Sydney trip - day 4

Everyone was tired yesterday so could not get up until 8:30 AM. But realized that we have only one day to cover other side of Sydney so quickly got ready and all of us are in car by 10:00 AM. We started with Helensburg hindu temple. Drive to the temple reminds us of Tirupathi. The temple sits top a hill which is 400ft above sea level. Beautiful sea cliff and views while driving will really drive you crazy. The temple itself is an amazing architectural structure and a great opportunity to know the traditions and culture of the Hindu society. The temple was extended now with two main parts one is Vishnu temple and other one is Shiva temple but both stay in one compound. I had a great darshan of lord Venkateswara and Mahalaxmi. I like the statue of ‘Seshasailapathi’ just out side the main hall. I think I am blessed to visit this temple in one month’s gap.

We came out and had Prasadam and then straight went to Canteen. Best thing about this temple is not only it is beautiful in itself but also it has a canteen which serves the best and the cheapest South Indian food. We all had Masala Dosa but Mns just had Idly. After the brunch we had Masala tea which was very nice. The canteen is only open on weekends and public holidays.

We took few pictures of the garden, temple, architectural structures and started our drive to Wolloongong. Mns said we are going to Nan Tien Buddist temple. I never been to this place so quite exited as many of our friends said it is a nice place to visit and stay.

Nan Tien is the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere. It's a great drive with plenty of cafes and vantage points to stop along the way. In no time the grey tarmac and built up towns turn to dark green forests. As you take the turn off for the temple, you are taken through an industrial park, you may wonder what you were thinking until you see the beautiful Pagoda jutting out of the hills in the distance. Serenity is a little nearer. There’s plenty of parking and entrance to the temple grounds is free. You can stretch your legs after the drive around the perfectly manicured gardens which are home to many cheeky little Buddha statues all in different poses. WE took some photos and Nireep is quite exited and gave pose for photos with little Buddha statues. The atmosphere and the weather is quite refreshing there. We entered into the Pagoda area. We can see a single budha and then went inside to see another golden Budha. That room was decorated for chines new year. There was plenty of rice and vegetables around. I asked on of the temple members and they said they mark their new year with rice and vegetables. No matter what your culture is everyone is living for food :0). Hindus also celebrate Pongal with newly harvested rice grains. We came out and started walking to the other side of the temple. We are just following Mns as he was the only one visited this place before.

Such a pleasant environment around the temple I just cannot describe in words. There was a golden tree and a small wishing well. Nireep and Vedu put some money and made a wish. Temple area was very clean even though lot of tourist are in that place. we took stairs and went up to another temple. There are 5 amazing Buddha statues (massive) inside the temple and thousands of gold plated small Buddha’s line the walls. Whether you're Buddhist or not it's well worth a peek inside to enjoy a moment or two of quiet reflection and meditation.

We came out and went to museum. As kids wanted some water we went to the teahouse. I really wanted to sip the kumquat tea but no time so we came out and donated little $ and started walking towards the bell on the top of the hill. The bell is massive and the belief is that each reverberation of the bell will chase away all the lousy experiences, wrong deeds and bad luck. We all had our turns and headed down the hill to car park. This is such a tranquil place to meditate and pray. I will be coming again to this place when I visit Sydney next time. By the time we came out it was 3:30 pm. We went straight to friends place and from there went straight to Vani & Sarathi gari house. They received us very warmly and we had very nice chat at their place. From there Mns took us to Rydes a new suburb to show the new constructions in Sydney.

We headed towards Olympic park. It was very nice. Laxmi garu explained us about each building and where the torch was lit etc. We took some pictures and went to Laxmi gari house. We had dinner there and took photos with whole family. It is always hard to say good bye to dearest friends. We came out and visited students at Citrus. We only stayed there for half an hour. We headed back to hotel room to catch an early morning flight.

We had such a Fun/awesome and hectic trip. I am sure Pavani and Nireep enjoyed their holiday. I really wish to have family holidays more each year.