Mountain magic...

Picture courtesy of: http://www.eagleview.com.au/

Life is not about how may breaths you take, but about the moments that take your breath away. I love the expression and at the weekend discovered just what it takes to truly take your breath away. I spent a night with my girlfriend at Eagle View Escape in the Blue Mountains, and can truly say, now I have lived. If it's not the stunning views down over Lake Lyell that leaves you breathless, it's the spa bath in front of the window, or maybe its the underground rooms with gas fire heaters, the impeccable service, or the remote and quiet location.

How amazing that you can go to a cafe back in your home town or city and order breakfast that takes perhaps ten minutes to arrive, and often it is not what you ordered, inedible or delivered with such lacklustre you have lost your appetite. Well, I ordered breakfast three days before arriving at Eagleview and it arrived exactly on time, exactly how I had asked for it and was absolutely delicious. Bacon, sausage and eggs on toast, yoghurt, fresh orange juice and plunger coffee. Not to mention jams and a plate of fresh fruit. All to be enjoyed on a private front porch with nothing but nature's best as your view.

This luxury hideaway is only about 20 kilometres out of Lithgow in the Blue Mountains of NSW and easy to find, but also easy to lose yourself in. The roads to the hideaway are winding country roads with kangaroos more often seen than other cars. There's wombats and horses, wedge tailed eagles overhead and a feeling that you have truly left most other tourists behind. You wind your way up on top of a ridge line on a private property to find a modest but very welcoming reception, complete with open fireplace and pool table. And, if you're staying in the Lakeside Spa Suites, you then head down through some fairy lit tunnels into your underground boudoir to soak away the outside world in your own twin spa bath. This place gets a well-deserved eight out of 10 on the barefoot bushman scale. Oh, and if you want complete privacy, check out their Wilderness Cabins. Use the web link above - it's worth it.

This is the place that I mentioned in my last blog. My one night booking was during a long weekend where the minimum booking is for three nights. Such is the nature of their service that they were willing to let me take one night only.

Another highlight was the Italian restaurant La Trattoria in Main Street Lithgow. Gorgeous and quaint atmosphere, brilliant service and the food was the best I have had in a long time. Despite being a full house and turning up with no booking, we received personal attention, perfect service and while I am no foodie and don't plan on blogging much about food, but this place deserves the credit.