oh Cairns...

Cairns was quite an adventure! We met so many cool people from all over! We even met some Canadians! We stayed at Gilligan's, which is a HUGE hostel that has a bar. So it's pretty much a nonstop party place until 5am. Luckily our room was muffled from the sound so it was easy to sleep at night. While staying at Gilligan's, we met quite a few minor league AFL players who were staying there on vacation. Talk about a lot of boys to a small amount of girls! We had a room of them next door to us, and we definitely got along with them pretty well :)

Day 1: BUNGY JUMPING! So much fun and so intense! It was 134 ft in the air, with basically a huge rubberband attached to your ankles by a rope and a harness around your waist. They were impressed with how well I could put on my harness. Must've been all those years on the ropes course! Anyway, my first jump was forward. I was so nervous and scared to jump! They count down backwards, 5,4,3,2,1 but when he got to 2 I kept say no,no,no and then I just jumped! It was so amazing, and such a feeling. The ending was the worst because you spin like mad as your bungy is loose. The second jump was a little more intense. I decided to go backwards. And almost blindfolded. But we skipped the blindfold. I had to lean back while the guy held on to me. He told me he had me, but of course I kept asking. Leaning backwards is NOT a natural thing to do, so I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly started to lean. He told me to wave to the camera, so I did. Then he started counting backwards, but stopped after 4 and said "wait, alright. Wave to the camera again!" Then he dropped me as soon as I started waving. CRAZY DUDE! but totally wicked! I'll see about uploading the videos later.

 Yeah, it was pretty high

 Me with the sign

Day 2: Fitzroy Island. Such a pretty island, and we had to take a ferry to get there! We got to the Island around 10am, and were there until about 4pm. We went snorkeling, paddleboarding and jumped on a trampoline in the ocean. I bought a waterproof bag for my camera and took some awesome pictures while snorkeling! It was a great day of relaxing on the beach that was made of pure dead coral (it was hard) and playing in the water.

Map of the Island

Me paddleboarding! I was standing at one point, but decided it was easier on my knees.

 The sweet trampoline

 I followed this little guy around. He was so colorful and pretty!

 Ashley and I snorkeling

 Part of the Island

Day 3: Passions of Paradise: Snorkeling, Diving and Sailing! BEST DAY EVER! This was the day I went diving for the first time and LOVE LOVE LOVED it! We first stopped at Michelman's Cave, which is where I went diving. My dad convinced to go, so obviously I did. It was absolutely amazing! Such pretty colors and definitely a whole new experience. I saw many cool fish, held a crab, and ran my fingers through what felt like wet spaghetti. Ew. But still cool! I did find Nemo on my dive! That was the best part! He was in his anemone just hangin out. Then we had lunch which was a huge spread of delicious food. SO GOOD! Then it was back out into a different part of the ocean, called Paradise Cove (I think). We found different looking Nemo's there, and followed one of the guides from our boat to look at cool things. We saw the drop off, which was unreal but still really cool! After we were done snorkeling, it was time to head back to land. While on our way back, one of the guides was doing magic card tricks. They were pretty neat, and none of us could figure out how he was doing them. We also had tea, coffee and cookies for the ride back. I got a certificate for doing an introductory dive. Overall it was a fantastic day!

 Me! So much fun!

 The crab

 Nemo!

 Drop off into open water

 Carolyn, Ashley and I (thanks to our guide OJ!)

Day 4: Uncle Brian's Rainforest Tour! Craziest.TourGuide.EVER. Literally crazy. He looked like Captain Jack Sparrow and even acted like him. It was exciting though. We first went on a short little walk through the rainforest to see what it looked like and take some pictures. Then it was off to the fun part: the rock slide! The water was absolutely FREEZING but you got used to it after a while. We made 2 chains of about 7 or 8 people long and went down the slide. We kind of failed at staying together, but we still made it work. While on Gus the Bus, we played a game with matchsticks and a lifesaver. We had to pass the lifesaver only using the matchstick, which we put in our mouths. Quite a fun game if I do say so myself! After that, it was off to lunch. Lunch was seriously so good. We had cous cous with chicken, mud pie with ice cream, bread and salad. YUMMY! After lunch, we went to a waterfall and took pictures like the Herbal Essences models and a "'massage" from the waterfall. The pictures were quite interesting to take, and the water was even colder than the rock slide water. The pictures did turn out quite amazing! After the waterfall, it was off to a volcano lake, but that water was also cold. So we didn't get in. After that, we went to see if we could find some platypuses. We saw a few, but then it got dark and it was time to head home. On the way back to Gilligan's, we listened to some old jams and of course had sing-alongs!

 Carolyn, Ashley, and I flipping our hair back

 Ain't nothin' but a hair flip.

 The chain we tried to form

 Me going down the rock slide

After all the fun events, we did have a few fun nights out! We danced on tables, had a few drinks, and I even got my face painted our last night in town! We went to Gilligan's and Woolsheds the most. In fact, our first night in Cairns, we went out, came back and went to bed, and Nicole and I were dragged back out with our roommate a few other boys. We had a great time and definitely made some new friends!

 Me, Nicole and Ashley at Woolshed's

 Nicole and I met Alan from The Hangover!

 Nicole, Benton, Ashley and I

 Me teaching Kyle how to pose properly for pictures

 Face paint!

Cairns was a blast, and I can't wait to one day go back and go diving some more!

Peace and Love to you all!

We Went to the Zoo, a show, and celebrated a few birthdays!

Hello everyone! So sorry I've been slacking on this blog! There hasn't really been much to report on, other than school field trips which are boring, and the zoo! The Taronga Zoo is a ferry ride away from Sydney, with fantastic views of the sky line, Bridge, and Opera House! We had fun looking at all the different animals,  but didn't get to see a platypus! We did see some crazy reptiles, tall giraffes (of course) and huge elephants! We also saw some spotted deer, which of course reminded me of Iowa :) Here are some pictures from that trip:

That same weekend, we also went to see Australia Day at the Opera House, thanks to TEAN! The show was about how different generations and people reacted to Australia Day, as well as what they thought it stood for. The second half was definitely better than the first, so obviously they saved the best for last! Here's a picture of what the set looked like:

After taking this photo, I heard we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the theatre, so I wasn't able to get a picture of what the second half set looked like.

The previous weekend, Hollie, Ashley and I headed to our friend Danah's house to celebrate her turning 21! They celebrate 21st's here differently than we do. Their families throw a party and people give speeches about how much the person means to them. It was so much fun and I was glad I was able to participate in celebrating!

The cake! It was so good!

Me, Ashley, Danah, and Hollie

Sarah and I

Maddie and I

We also helped our roommate George celebrate his 22nd birthday! Alex and I made him a cake, and did a pretty good job with the resources we had and with our stove not having any numbers on it :)

 George blowing out his 22 candles!

Well, that's all I have for now! Enjoy :)

Fiji Experience!

Fiji was a blast! I had so much fun with all of my roommates, a few other Americans, some Brits, Germans and of course, the natives!

Bula = hello, cheers, welcome

Vinaka = thank you

Here's a run down of what we did each day:

Day One: Arrival day! We left our apartment at 7:30am to get to the airport to make our flight at 10:45. We landed in Fiji at Nadi Bay Airport around 5:30ish. We got our rooms at Nadi Bay beach Resort, then headed straight to the restaurant to get something to eat. The food was good, and the drinks were great! We hung out for a while and chatted with the boys, but we were all tired so we went back to our room. Unfortunately I was wide awake when we went back to our room, so I ended up reading for most of the night. I finally went to sleep well after 2:30am.

Day Two: Bright and early wake up for breakfast and check-out! We met our first tour guide, Kay. We went into the market at Nadi, and bought lots of bottles of water. Some of the places we couldn't drink the water due to the bacteria and how it would react to our stomachs. After the market, we headed to Natadola Beach, one of the top 10 beaches in the world! We sunbathed all afternoon, had a yummy picnic BBQ cooked by our bus driver and tour guides, and rode horses. Now let me tell you, these horses were slightly malnourished. We only wanted pictures on the horses, not an actual ride. Before Ashley and I could say anything, we were walking away. We told the guys we didn't want a ride, and they told us we owed $20. We protested and ended up not having to pay. After that, we all layed out in the sun and I got a little burnt. After the beach, we headed to the sand dunes! They were so so so much fun! My first time down, it was smooth sailing! My second time down, I kind of wiped out, and had so much sand in places sand should not go! After sand duning, we headed to Mango Bay Resort. At Mango Bay, we slept in bunk beds covered with sheets to protect us from the mosquitoes. We had so so so much fun at Mango Bay, drinking and dancing the night away. We tried some Kava, which is a root plant drink that is very popular in Fiji. It has a very interesting taste, and I don't plan on drinking any more any time soon.

Day Three: Jungle Trek day! This was a very interesting adventure. We literally went stomping through the mud, waded through parts of a river, and jumped off of waterfalls! It was so pretty, and I wish I had my camera. There were some parts where my shoes got stuck, and parts where I said "screw it, the shoes are coming off!" We had to cross bamboo bridges to get to the other side of some grasslands, and a few people sunk into the ground up past their knees! The waterfalls were absolutely beautiful and kind of hard to get to. We had to climb vertically up a HUGE hill (mountain!) and through trees and vines. We stayed at the waterfall jump for about 2 hours before trekking back to our stuff. We started our trek to the boat to take us back to our bus. The trek back was awful. It was extremely hot, we were ready to be done. We were supposed to take tubes down to the boat, but the tide was too low. I don't know why we didn't just walk int the river, but oh well, we made it! The boat ride was very relaxing after a long morning of hiking! We past an Indian Village where the kids ran to the edge of the water and waved and jumped up & down saying "HI!". Once back on the bus, we were taken to the Uprising, where we stayed for 3 nights. We grabbed some lunch, and spent the rest of the day hanging out by the pool and just talking to everyone. 

Day Four: Today we just hung out and did pretty much NOTHING! Layed out by the beach, watched our roommates play volleyball, and literally did nothing but eat and have a few drinks!

Day Five: It was a little rainy, and was also a day to do nothing. A few of us got massages and they were AMAZING. Full body massages that were an hour long. Talk about the best hour ever! We also just ate and talked to the others on our tour, and met our new tour guide, Jerry.

Day Six: Today we went and visited the Nasatoka Village. We were welcomed with a traditional Kava Ceremony and visited the local school. The ceremony was very special and we each had to drink a bowl of Kava. One of the guys on our tor was the "chief", and had to accept the Kava for us. We also had to introduce ourselves, and after the ceremony we were considered part of the Village. The locals were AMAZING! They were so so nice and very welcoming. After the ceremony, we went and visited the local school. They put on a dance for us, and it was cute to see them welcome us. Some of them were shy, but still said hello. After visiting the school, we had the option to go bamboo rafting or have a small dance party with the locals. It was still pouring down rain, so we decided to do the dance party! We had a blast, and they really know how to dance! They played music and sang traditional Fijian songs. We finally had to say good-bye, and they sang us a good-bye song. It was very sweet, and made me a little teary-eyed. After the village, we headed to Volivoli resort, where we stayed for the next 3 nights. We had dinner as a group, and had  a few drinks. This night got a little out of hand, but we made the best of it.

Day Seven: A few of us went into town just to get away from the resort. You could definitely tell that we don't belong there, so we didn't stay long. The taxi ride was very cheap and we had the same taxi driver there and back to our resort. We layed out all afternoon and then went kayaking. That was a fun event :) After we ate dinner, we all went stargazing. It was so pretty and we could see so many stars!

Day Eight: This day was spent doing nothing but laying by the pool and reading/listening to music/hanging out. One of the guys lathered himself in sunscreen so it literally looked like he was wearing a t-shirt. So funny! We gave him so much crap for it, but it was all in good fun.

Day Nine: Left Volivoli and went straight to the mud baths! The mud felt so squishy and weird, but it was easy to get used to. We covered ourselves from shoulder to toe in mud and took a few group photo's. We also had a small mud fight, but nothing too crazy. After the mud bath was the hot springs. And let me tell you, that hot spring was HOT! It was about 1120*F, but it felt SO GOOD once your body was used to it. Once done with the hot springs, me and a few of the boys went and got massages. They were okay, but she focused on my right side more than my left side. And she attempted to work out a few kinks in my neck. Oh well. Next, we headed back to Nadi Bay Beach Resort. We had a few drinks with dinner and were exhausted by 8:30pm. No joke, Katie and I were asleep before 9pm. The rest of the girls came back, and I was so tired I mumbled something to them then passed back asleep.

Day Ten: Woke up bright eyed at 6am! I was so mad. I tried to go back to sleep, but with no such luck. Finally, everyone else woke up around 8, and we went and got some breakfast. We spent the morning by the pool waiting to check out and get the bus to the airport. Finally it was time to go home! We were a little more than excited to head back to Australia and to our apartments. We got home around 7:30, and went right out for dinner. Went to bed kind of early to get a good night's sleep for classes the next day!

Here are pictures!

Horseback ride

Sand duning!

Kava Ceremony

School kids

Having a drink by the pool

Us girls looking cute and tan!

Mud bath

Hot spring

the Blue Mountains aren't actually blue!

They only give off the blue tint due to the eucalyptus on the gum trees!

On Friday, August 24th, Hollie, Ashley and I went on a day trip to the Blue Mountains. Little did we know that our tour guide from Hunter Valley would be our tour guide for the Blue Mountains! It was a glorious reunion to be had :) His name is Adam and he's pretty amazing!

We walked by waterfalls, lost our breath walking along the edge, went down steeeeep stairs down into the mountains, and took the sky glider back to the top!

We had lunch in a separate part of the mountains, except it was SUPER cold. We made the best of it, and took pictures of the view!

I wish I could upload all my pictures, but there's so many of them. Also, pictures just don't do it justice! So I'll upload a few for you to enjoy :)

Rainbow in the mist

3 Sisters! and Baby Bambino?

That following Tuesday, Hollie and I did the Coogee to Bondi coastal walk. The walk was about 7 miles there and back, and we were exhausted! I ended up doing the walk home barefoot, just for fun. We climbed over rocks, sat on the edge, drew in the sand and had good smoothies once we got to Bondi. All in all it was a great afternoon with good company :) We also saw a guy playing soccer with his dog. SO COOL! 

A small update on the sickness front: I ended up getting worse after being on meds for a chest infection. I developed a small case of asthma and was put on an inhaler. I also have an allergy to dust mites and mold, so I am now on a daily nose spray. I was also put on meds to help clear out my lungs because they were sounding wheezy and full of junk. I know, fantastic right?! I am feeling A TON better now and only use my inhaler when I am short of breath or start wheezing. I cough every so often and no longer sneeze 24/7! Major improvement and am so happy to be feeling better! I am also on an allergy pill, but hey I always have to take allergy pills in the Spring/Summer!

Missing everyone from home, but definitely enjoying my time here! <3

Sydney Aquarium & Footy: How I Spent A Saturday!

Hello again fellow readers! I hope you are enjoying my updates as much as I am enjoying writing them!

On Saturday, the girls and I had to go on a field trip to the Sydney Aquarium for our Marine Environments class. We had to wake up at 7am (on a Saturday!!!) to be at Darling Harbour by 9am for our tour. While there, we also had to fill out a 5 page, 20 question worksheet on what we learned. Let me be real with you: It was awful! 160+ students trying to navigate around the aquarium with fellow patrons was not an easy task. We eventually cornered a guy and he helped us answer pretty much all of our questions. It was a little fun learning about the sharks and different kinds of coral. The field trip took about 2.5 hours and we were back home by 1. We all pretty much took naps and had a lazy afternoon.

Later that night, TEAN sent out a request to see if anyone wanted to go to an AFL footy game! It was so much fun! It was a lot like rugby and made me miss my Cyclone football! I learned a lot about the game and how they keep score. The players don't really wear any padding, so when they get tackled, it's their bare skin and head. No helmets are worn either! Crazy, I know! Anyway, if they kick the ball through the 2 tallest posts, then they get 6 points. I think if it goes through any other posts, they get 1 point. But don't quote me on it. The field they played on was the ANZ Stadium field, which is where the Sydney Olympics took place in 2008. Walking to the stadium,we saw the Sydney Olympic torch lit up, so of course we took pictures underneath it. It was very chilly in the stadium as it kept misting off and on throughout our time there. It was very warm under the fire so we stayed near it for a while.

L to R: Katherine, Jenna, Me, Ashley

This week is going to be a semi-stressful week. 3 huge papers due on Friday... Whoop! So much fun! I love school!

Alright, time to work on those papers.

Laters! <3