the slippery, steep, 'Furber Steps', (left), which Jenelle cannot wait to go back up. Me, not so much - nearly vomited!! After our two hour trek, we were very happy to indulge in some Noms at the Yellow Deli, where we also found some incredible 'Green Bars' aka crack for health Bunnehs!! (Right) DELICIOUS!! (View of the main street from the Yellow Deli, left). Back to the op-shops after this, then to book an early afternoon appointment at the Thai Massage. O.M.G. First Thai Massage ever - where have I been?!!! Delicious squishing of limbs, cracking of back, twisting of limbs, hot towels... I think I love you!!
We slid our way out of there to do a little more shopping on our way up the street, then checked out the possibility of dinner at the Carrington - closed for Private Function - typical!! Sadly, the old moles were more than happy to pick up a kebab on the way home and settle in ....
Wentworth Falls provided us with yet another variety of bushwalk - quite coastal-like - sandy, with lots of banksias. I was so cold I had to run a bit to warm up - I haz poor circulationz!! The weather was perfect, the signage not so much -  we ended up taking a path from Rocket Point which slowly became thinner, wilder, and further out along the ridge! With visions of the Westpac Chopper in mind, the Bunnehs turned their tails and headed back. On this path, we discovered a very life-like lizard sculpture on a plinth, which I laughed at and said 'Oh, I nearly thought that was real!" As Bunneh  looked up and said 'What', her brain did not catch up in time before she reeled back in shock!!(above right). There were some great cliff overhangs on the Charles Darwin Walk - here I am channeling the Great Man himself!

The way back up the steps (as usual) was to the chant of "Eggs, eggs, eggs, salmon, salmon, salmon, mushrooms, mushroom, mushrooms etc...) We enjoyed our brekky at the Blue Mist Cafe and a wander around Wentworth before heading into Leura. After a few hours of shopping, I was pleased to return home for a well earned nana nap (due in part to a little tummy trouble). I had to be roused for our final sojourn, this time to Vinnies', to pick up an extra suitcase for all of our purchases, and a final op-shop. We also stopped in at the Food Co-Op, where Jenelle indulged for us in chocolate coated Goji and Inca berries - delicious!!

Our final morning walk was to Minnie Ha Ha Falls, with yet another variation on the landscape. The falls poured into a beautiful pool, which we could imagine would be a lovely place to hang out in the Summer, if it ever gets that hot up there! A shorter walk than other mornings, we return within an hour, so are out of the beloved Yellow Door by 9am. We breakfast at the Pomegranate Cafe before checking out the last Op-Shop of Katoomba - the Boutique Op-Shop, (below left) which was just beautifully laid out.  Having picked up some new sunnies, it was time to head down the mountain. We had thought we would enjoy stopping off at the various 'Town Centre's' and 'Shops', but after the first few unnoticeable precincts, Jenelle was incandescent with rage and disbelief - "Is this some kind of  joke?", she spluttered. On a detour towards the Lindsay Gallery, we nearly killed a dog, which

decided to run out on to the road, but managed to stop in time. Still shaken, we got some giggles out of the local street names; 'Bill Barnacle Avenue, Patrick O'Possum Place, and Watkin Wombat Way'!! Springwood was the only 'Town' to have an actual 'Town Centre', which we stopped at briefly before getting our tails back on the road - don't want to be late for the airport. We were perfectly on time, until we hit the airport
surrounds, where we failed time and time again to find either a) the service station to refuel at or b) the depot itself!! Suri kept telling us we had 'arrived at our destination, but each time it was KFC!! Now 45 minutes past our expected arrival time, our stress levels were peaking as we reached a new level of desperation!!

Finally after stopping and asking for help we made it, and were shuttled in to the airport to receive the joyful news that the  flight was slightly delayed - hurrah!! Never have we been so happy to hear this! This meant we could visit the Virgin Lounge (my main concern in being late) before boarding, and restore equilibrium (with some quickly imbibed beverages). After an amazing week, the Bunnehs were as usual, happy to be headed home to their boys in da burrows!!