But it only got better from there. After requesting seats next to one another, we were informed that we were bumped up to economy class, which is a step below first class. Not only that, we had the first row of seats, meaning extra leg room, plus no one was sitting on my right side. As you can tell from the pictures below, we were pretty excited about all of this.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Airplane (one of my favourite movies, btw)
But it only got better from there. After requesting seats next to one another, we were informed that we were bumped up to economy class, which is a step below first class. Not only that, we had the first row of seats, meaning extra leg room, plus no one was sitting on my right side. As you can tell from the pictures below, we were pretty excited about all of this.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT! Alice Springs, Outback, and Adelaide
We spent the first night in Alice Springs at a great hostel (I know, usually "great" and "hostel" don't go hand-in-hand), and awoke at 5:00 AM to begin our 3 day tour of the Outback. With a group of 20 others, who were all close to our age and similarly filled with too much energy, and our crazy tour guide, Heith, we set out for a 5 hour drive to King's Canyon. Once arriving there, we commenced a 3 hour hike around the canyon which was simply breathtaking. Literally. And hot. And when I say hot, I mean 40-45 C (104-113 F).
The rest of the day was spent driving some more, stopping at the occasional cattle ranch and other picture-worthy sights, until we made it to where we were sleeping, which was in the middle of nowhere... perfect for sleeping under the stars in our swags. The moon was so bright that I almost put on my sunglasses when sleeping to block the light out. This is not an exaggeration. Well, maybe. But it was the brightest I have ever seen the moon.
The next morning we awoke at 4:00 AM to see an Outback sunrise.. beautiful! We then drove to Mount Kata Tjuta, which was my favorite part of the tour. The 3 hour hike felt so surreal, as if I was walking on a different planet. I have never seen anything like it before and the entire time I repeatedly said "am I actually here?!" Only downside to all of this, though, were the flies. They were everywhere and would not leave you alone. They are somewhat tolerable until they swoop into your mouth, nose, ears, or your sunglasses... which happened all the time, making them never tolerable.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in a "resort" area near Uluru (Ayer's Rock). Fortunately, it had a pool, and I'm pretty sure our skin actually sizzled when we first jumped in. That evening we drove to a spot near Uluru to watch a sunset. Seriously? Does it get any better. Yes.
Early next morning we headed to Uluru to do the basewalk. It took us about a good 2 1/2 hours to walk around it, but every moment was spectacular. Besides the flies. And the dry heat. And my hunger level, which as you all know, is a constant high.
The rest of the day was spent driving back to Alice Springs, with a stop at a camel farm. Once arriving back to the hostel, our group spent the rest of the evening together until everyone died of exhaustion.
We spent another day and night at Alice Springs, walking around the area, shopping and attempting to have a normal body temperature by spending the majority of the time in the pool. Both mornings I attempted a run, but I'm pretty sure a turtle would have been able to pass me.
The next day we flew from Alice Spring back to Adelaide to spend the night there. Thanks to our awesomely amazing friend, Kit, who grew up in Adelaide, she arranged for us to spend the night at her house with her parents. I LOVED Adelaide... as in if I ever live in Australia, that's where I would find myself. It's a somewhat small city filled with old buildings and many, many trees. Kit lives in a 150 year-old house which I was pretty much in awe of the entire time. Her mom drove us around, giving us a grand tour of the city, highlights including a Christmas lights display and a stop at a pie floater cart (do not ask). Thankfully, her dad was willing to take us to the airport at 5:30 AM the next morning for our final flight back to the Gold Coast.
That's pretty much the abstract to the entire report I could write on this trip. There's so much I could say but I really don't even know where to begin. However, I am leaving out some details that I at least think are pretty interesting...
- The spot where we slept on the first night of our Outback tour is owned by a man who owns 1,006,000 acres of land. How is that even possible?
- Yes, we did see dead kangaroos on the side of the road.
- During the second night while I was passed out, others saw dingoes walking through the area where we were sleeping.
- I'll try not to go on a lecture right now, but obviously in Alice Springs there were plenty of Aboriginals. Do some research on them, and you'll quickly understand the condition that these people are in. It's a heavy, debatable topic on what to do about it, but either way, seeing the Aboriginal children broke my heart.
- 35 people have died climbing Uluru.
- Props to my friend, Abbey, for putting up with me during the many, many hours we spent on the bus together. I resort to childlike behaviour when confined for such a long time.
- I have never drank so much water in my life. But it barely did anything because the water in your water bottle was basically boiling.
- Speaking of water, it took much coaching for me to pee in the middle of the Outback. I suppose its a good thing, but my body simply does not understand the concept of peeing when I'm not sitting on a toilet. Yes, this may all be too much information, but it's the truth.
Now off to study for exams.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Olga, Scuttles and Charred Feet- Moreton Island
1. Joe and Olga. An old, Italian couple who also did the tour. I have no idea what they were thinking when they signed up for it because they strike me as the type who would rather spend their weekend in a bed and breakfast, not camping on an island. After our first adventure of climbing up the world's largest sand dune, I thought that they might die. However, their surivival was a good thing because Joe blessed us with only speaking in Italian grunts the rest of the weekend (I honestly didn't hear him say one word the entire time) and with the opportunity to take the best picture of my life (see below):
2. Scuttles. I cannot stand crabs (FYI, all crabs are called "scuttles" in my book). If they want to pinch me or not, I want nothing to do with them. Therefore, when we arrived on the isolated of all isolated beaches and were told to go look at the scuttles, I knew I was in for it. There weren't just a few scuttles. Or a few hundred. There were thousands. Actually, take infinity to the infinite power, and that's how many scuttles there were. I wanted to vomit. And the worst part is that everyone was basking in the scuttles, rolling around in them as if it was some spa treatment. However, scuttle beach turned into one of my favorite areas because there were "rivers" formed from the tides that were as warm as bath water and would let the current carry you until you got held up in sand. Then I would just roll.
3. Ship Wrecks. To help tourism and marine life, several ships were sunk around the island. We were able to snorkel around them, which was quite fun until Shawn saw a shark (I have never seen anyone book it so fast out of the water before). On the last day we were scheduled to snorkel some more, but a wicked storm blew in that was awesome to watch. Included in this storm watching was us diving into the ocean only to come flailing back to the safety of the 4x4 when lightning struck and dolphins and loggerhead turtles swimming right in front of the area that we were watching. Below is a picture of some of the ship wrecks, with an attempt of a Happy Thanksgiving greeting to you Americans.
Tandeming with Stephanie. Best part: the crash at the end.
I could go on and on about every single thing that we did, but that means this post would be a novel long and no one would want to read it (let's be honest, there is a negative correlation b/w the length of a blog entry and the amount of people who read it). Some last words is that one of my favourite areas was Blue Lake that was near our campsite. It was a gorgeous, fresh water lake that we swam in numerous times throughout the day. I also enjoyed the champaign pools, which was an area surrounded my large rocks that we stood in to get trampled by waves. Fun, I know.
Sadly, I have one more tripped planned, and then its exams and heading back to the states. But it's the mother of all trips.. the Outback... one week... in the summer... we might die.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Crikey! Enough of these spiders.
Why was this such a good zoo experience? One, it wasn't crowded at all.. in other words, we did not have to deal with the usual screeching kids who demand for every stuffed animal souvenir. Two, although the zoo was rather small, it was the most interactive zoo of my life. We got to feed the elephants, watch an otter feeding... the list goes on and on. One of my favourite parts of the day was the tiger show (see pic below). I think my mouth was hanging open the entire time.
We also got to chill with kangaroos and pet koalas (so strange.. you just go into this area called the "Koala Walk" and there are koalas just moping around in the trees. Next to a tree it simply says "Pat a koala." Ok.) As we were leaving, one of the workers was walking a wombat around on a leash. This made me happy.
Monday, November 16, 2009
I do more than just travel. I buy earrings that have marijianna leaves on them.
We then attempted to find some waterfalls in the surrounding area, but that was a complete failure. We were extremely low on gas, driving up and down mountains... we gave up. Either way, we saw some breathtaking views, and we eventually wound up back in Byron. Although I have already been there twice before, any place that provides me with a beach and gelato is good enough.
I've realised that all of my posts have solely been about traveling, and I've failed to mention where I live besides hostels and tents and what I spend the majority of my time doing. First thing first, housing. I live off campus in what I suppose you would call townhouses (see picture below). I have my own room, though two other girls (one American, one Aussie/American) share the house/apartment/whatever with me.
I absolutely love the place where I am staying, though I have hard wood floors and a bed with wheels, which isn't a good combination. My favourite part, though, is our pool (see picture below) which is a great place to do some reading and studying.
Besides school work, which you all know I do excessively, I've really enjoyed not being spread so thin with all of the activities I usually get myself involved in. I do attend weekly BCC (Bond Christian Connection), where I have met some really great people. When I'm not traveling, I'll go to Hope Church on Sundays, which has a contemporary worship service.
Monday, November 9, 2009
SYDNEY! And, no, I did not find Nemo.
The next day we spent hiking the Blue Mountains. After a 2 hour train ride, we stepped into the mountain town in our shorts and t-shirts only to find everyone else bundled like eskimos. Opps. We quickly learned that if we kept a good pace, the cool weather wouldn't bother us too much, even though we are greatly spoiled by the warm weather in the Gold Coast. Despite the misty and foggy weather, the sites were gorgeous and we even had a go at climbing a waterfall (not the one pictured below, but you can pretend that is the one). Success, minus Chris slipping and falling down about 10 feet. I may or may not have found great enjoyment out of that.
That evening we ate at a Japanese restaurant. Chris ordered eel. I tried it. I wanted to die until I had breakfast the next morning.
Saturday was perhaps the longest day of my life, but in a good way. The entire day was spent walking around Sydney, trying to see as much as we possibly could. The day began with the best eating experience of my entire life: Tip Jar. Waffles. Let me describe in detail: waffle topped with PB, roasted nuts, whipped cream, and PB ice cream on the side. Enough said. We then went to the markets where I proceeded to spend way too much money. Anywho, highlights of our sightseeing adventure were the Anzac Memorial, St. Andrew's Cathedral, Opera House, Luna Park and Sydney Harbour Bridge. I wanted to be pushed in a stroller by the end of the day.
Our last full day was spent at the famous Bondi Beach, which unfortunately had poor weather. But that did not deter us from spending the entire day looking through the shops and markets and the display of sculptures by the sea. The rest of the evening was spent back in the central part of Sydney until we finally collapsed in bed, only to get up at 3:30 AM to catch the plane back. Get this: the flight from Sydney to the Gold Coast was shorter than the time spent on the bus traveling from the Gold Coast Airport to my house here in Robina. I hope that brief story clearly sums up my feelings about public transportation here in Surfers.
On a more positive note about the Gold Coast, it was comforting to know that after spending 4 days away, I had a sigh of relief once getting off the plane knowing that I was back home, so to speak. I truly am falling in love with this place and I cannot fathom that I have exactly 1 month and 11 days left.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Byron Bay, Mutant Spider, and Powerpuff Girls. Oi.
Nevertheless, we arrived safely and spent the morning walking around the area. Byron Bay is the quintessential hippie town and is extremely laid back. We went up to a lookout that is the most Easterly point in Australia where we saw dolphins and whales before a storm out at sea rolled in (see picture below. Pretty cool, egh?).
The entire afternoon was spent sea kayaking, which was a lot of fun. As in, I wouldn't have wanted to be doing anything else in this world than that. We went tandem, and it was quite a rough start for Abbey and I when our kayak flipped as we attempted to get through the break in the waves. Abbey getting pinned under the kayak wasn't as funny for her as it was for me, yet we did eventually make it out to sea with the guide who was with us. Probably the highlight of our adventure, besides everything, was the SEA TURTLES we saw. And by sea turtles I mean loggerhead sea turtles. As in 250 lbs of a sea turtle. Coffee-size table. The only thing bigger than the sea turtles were my eyes. We kayaked around for a long time and it wasn't before long when sea sickness overcame the majority of us. No one got it as bad as Bethany who vomitted, but she did it with a smile and was fine afterwards. Yet another highlight was riding the waves once we got back to shore. Abbey and I were determined not to flip, and maticulously following the directions of paddling as fast as you can, it was quite a scene to see our kayak soaring above the waves, our paddles not even touching the water, yet us frantically paddling in the air as fast as we could. The guide gave us Tim Tams afterwards which made me really happy.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Here's a great idea: instead of sleeping, let's climb a mountain.
Alex, the leader of us fools, allowed us to stay at her place until 1:00 AM, which is when we drove toward the mountain that was about 45 minutes away. The beauty of all of this is that because it was so dark, none of us had any idea of what we were getting ourselves into. All I know is that we began at the base of some "hill" and hiked upward. It was about 2 minutes into our ascent that I asked "Wait, is this going to be uphill the entire way?" Let's just put it this way- hiking up a mountain is a lot different than walking up a hill. Adding in the element of complete darkness and having only 4 torches among 15 of us resulted in quite an adventure. Because I secretly find amusement out of others misfortunes, I found it highly entertaining each time you heard someone stumble... well, unless it was me.
As we descended, everyone's moods took a similar dip. By the end, my typical threat of "I'm going to punch you in the face" had morphed into death threats, and the thought of doing any form of work when I got home made me want to burn my textbooks. However, 1 hr. of sleep did me well and I survived all of Friday (although my dinner did consist of just coffee).
Monday, October 19, 2009
Camping at North Stradbroke Island- Mollusks, 30K, and Bogans
The first afternoon was spent exploring the area around our campsite. This is when my stupidity takes a large role in the story. Three of us decided to climb some rocks that protruded into the ocean a ways out. The climb there was a bit challenging, but once we got to the end, it was nice to sit, with sharp surfaces sticking into your butt, and enjoy the view. I noticed that the tide was coming in quickly, so I decided to get back to shore. Deadly. Kendra vs. waves & rocks covered with mollusks was an immediate defeat on my part. The waves were a lot stronger than before and countless times I was thrown like a limp rag doll into these boulders that were covered with mollusks (which have become the bane of my existence). When I finally did reach shore, I had a pleasant stream of blood to prove that inanimate objects can overtake someone with a higher mental functioning (or so I thought).
The funny part about camping is that as much as I love it, when I lay down to try to fall asleep, I curse myself for giving up the comforts of modern society. It didn't help very much when the joke of putting the shortest person and the 2 tallest people in the same tent turned into reality. The first night resulted in fighting like they were my brothers, and by the 2nd night, I had resigned to the fact that I would be squished, have my pillow taken, and loose all of the padding that I took to sleep on. But the worst part of all were our "neighbors," the bogans (Australian term for hillbillies). These bogans were the worst things that Australia has to offer. They drink more than I breathe. They swear more than I blink. And they are louder than the idiots who play their bass in the car that it makes the world vibrate. Below is a picture that displays the stupidity in which we dealing with:
Despite getting 0 hours of sleep, 3 of us left at 7:00 AM to embark on a 30K (~20 miles) hike. It was quite an adventure, taking us through all sorts of terrain, with the help of Aussies who stopped along the way and to give us water. The highlights were seeing a kangeroo, a mutant lizard (only way to describe it), a squid, jellyfish, and of course, the breathtaking scenery. We hiked to Blue Lake, which was the bluest lake water I have ever swam in. The remainder of our hike was along the beach, which took forever and a day. The beach itself was a sight to behold... miles and miles of nothing (no people, no buildings, no nothin'). But the miles and miles were the downfall... I thought we would never make it. We could see the point that we were heading toward, but it never got closer. Obviously, we did make it, and it was all well worth it.
Our last day was spent at Point Lookout which may have the potential of having the most beautiful sites I have seen so far in Australia (see below). But despite its beauty, the best part was the wildlife. Initially we saw dolphins, which I was more than thrilled about. However, out of the corner of my eye, I saw this huge animal rocket out of the water and make an enourmous splash. Humpback whales. I just about died. Actually, I screamed. The next 30 minutes were spent watching these whales breach, with an occasional siting of dolphins and a manta ray. Seriously?!?!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Volunteer Weekend- South East QLD: Mt. Barney (or Bonnie, as an Aussie would say)
None of us had any idea of what we were getting ourselves into. Friday morning we were picked up by a 4X4 and began driving to the unknown, which eventually led to over 45 minutes of off-roading up a mountain. The picture below is one that I was able to take when I was not flailing around like a limp rag doll in the vehicle.
We then arrived at where we were staying, which was perfect for me. Living outdoors this past summer, I was more than happy to see that our accomodations were quite rustic. It was great to get away from Ipods, mobiles, internet... everything that takes over modern society and makes us forget the beautiful place in which we live.
Our group was led by Kim, a young mother who has a degree in insects or something and is passionate about conservation. The place where we were staying were owned by two Aussies, Ben, who loved talking about the compost toilets, and Max, who only uttered Australian grunts (but when you could understand him, he was hilarious). It was great to get to know them all, and by the end of the weekend, my prized possession was the picture I had taken with Max and Ben (see below).
Our two days spent there were filled with both work and relaxation. On site we helped move logs and rocks from an area to help prevent forest fires from spreading. The majority of Saturday was spent farther down the mountain, picking an invasive plant called moth weed (see picture below). One girl in particular was not too thrilled about going into the brush and searching for these weeds because of the threat of snakes and spiders, but the only problems we encountered were being "Nettled" (getting prickled by this stupid Nettle Plant that basically took over the entire vegetation).
Although I'm one to never get seriously injured (knock on wood), I often find myself as the one who has the annoying little problems. I, of course, had to be the one mulled over by the wheelbarrow of rocks that fell over, in addition to the one who found a tick burrowing into my back. And I really don't think it's possible for me to walk through the forest without stumbling on every root, rock, and stick.
After preparing "family" meals, our evenings were spent around large campfires, enjoying tea and each other's company. Unfortunately, my camera cannot capture the amazing display of stars we saw. Looking up into the sky that was not ruined by city lights or any other form of civilization was both surreal and unrealistic, and is always a reminder of my insignificance in the great scheme of things. That thought, though, lasted until I got into our cabin and focused all of my attention on how to keep myself warm.. which ended up resulting in 2 pairs of pants, 3 shirts, 1 jacket, 2 sheets, and 5 blankets.
In terms of wildlife, I did see a couple wallabies jumping around and our campsite was overpopulated with kookaburras. These birds had a fun time messing with us, especially when we were all gawking at a scorpion that we found under a log and a kookaburra swooped right down between us, grabbed the scorpion, and crunched it like a chip.
It was a great weekend, with quite a few laughs, and I already miss the feeling of being away from unadulterated nature.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Death by Chocolate and Other Horrors of Studying in Paradise
This past weekend was the first in which I remained here in Robina. Friday was spent at my friend's Leum's house. He had a bunch of people from BCC (Bond Christian Community) over and it was good to see that Australians can manage to have clean fun. Leum himself is quite the character, and we all had a go at his vegan food and enjoyed spending time with his vegan dog while acting in vegan ways. The end result was Vegemite on my face (Vegemite is this spread that is quite popular in AU, though I will never understand why. It tastes like soy sauce gone wrong).
Saturday was spent in Surfers Paradise, where we began our day with brunch at a Chocolate Bar. Yes, you read correctly. It was delicious, but from the picture below, you can see the aftermath of the intensity of the chocolate in which we consumed. The rest of the day was spent browsing the cheap tourist shops (you know the type... 5 crappy T-shirts for 10 bucks and shot glasses with inappropriate sayings. Beautiful) and walking the beach.
Above is a picture of Bond during the dust storm a week or so ago. It was the strangest thing walking out of class and not encountering bright blue skies. Sydney got it a lot worst than we did, but there were still the hypochondriacs walking around with their face masks. I even saw one person wearing what resembled a Power Ranger helmet a few days later.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Brisbane
It was not as if I had low expectations for Brisbane, but I was overly impressed that I could actually spend an entire enjoyable day in a city without feeling too claustrophobic or suffocating from exhaust fumes. The day began by visiting St. John's Cathedral (which is not the church pictured below; deal with it) which I absolutely loved because its beauty reminded me of Hope's chapel back at home.
After spending the morning walking around on one side of the river, we crossed the bridge and that was when Brisbane's awesomeness truly hit me. There is a long boardwalk along the river called South Bank that was filled with markets, cafes, and most importantly, pools/lagoons. The picture below is just one of the countless lagoons in which you could swim. Because we didn't have our swimmies, we people watched, which observing human behaviour/stupidity always provides ample forms of amusement.
After walking some more, we came across this huge concert/rave/something that was hearding drunk people like it was their job. Being the naive person I am, I initially thought it was some fundraising walk to raise money for the betterment of humanity, yet after watching an exciting episode of cocky males who think they have too much testosterone try to break down a fence to get in, I realized otherwise. Amusing, nevertheless.
By the end of the day, we were so exhuasted from walking that I was contemplating investing in either a wheelchair or stroller. We crawled into an Italian restaurant where we met up with some other friends who were also visiting Brisbane. The train ride back was pleasantly uneventful, besides being caught taking a picture of two guys who were sleeping on each others' shoulders.
Looking at this picture is painful because as I write I am eating what dad would call cardboard fritters (chicken nuggets). Believe it or not, I am still a typical college student who drinks instant coffee and waits until I wear my last pair of clean underwear to do the laundry. I just try to hide that part of my Australian existence.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Mojosurf
This past weekend, I, along with a plethora of other desperate foreigners who were yearning to learn to surf, traveled to Spot X for a weekend surf camp. After a 5 hour bus ride, filled with wise people who think it's a good idea to drink on a bus, we arrived at the location and were tossed into our accommodations. They were.. small, yet we can't complain because at least they were clean.
6:00 AM rolled around and we were off for our first 2 hour surf lesson. Our instructors were the stereotypical surfer, which only added to the experience. Besides teaching us all of the ways that we can die when we set out feet in the ocean, we learned the basics to surfing and how to stand up on the board and what not (below is a picture of us getting warmed up). We started out on the beginner boards with beginner waves so that our self-esteem wouldn't be too damaged. Either way, it does take sometime to get used to it.
After stuffing our faces at lunch (which many of you know, I can eat my body weight in food), we had another 2 hours of surfing. The afternoon waves were a lot more difficult than the morning's and I had my fair share of being knocked over, salt water plunging into my nose, and other surf boards mulling me over. It was exhausting, yet nothing beat the feeling when you actually caught a wave and road it to shore.
The next morning we had our last 2 hour surf session and by that time I could definitely see improvement. Our bodies, though, had taken quite a beaten;when I was on my stomach on the board I thought quite possibly my ribs were collapsing and that all of the skin on my knees had rubbed off. It was completely worth it, though.
Making a brief stop at Bryon Bay on the way home, we arrived back Sunday evening, which should have been the time in which reality sets in and you realize that you have classes to attend this week, but I waited until Monday to let that horrific feeling arise. It was a fantastic weekend, spent with great friends, and I can't wait to surf again. I already splurged on some surfing gear, and for being such a cheapskate, that's saying a lot.
It was gorgeous there (just like everything else here, including people) and because it was a private beach, there was not an abundance of annoying tourist like me clogging the area. I wish I could go back!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Bond Week
Oh, and keep in mind, this is their winter. WHAT?!?!!?
Monday, September 7, 2009
Cairns, AU
- Rainforest- Word. AWESOME. We got to get our pictures taken with a koala, but I felt really bad for it because I would hate to have its life. Then we entered into this area where there were kangeroos literally jumping everywhere around us; this has the potential to be the greatest animal experience of my life, minus when I once got a grasshopper stuck in my jeans. We basically got to hang out with kangeroos for awhile, and then we watched an Aboriginal tribal dance and learned how to throw a boomerang. We ended the day going on a safari, riding in an Army Duck (I could totally be butchering what it's actually called.. but it's a boat with wheels).
- Great Barrier Reef- SERIOUSLY?!?! Best day yet in this continent. We headed out early in the morning, and took about a 2 hour boat ride to the area in which we would be snorkeling and scuba diving. Words can't even describe how gorgeous this place is. I felt like I was on the Travel Channel. Snorkeling was a lot of fun, but the highlight of my day was scuba diving. I gotta admit, it was kind-of scary at first. But once you trust that you aren't going to breathe in a mouth full of salt water instead of air, it was a blast. I wish I could have taken pictures of all of the beautiful coral and exotic fish I saw, but just know that the pictures you do see on the Discovery Channel are the real deal.
In our spare time, we were allowed to go off on our own and explore Cairns. I fell in love with their downtown; it was so alive at night and there was much to do. We did get lost one time for an hour trying to find our bus stop, and I suppose asking someone for help just because they have an accent wasn't the best idea. About 15 minutes after having them lead us around, I finally asked one where he was from, and he replied England. Figures.
After our weekend in Cairns, we flew back to Brisbane and I'm finally at my University, sitting here in my new apartment. More on that later, but everything is really great, overwhelming the majority of times, but I'll learn to cope.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Pre-Departure
So far in my preparations for traveling I have practiced crying so when I get lost in the airport and have no clue what I'm doing, people will feel bad for the girl who looks like she is 12 and is traveling alone. I figure it will work. Going into this whole situation, I basically have the mindset of "how is life going to kick my butt this time?" I'm expecting that everything that could possibly go wrong, will indeed go wrong. Therefore, if my luggage and I both make it to Australia in one piece, I'll be quite satisfied.
Nevertheless, the ideal situation is that I will successfully make it from Columbus to Chicago to Los Angelas to Brisbane and finally to Cairns without dying of stress. Those who know me well will know this is a difficult feat, but I think I can manage.
I'll wrap it up now because I don't want to bore you. I'll try to do my best to keep my posts short (therefore avoiding excuciating details of how many people I saw wearing fanny packs or the count of how many people used the bathroom on the plane flights) so that maybe you'll want to continue reading what I post next. It's just a goal.