In the post Top 10 iPhone travel apps and more STA Explorers Our Little Jaunt had taken a trip to the The Blue Mountains and now Amar has gone to take a look also.

The Blue Mountains are, unsurprisingly given their name, a mountainous region in New South Wales, Australia. Amar had previously passed them by a few times but by his own admission,

“The Blue Mountains are a must for any backpacker or traveller passing through Sydney.”

So he decided to take the trip. He didn’t opt for a tour and because of this is able to offer some good advice if you want to enjoy the beauty of the region, but are on a tight budget. Part of what made the experience so rewarding was the freedom he felt being able to just grab a map and explore as he wanted.

In terms of recommendations for a visit to the Blue Mountains we’re two from two at travelbuzz, with OLJ and Amar both heartily urging you, if you have the chance, to go and witness the region.

Have you been to the Blue Mountains? If so let us know your thoughts.

We’ve got a list of free things to do in Sydney this February. It’s been carefully put together by our STA Explorers Our Little Jaunt, the rather ace A and V. Since settling in to a Sydney based life the couple has been doing loads and the majority of it cost them absolutely nothing.

And, in true Explorer fashion they decided to share their findings and have set you up with an itinerary for February that is bursting at its money-saving seams,

“I have decided to give you a list of all of the free events in the main festivals this February – Mardi Gras, Chinese New Year (program here), TropFest short film festival, Sydney University O (orientation – read Freshers) week and loads of other cool little things that you need to read the local publications about.”

A also suggests that you look up Time Out Magazine, either the website or actually purchase the magazine – it’s $3.95 and will effectively save you money due to it being ‘awesome’ when finding out what’s going on.

There are a few days that are yet to feature anything, so if you know of something brilliant and free that’s going on in Sydney, get in touch with them.

As if it wasn’t enough that STA Explorer couple Our Little Jaunt were having a splendid time in Aus, they decided to bring the weather into it, specifically thetemperature in Sydney. And yes, they appear to be complaining,

“I swear that I have never been so hot in my life as I have been today. I don’t cope too well with the heat anyway.”

Currently Sydney is witnessing 40 degree heat in the day, dipping to around 30 degrees at night. The post usefully includes a link to Google weather for the city and a link to the current time of day should you want to investigate. The sign off on the post reads as such,

“Phew – off for a cold shower!”

That’s quite a coincidence as I’m about to experience a cold shower too – on the dark, rainy and winter ravaged streets of London. Sigh. Wish we were there! Maybe we should invest in one of those daylight face lamps for STA travelbuzz towers – Cam will definitely approve…

To finish, and because we’re always here to help, thought this might cool you down a little – awesome snow work by our very own Siobhan.

Yesterday we wrote about Our Little Jaunt’s trip to Taronga Zoo and today we have an account from STA Explorer Chris, Hang 10 and Party, on another beast themed attraction in the city, Sydney Wildlife Park.

Chris did actually visit Taronga Zoo the day before, but like OLJ found it expensive. So, wanting more in the way of creature action, he paid his $49 for a 2 park pass that got him into Sydney’s Wildlife Park and the neighbouring Aquarium.

“From the word go I was really impressed with the Wildlife Park. Everything is modern, clean and interactive. There is plenty of facts and trivia with every enclosure and heaps of educational stuff for the kids.”

Along with a description of the ‘Living Dinosaur’ exhibition that features a huge croc captured in Darwin, Chris passes on information on beating the queues and what you can expect. Finishing off with a positive review of the park,

“In all we spent around 4 hours wandering around and its well worth the money [...] I soaked up lots of useless information and had a good day out, it comes highly recommended on my Sydney to do list!”

Have you been to either Taronga Zoo or the Wildlife Park in Sydney? If you have, let us know what you thought in the comments below.

Our Little Jaunt has taken a trip to Taronga Zoo, an activity that featured in our post What To Do In Sydney, Australia. And, thanks to A and V’s work, we can bring you an STA Explorer view of the menagerie.

As ever OLJ have got a few pointers should you be planning on following in their footsteps,

“We got there a bit later than planned, which meant we had to queue in the blazing heat for about an hour to get in (best laid plans, huh!). We eventually got in about 2 pm and the park shuts at 5 pm – not enough time by any stretch”

Despite this initial setback, they’d recommend the day out. A ticket will set you back $42 for an adult but, if like A and V, you can get hold of vouchers on cereal packets things will be a lot cheaper. If not, then be comforted that a proportion of the fee goes toward preservation activity, such as breeding Asian elephants. A department in which Taronga has had recent success…

Head to the full post for more on their Zoo trip, including an anecdote about a dancing bear and more excellent pictures like the one above.

We’re back, and normal service is about to resume, but before it does a run through our friendfeed – the place to keep up with us and our tribe of STA Explorers and their travelling experiences – has spilled the details on all that they’ve been up to over the festive break.

We have to begin with this tweet from Escaping the Grind, Alice in Down-underland and Hang 10 and Party or, Marianne, Alice and Chris, stating that they miss us. Aww. It’s great to see Explorers getting together and having an ace time! We miss you too. Marianne has also posted on the experience of spending Christmas on Bondi Beach and being one of the 1.5 million people bring in New Year in Sydney…

Samantha’s Christmas in Melbourne was all good once the pressies had arrived and the tree was up,

“I could have nearly mistaken it as an English chrissy until walking outside to 40 degree heat…dreaming of a white Christmas, no chance Sheila!!”

Her new year was spent at the Falls Festival, a celebration of the arts, where she welcomed in 2010 with acts including Jamie T and Moby.

Laura and Jamie, Having a Ball from NZ to SE Asia, enjoyed mince pies on the beach and had ‘the best NYE ever’ in Sydney.

Alex welcomed in the New Year with 12 grapes, taking part in a Spanish tradition of eating one on each stroke of midnight to bring you good fortune for the coming year.

Like Marianne, Amar hit Bondi Beach despite the weather being somewhat less favourable than glorious sunshine. He was there for New Year also,

“The atmosphere, the 20,000 people at your side, everything. Makes me grin like an idiot just thinking about it again. Yesterday will be with me for the rest of my life. When that bridge lights up it truly is a magical moment. I hope one day that you’ll get to see it for yourself.”

Well, you can see it for yourself thanks to Amar and the power of YouTube.

OK, admittedly not the same, but if it makes you head there next year…

Finally we have Our Little Jaunt who didn’t just celebrate Christmas and New Year in Sydney, it was also their first wedding anniversary. Congratulations!

I think we’re just about up to date. It’s 2010 and we’re looking to expand our community as always, so if you had a superb Christmas break while travelling, or are about to head off to far flung lands let us known via email or Twitter.

If you want to know some things about Sydney then our STA Explorers Our Little Jaunt are just the type you need to read about.

The list is most informative, including details such as,

“Swim between the flags – they are there for a reason… and the likihood of dying in the sea is significantly reduced when you have the Baywatch boys on standby.”

And,

“Get a Tax File Number – It is again really simple: Do it online here.”

It’s valuable stuff for anyone heading to Sydney, or indeed in general if you’re travelling to Australia. I mean where else would you find out the invaluable warning that,

“Some of the spiders can live underwater for over 24 hours… don’t presume that they are dead!!”

You’ve been told; read A and V’s post about Sydney and feel prepared for any eventuality, safe and a little warm inside.